Some said she was a snob. Rather, she had impeccable manners and expected the same in return and woe betide those that came within her orbit and exhibited anything less than the perfection Sheila Scotter demanded.Scotter has passed away at the age of 91 in her Melbourne home in Port Albert.
A product of the age of the Raj in India -she was born in Calcutta in 1920,and growing up in England, Sheila moved to Melbourne in 1949 and became a buyer and commentator on fashion which she described thus :
"When people ask me what is fashion? I try to sum it up in one sentence; it's an expression of contemporary thought and taste in the form of women's clothes,"
She became the founding editor of Vogue Living and moved amongst the rich powerful in Australia and the UK and was awarded an OBE and Order of Australia for her services to journalism.
But one of Sheila's admirable traits was her ability to treat all persons no matter what their background, as equals. Peter Jansen the former racing driver and Melbourne socialite best known for hosting Melbourne Cup parties in a Double Decker bus, dubbed Sheila the 'Silver Duchess' after her penchant for wearing black and white and her shining silver hair.
The Silver Duchess will be farewelled at St Silas Church near her home on Thursday.
