Suits by Molyneux ("Modes & Travaux, 1938)

Until the mid-1950s the covers of Modes & Travaux always depicted designs by well-known Paris couturiers.   This issue, from November 1938, features two suits by Edward Molyneux.

In spite of his name, Molyneux was born in England.  He got his start in fashion as a sketcher for the House of Lucile in London before the First World War.  After the war (where he served as a captain in the British Army) he set up his own fashion house in Paris.  By 1938 he had established branches in Monte Carlo, Cannes, Biarritz and London.  He was particularly known for his tailored suits and matching ensembles.

During the Second World War, Molyneux was based in London, where he became one of the founding members of the Incorporated Society of London Fashion Designers (along with such luminaries as Norman Hartnell and Digby Morton) and he was one of the designers asked by the Board of Trade to design prototype garments for the Utility clothing scheme.