Mary Quant, Fashion Designer Who Invented the Miniskirt, Dead at 93
Mary Quant has died. The iconic fashion designer's family told multiple outlets that she died at her home in Surrey, England, on Thursday. She was 93.
Quant and her eventual husband, Alexander Plunket Greene, who died in 1990, opened their London boutique, Bazaar, in 1955. Around the same time, Quant began shortening the hemlines on the skirts she sold at her customers' request.
While there's some debate about who was the first to shorten skirts -- some credit French designer André Courrèges with doing so -- most agree that it was Quant who popularized the item. Quant, who was known for her chic bob haircut, coined the term "miniskirt" as a nod to her favorite car, the Mini, AP reports.
In addition to the miniskirt, Quant is thought to have invented hot pants, the skinny-rib sweater and waterproof mascara, according to CBS News.
Eventually, Quant began selling her clothes in America and had a line at J.C. Penny. She went on to launch a cosmetics line, and also sold housewares, stationary, paint and more. Quant was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1966 and was made a dame in 2015.
"It's impossible to overstate Quant's contribution to fashion," The Victoria and Albert Museum wrote on Twitter. "She represented the joyful freedom of 1960s fashion, and provided a new role model for young women. Fashion today owes so much to her trailblazing vision."
Per The New York Times, Quant is survived by her and Plunket Greene's son, Orlando Plunket Greene; her brother, Tony Quant; and three grandchildren.
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