For Kate Spade's creative director Deborah Lloyd, it was a random bookstore encounter with Helen O'Neill's Broadhurst biography that sparked an interest in the designer.
'I was instantly intrigued by Florence's amazing story,' she says. 'Florence was ahead of her time, in the sense that her prints were so bold and her use of colour really innovative.'
Broadhurst's diverse range of prints produced in the 1960s and '70s is a smart fit with the playful-but-chic Kate Spade brand. For the Spring 2012 range, the US label took inspiration from Broadhurst's eccentric colour wheel. There's a knee-length sleeveless fuchsia cocktail dress with a pleated kick. A boxy handbag pops in neon green. Coral, the colour of the moment, features on bags (right) and necklaces.
Kate Spade also dug into the Broadhurst archive to revive original prints on clothing as well as on shoes, handbags and suitcases. 'Our big print for spring was the Japanese Floral in black and cream,' says Lloyd. The pattern is a clean, simple repetition of a flower, and works well either black-on-cream or reversed.'
Japanese Floral on a black background takes on a classic look of a pea-coat-style jacket with a rounded collar, but is just at home on a pair of delicate summery heels. Flipped on a white background, the pattern is a fitting match with a vanity case.
'I love the vintage-inspired luggage [above right] we did in the Japanese Floral print,' says Lloyd. 'It is a nod to Florence and her wild adventures.'
