Fashion designer Ossie Clark and wife Celia Birtwell photographed in London, 1971.Celia Birtwell first became famous in late 60's London after her lending her hand-printed fabrics to husband Ossie Clark's fashion designs. What resulted was the birth of the modern catwalk show and an impressive rock star following. Clients of the partnership included the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Mick and Bianca Jagger, Paloma Picasso and David Hockney, to whom she would serve as a muse for years following.
The swinging, hedonistic lifestyle eventually caught up with pair and they divorced in the mid-seventies. After the tumultuous marriage ended, Birtwell turned away from fashion and focused on the "less manic" world of interior fabrics, opening her home design shop in Notting Hill in 1984. This past fall, the Celia Birtwell's line of 60's inspired textiles and home furnishings became available at the L.A. showroom of Suzan Fellman.
An older and wiser Celia Birtwell at the the Suzan Fellman Showroom in Los Angeles. Wingback chairs upholstered in Birtwell's "Howard" linen. (Photographed for Vanity Fair).
Pillows in Celia Birtwell's "Imagine" pattern
David Hockney poses with his muse in front of his 1971 painting, "Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy", a portrait of Celia Birtwell with her former husband Ossie Clark. The painting, rich with symbolism, is one of the most visited at the Tate Gallery in London. 
As Beach Bungalow 8 posted back in September, Birtwell designed a line of vintage garments for Topshop. The collection of roughly 1,000 pieces sold out of the English chain store in a record 6 minutes. To view Celia Birtwell's complete home textile collection, visit her website.
