Now you may think that fashion and the Soviet Union go together like Groucho Marks and Friedrich Engels. However that is to misunderstand the nature of the Commad Economy: if she commands it, you'd better buy it for her.
So there is a rich history of fashion and fun (along with the tractor factories and endless ballet performances) in the old USSR. Let's take a sashay along it...
At the start of the Soviet years women's fashion, let's face it, tended towards the functional. Red was popular, as were headscarves, sensible boots and the ability to field strip a 3-line rifle.
But all that was about to change...
...because Russia had a new fashionista in charge: Stalin! He hated the peasant look of War Communism because it made socialism seem synonymous with poverty. He ordered Soviet Woman to spruce herself up.
And what Stalin wants, Stalin gets. Sort of. Certainly the apparatchiks of the 1930s were given a taste of graceful modernism: tailored jackets in fetching colours etc....
...but for the lumpenproletariat it was still all headscarves and hobnail boots. Uncle Jo's five year plan of fashion was strictly for the aristocracy of labour.
Khrushchev was having none of it. The socialist republic would hold it's head high, and compete on equal terms with the Western divisions of Dior and Chanel. A floaty skirt, a cigarette pant and a working refrigerator would be the inalienable right of every Soviet woman.
But there would be rules: chasing fashion trends was out, timeless classics were in. A well cut dress should last a lifetime, and would probably have to.
So what was the 'Soviet Look'? Well it wasn't headscarves: they were relics of the bad old years, suitable only for children and babushkas. You could wear a headband at a pinch, but only if you had the cheekbones to carry it off.
No, what Soviet Woman really wanted was a beret! French style or Basque style, it didn't matter. What mattered was paring it with a well cut blazer and a knee length skirt.
A good coat was obligatory in the USSR: in patriotic colours or simple herringbone, belted and buttoned to the neck. Hoods were good, but collars were never popped.
The ladies of Leningrad would also need a rollneck sweater or two. It was the quintessential knitwear statement of the modern Soviet woman.
And speaking of knitwear... big funky knits became a Warsaw Pact classic in the 1980s: the brighter the yarn the more fashion forward the wearer.
The Russian cut was generous. Lots of material demonstrated the plentitude that collective planning bestowed upon the people. Plus it can get windy round the Urals so plenty of heavy wool was a godsend.
As the years rolled by, as detente came and went, the practical nature of Soviet womenswear adopted to the times...
...and by the end of the Cold War Soviet fashion had fully collided with its Western counterparts. In its own way.
So here's to the fabulous fashionable ladies of the late CCCP. Whatever the weather - and it was mostly cold - they would strut their collective stuff as boldly as they could!
What do Batman, Spiderman, Bettie Page, Madonna and women wrestlers have in common? Well I'll tell you: they all feature in the life of today's featured pulp artist.
Today I look back at the career of "the father of fetish" Eric Stanton!
Eric Stanton was born in New York in 1926. His childhood was marred by many illnesses, and confined to bed he learnt to draw by tracing comic books. He was fascinated by strong Amazonian women like Sheena, Queen of the Jungle and soon began creating similar cartoons.
After high school Stanton joined the Navy in 1944, putting his skills to use in drawing aircraft recognition cartoons. Post-war he got a job with cartoonist Gordon 'Boody' Rogers, creator of Babe: Amazon Of The Ozarks.
Given the weather is getting warmer I feel obliged to ask the following question: is it time to bring back the leisure suit?
Let's find out...
Now we all know what a man's lounge suit is, but if we're honest it can be a bit... stuffy. Formal. Businesslike. Not what you'd wear 'in da club' as the young folks say.
So for many years tailors have been experimenting with less formal, but still upmarket gents attire. The sort of garb you could wear for both a high level business meeting AND for listening to the Moody Blues in an espresso bar. Something versatile.