Ashley, Laura (1925-1985), was a Welsh fashion and textile designer. She won fame for her elegant but simple fabrics, garments, and home furnishings designed in a Victorian style. Ashley first produced printed headscarves. She later expanded the business to include furnishing textiles, household items, and women’s and children’s fashions. She drew inspiration from the small prints found in the textiles of the 1800’s. Ashley was one of the first designers to return to the use of natural fabrics, such as cotton and linen.
Laura Mountney was born on Sept. 7, 1925, in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, and educated there. She served in the Women’s Royal Navy Service during World War II (1939-1945). The sensible style of her uniform became a major influence on her designs. She married Bernard Ashley, a British business executive, in 1949. In 1953, the couple began their business designing and manufacturing screen printed fabrics with small, repetitive floral patterns inspired by Victorian prints. They made aprons, napkins, scarves and other items, and eventually dresses. Laura Ashley created the designs, and Bernard Ashley supervised the printing and marketing. They began selling the designs both by mail order and in retail stores.
In the 1960’s, Ashley opened her first shop in London. She and her husband went on to develop a multimillion-dollar international chain of retail outlets worldwide. The success of the Laura Ashley trademark allowed the couple to move to a country house in Surrey, England, and then to Carno, near Crickhowell in central Wales, which became the international headquarters of the business. Ashley died on Sept. 17, 1985, after an accidental fall.
