A RETRO exhibition of Laura Ashley dresses went on display this weekend at a local park.

Visitors to Ulverston's Ford Park were taken back to the 1970s as they walked past clothes designed by the famous designer.

Katie Taylor, who has been collecting dresses for five years, decided to put on exhibition of her collection to raise money for the Ford Park Community Group.

She spoke about what first drew her to collecting dresses: "I bought a dress on eBay and it was so pretty I just wanted to get some more. It kind of became addictive. I now probably have around 150 dresses."

Laura Ashley was born in 1925 in Merthyr Tidfyl, Wales. She came from a frugal background, into a family with a tradition of weaving, patchwork and hand quilting.

She began to design her own textiles in the early 1950s.

She would go onto to create a design empire, selling millions of items to women across the UK.

Ms Taylor said: "Everyone at some point in their life has owned a Laura Ashley dress."

The heyday of Laura Ashley came during the 1970s when she began selling Victorian-inspired 'prairie dresses' with high necklines and long sleeves.

This is the era on which Ms Taylor's collection centres.

She said: "My collection centres on the 1970s. The dresses were long and flowing, they used around six yards of fabric."

One of the most appealing aspect of Laura Ashley's work was how accessible it was for ordinary people.

Ms Taylor said: "Usually fashion is the story of the rich. But, Laura Ashley designed for normal people.

"She had a romantic view of the past. She based her values on the Victorian era."