I was a Saturday girl at Joan Barrie's when I was about 15 or 16, it would have been around 1970/71. I remember it being very formal and most of the staff scared me to death! I worked on the ground floor most of the time but occasionally got called upstairs to help out with the bridal dept. Can't remember what I did there, can't have been much, only certain people were allowed to deal with the wedding gowns (and certainly not the customers. I probably had to vacuum the carpet before a fitting. There was a seamstress worked in the basement and I found her particularly intimidating at first until I got used to her. Another young girl worked there and her older sister did too. I palled up with them but I can't remember their names. I think I earned about £1.50 for the day but somehow managed to buy a black leather skirt, a purple midi dress and a lovely yellow lacy top during my time there. I used to go to a place called Davy's a couple of doors down for a cheese sarnie for my lunch. I think that was the highlight of my day (as well as getting my pay packet from the little office window).
