In 1959, through her friend, the artist Mo McDermott, Celia met 16-year-old fledgling fashion designer Ossie Clark, her future husband and collaborator, in Manchester.
In 1965, Celia and Ossie moved in together in a little Notting Hill flat, more out of convenience. It was during this time their appreciation of each others creative talents sparked the exciting and ground breaking collaboration. In the same year Alice Pollock, owner of hip London boutique Quorum, commissioned Celia & Ossie to design a dress fabric collection.
A year after that, Celia and Ossie were commissioned to design a mail-order paper dress for Nova magazine by its legendary fashion editor Molly Parkin, which was photographed by cool snapper of the day Duffy and modelled by Jane Asher. Celia and Ossie were soon fêted as London’s dream fashion duo, dressing the era’s jetset and rock aristocracy: the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Twiggy, Mick and Bianca Jagger, Talitha Getty and Marianne Faithfull.
In 1969 Celia and Ossie married at Kensington Registry Office, with only his sister Kay and David Hockney as guests. Celia wore an Ossie creation with her famous Mystic Daisy print on it. Celia's first son, Albert was born.
The following year, Hockney began painting his famous double portrait of Celia and Ossie, Mr and Mrs Clark and Percy (completed in 1971).
In 1971, Celia and Ossie’s catwalk show at London’s Royal Court Theatre – with its thunderous rock ‘n’ roll music, models gyrating in sexy, diaphanous dresses and star-studded audience – was a media sensation. Their runway shows of the late 60s/ early 70s broke with convention for being wild and exuberant. She gave birth to their second son George.
In 1974, Celia and Ossie divorced after what had become an increasingly unstable marriage.