Very unusual Lilli Diamond piece that is a terrific larger size! The main dress is a fitted sheath with that pretty soft blue and grey floral printed chiffon over a white base. The shoulders are gathered at the front and this same technique is carried across the neckline too. It gives it a pretty feminine touch that I love. The back is really the wow part of this one though - two dramatic panels of chiffon swoops out from the scooped back neckline and down to just past the hem of the dress. These have miles of fabric and are really something when this is one a real girl who adds movement† - they move with her! Fabulous condition - it appears unworn.
A rare and early Bill Blass for Bond Street little mod coat is one of the best Blass pieces and one of the best coats I have ever had. Everything about it is perfect - the shape, the colors, the cut all done to perfection. The exterior is a almost canvas like fabric that has been screened with a myriad of pales pastels yellows and oinks. Great mod swirls of color adorn every inch. The collar is big and notched, the sleeves sit just above the wrist and the length is the perfect length to have gone with the mini skirts of those days. It wraps and ties with an attached fabric belt and once you do that the bottom skirting flares out in the sexiest, make your legs look miles long, kind of way. Impeccable condition and a wonderful collectible.
Shoulders: 15" from seam to seam
Bust: 20" flat across the inside back from side seam to side seam†
Waist: open
Hips: open
Total length: 33" from mid back of the neck to bottom hem
Sleeves: 20" from shoulder to longest point
The garment is fully lined in yellow silk taffeta look rayon and wraps to close with the attached at the back fabric belt.. It should be dry cleaned when cleaned again in the future.
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML-MED (6-12)
Item# C104
When you need a dress that will def not be subtle this is a great choice! It's a shimmery metallic brocade fabric in shades of pinks, red, golds and coppers that refuses not to be seen. The cut is all bombshell - strapless, with a boned bodice underneath and a long, lean skirt that has a dramatic and sexy front slit! The fabric moves shockingly well, it definitely has a thickness to it but is not awkward to wear or so think that you cannot move. The front sweeps up and into that huge knot and one sided bow! Absolutely a showstopper and in excellent condition.
Whenever I look at this piece I think of the great performers who did Broadway - like Liza Minelli for example. It is just has that sexy, cabaret, girls who lives best in the wee hours of the nght, kind of feel. It might have been meant as a tunic but I would wear it as a mini and just show miles of legs. Made of 100% silk, its completely covered in a combination of glossy black sequins and jet black tube beads, all in perfect rows so you get the illusion of being even longer! Cut fairly generous its meant to hang flapper-eque style. You can wear it open and layer it over other pieces or over skinny legged jeans or pants too! Super piece and in excellent condition!
Shoulders: 15.5" from seam to seam
Bust: 20" from side seam to side seam
Waist: open
Hips: open
Length: 58" from mid neck at the back to bottom hem
Sleeves: 19" from shoulder seam to longest point
The dress is fully lined in a pale pink silky rayon and closes with a front, hidden painted metal zipper that goes to just below the waist. Note the camera is pulling a yellow tone in some pictures whereas in real life it is a mix of oranges and pinks. The shoulders have to fit but other wise it will drape well on a smaller figure as well as work on one that fits the measurements. It is not pinned on my size 4-6 mannequin
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML-MED-LRG (6-12)
Item# E323
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
Glorious nylon gown by the great John Kloss who was an Ossie Clark contemporary and did mainly lingerie pieces with a few draped goddess jersey gowns thrown in for good measure. I love his work. Its simple yet always with a drop dead sexy twist and he deliberately chose good weight and quality nylons that held the color well and would drape exactly as he wished. This gown is a startling tangerine coral and is that drop dead sexy without really revealing much more then decolletage and shoulders. The skirting has yards and yards of fabric and cascades out from an elastic empire waist. The bust and shoulders are tiny scoops of fabric and are meant to cover and tantalize. Its semi sheer but could be worn out with nude undergarments or clever styling. Truly a beauty and in fantastic condition!
Shoulders: No defined seams
Bust: approx 20î flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: will stretch from 12-16" comfortably when measured flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: 16î from shoulder to waist seam
Leg length: 40î from waist seam to bottom hem
Inseam: 30î
The jumpsuit is unlined and closes with buttons down the front.
Modern Sizing†Equivalent: XS-SML (0-8)
Item# DD532
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
A Dior suit from the sixties is a marvelous thing to have and this one is just that and it sort of seems to symbolize the lady who wore Dior but wanted to feel up to the minute with a nod to the mod movement that was happening at the time. The size is fabulous - its a little larger and the shift dress underneath will work on a lot of different figure types. The fabric has a screened check worked into the silk - its actually smooth with no real texture so is an interesting play on itself. The dress is cut as simple as can be - it s simple shift. but with a little bit of extra seaming to ensure it fits just so. The jacket is a marvel - I love love love the extra panel of fabric that goes across the front edging and buttons on the other side. Its prim, its proper and its utterly fabulous.! A wonderful and rare set in excellent, seemingly unworn condition!
Dorothy O'Hara pieces have one thing in common - seaming, sexiness and they are all about highlight a girls assets. This little black beauty is no exception with clever draping and seaming details designed to give you curves or the illusion of them whether you have them or not! A long lean pencil skirt is cinched by a 4" band at the waist. This sits just under the bust and the draping and gathers on the top and bottom of this band are killer. The bust line is a study in deliberate sculptural draping with a built in under bust that lifts and shapes and then fabric draping over it from the shoulders. The back is as simple as can be and it is a inky black crepe. Wonderful piece and in mint condition!
When I first saw this I thought it was a Yves Saint Laurent - it has that look and feel and the fabric is on par. Its a stunning piece that blends a woven cotton with a beautiful shade of pink highlighted by a soft lavender. This is then shot through with a gold thread striping to give it just a hint of glitz. The neckline and cuffs have a band of gold piping. The waist has a pretty sash of pink silk chiffon and a lavender silk look ribbon - so pretty and feminine! I love the soft draped top - it is very blousey and full with a somewhat wide set neck so you get a sexy peek of collar bone. The skirt is amazing - it is tightly knife pleated for about 4 inches starting just about the hip and then these softly expand and the skirt cascades to the ground in a full sweep. Just an absolutely gorgeous piece that is charmingly feminine mixed with hippie chic! Excellent condition.
Really fantastic long, lean gown that combines the simplicity of a little black dress with the customs workmanship and impact of that highly appliqued skirt! The top portion is all seamed to follow your curves in a simple sleeveless almost shift like shape, with the waist gently defined. A scooped neckline adds to the simplicity. The lower portion of the gown is anything but simple though! It is meticulously and carefully appliques with flat cream cording that is laid into place almost architecturally so that each side is a mirror image of the other. Interspersed amongst the cording are prong set rhinestones that give the piece the subtlest of glimmers as each rhinestone catches the light. It looks to have been worn little if at all. The custom label implies just that - it would have been a piece made or tweaked specifically for one person or at most a very very few women! A superb gown and in excellent condition.
Bust: 18.5" from side seam to side seam
Waist: 14" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Hips: 18.5" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Bodice: approx 15.5" from shoulder undefined waist seam
Skirt: approx 39" from undefined waist seam to bottom hem
The dress is fully lined in black silky rayon and closes with a back zipper.
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML
Item# DD543
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
Really an amazing and strong styled forties dress. With the Miu Miu collection coming for fall and its strong forties inspired silhouettes, you can bet great originals are going to get as scarce as scarce can be. It is made of a fine silk - think Hermes scarf type silk. It has an amazing design screened onto the silk -paisley and fine filigree design all in muted blues and greens. The accent details are stunning and the print alone is really a work of art! The cut is classic pin-up femme fatale and all Claudio Young - her dresses are all this silhouette - a strong shoulder created by a pleat type detail that goes over the edge of the shoulder but is fabric with no shoulders pads needed! The skirt is long and deliciously lean but is cut on the bias so moved and drapes to fit the girl wearing it. I love how the waist gathers almost like a fake sarong but centered right at the lower stomach - this really emphasizes the hourglass shape. The bodice is cut full with sleeves that narrow though to the cuffs. It is just exquisitely made. The lucky girl who gets this will be very pleased indeed! It is truly a special piece. Item# D319
I think this might be my favorite wiggle dress listed on the site right now. It is a masterpiece and tribute to what a really well made dress should look like and how it should be constructed. The entire shape has been created through the careful placement & cut of the vertical seams though the body of the dress. The waist is created by wide panels of fabric, mixed with seaming at the front and the back - all curving in to make that wonderful hourglass shape. The front has a row of fabric covered buttons all the way from the base of the V neck-line to the hem. A flat edge sits beside this row of buttons so you have the illusion of being able to completely unbutton it - so sexy! The collar is wide and flat with a fantastic flat fabric detail and a mile long flat ribbon tie sit at the neck for a bit of naughty secretary feel. The fabric is a light silk crepe in jet black. I can't go one enough about this piece - it really is extraordinary and I know I will regret listing it once it goes - the pictures do not come close to doing it justice. Immaculate condition. Item# DD545
I love this dress. Trigere is one of my favorite designers and this piece is a really special and dramatic dress. The base is a fine wool and it is cut to nip in at the waist - done by vertical seaming and clever inverter pleats at the waist seams- and ends in a somewhat swingy A-line skirt. It has the most dramatic sleeve/shoulder detail in silk taffeta - they are huge ruffles that create that dramatic silhouette. The skirt picks up that ruffle detail and has an almost Spanish feel to it with the ruffle dipping and curving and then meeting itself at the front with one end tucked under the other. Its lined in a fantastic grade silk so feels like couture on. I think its a customs piece - the label is numbered and seems like only a part of her label was used. I have seen this one other Trigere pieces and each time it was from a client who has a piece made specifically for her. Wonderful piece and in mint condition!
This early Donald Brooks piece is absolutely amazing! The cut, the design, that fabulous ruffle that is constructed to sit out from the back and around the neck. I just sigh with happiness every time I look at this piece! Constructed from a good weight cotton, the base of the dress is jet black with white dots. It's base design is actually quite simple - the sleeveless bodice is cut to skim the body, it nips in at the waist and the full length skirt flares out in a full A-line. But turn around and the back has been scooped out entirely in a dramatic curved keyhole. This is encircled with a dramatic double later ruffle constructed from a red and white version of the fabric with the two inside parts of each ruffle backed in the black & white version. The cotton is thick enough that it can be made to sit right off the body for full on drama! This same red ruffle is done in a tiered double layer at the hem. This gives the skirt weight so it falls perfectly and balances that dramatic top. Amazing and in excellent condition!
Bust: 19" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13" max flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 16" from shoulder to waist seam
Skirt: 39" from waist seam to bottom hem
The dress is unlined and closes with a low back zipper. The band across the top of the back has two fabric covered button closures. The two buttons on that top strap have a discoloration to the white dots but this is the only teeny flaw on the piece and so minor its mentioned for accuracy sake only.
Modern Sizing equivalent: XS-SML
Item# DD554
Photographed for Factice Magazine, Autumn 2014 by Peter Tamlin. Stylist: Nadia Pizzimenti, Hair & Makeup: Patrick Rahme, Model: Naro. Click here to see the full shoot in our lookbooks >
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
Seriously a stunning stunning dress - this silk crepe gown from Malcolm Starr is an absolutely amazing piece that would have been red carpet ready for the greatest of starlets back in its day and is a serious little beauty for a modern girl choice now. The silk cream is a good heavy weight and pristine. Over this is a abstract swirled design done entirely in interior silver painted glass tube beads. These same beads are then hand applied in tight rows to follow all the edges - the neckline, arms and waist all get this glamour treatment. That same band then extends form the neckline detailing down the entire front of the dress. Stunning silhouette and cut. It's really a beauty and it is in excellent, unworn condition!
Bust: 20" from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13" from side seam to side seam
Hips: 20" from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 14.5" from shoulder to top waist seam
Waist band: 1" wide
Skirt: 41" from bottom waist seam to bottom hem
The dress is fully lined in a cream silk crepe in the same vivid pink through the bodice & a cream silky rayon through the skirt. The lining is properly attached to the interior, finished with dressmakers ribbon along the hem and hand stitched in places. It closes with a back painted metal zipper.
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML
Item# DD556
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
The fashion world was having a movement towards minimalism these days - there is an almost utilitarian feel in some of the recent pieces - this piece captures that feel but adds a sexy spin. There is also a strong trend towards everything 1970s right now so this, this late 1970s, early eighties strapless jersey dress in a brilliant red from American designer Norma Kamali is the perfect combination of the two looks. I am a huge fan of Kamali's works and have had the pleasure of interviewing her so have a special love for her pieces. I died a little when I saw this one! Its definitively her - simple, but striking, the fit impeccable and the color perfect. The strapless bodice is gathered and fits like a glove well past the waist. The jersey skirt flares out from there and there are miles of fabric is that skirt! Really well done and the photos don't do it full justice at all! Excellent condition! Item# DD562
This is an amazing Jean Varon!! I literally did the happy squeal when I received this one! It's all flowing goddessy chiffon in black with silver threaded edge details. The skirt flows form the empire waist line and has yards of chiffon over the inner skirt. A little piped detail sits at the waist and has ties on either side for a pretty and feminine touch. The bodice is high and simple but has elaborate inverted triangle chiffon panels inverted from the neck line that float on the front and back. Each tier of layered in silver lame threading. Finally the sleeves - I swoon over these sleeves. The are composed of silver edged, tight layers of chiffon gathered into elaborate and dramatic ruffles! I absolutely love it! Excellent condition!
Shoulders: 15" across the shoulders
Bust: 18" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Waist: 15.5" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: 11" from shoulder seam to the empire waist seam
Skirt: 47" from empire waist seam to bottom hem
The dress is fully lined in black silky rayon and closes at the back with a painted metal zipper!
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML-MED (6-10)
Item# DD566
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
Bust: 18" from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13" from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: 15" from shoulder seam to dropped waist seam
Skirt: 28" from empire waist seam to bottom hem
The dress is unlined and† closes with a† back metal zipper.
Modern Sizing equivalent: SML (6-8)
Item# D326
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
This is an amazing piece. My heart did a little skip when I pulled it from the box! Pale blue silk brocade (much prettier color then the photos even) has a floral design woven directly into it. To each flower a raised gold metallic thread work has been applied around their edges so you get this marvelous raised brocade effect. The skirt is cut slim and lean with a back vent built in so a girl can actually walk. This leads to that extraordinary waist detailing - a five inch band sits over the waist seam and is gathered and cinched at the front and caught up by a row of flat bows done from the same fabric. The dress underneath continues up with a simple bodice with tiny straps. Over this are two sweeping slightly off shoulder swatches of fabric that sweep up from the center waist, over each shoulder and join into the band at the back Stunning! Surely a custom, one of a kind piece. Her work is in several museums and this dress could easily be as well! I can't go on enough about this piece - it really is extraordinary and I know I will regret listing it once it goes - the pictures do not come close to doing it justice. Immaculate condition.
Sometimes that little black dress that you can pop on and it is the perfect marriage of ease, sophistication and yet still have that pow factor is a hard thing to find. This wonderful piece from Malcolm Starr just might be a contender. Off the body it seems rather plain but once on it has a way of draping and sitting that is infinitely flattering. A very simple cut - it is basically a chic sheath with a waist that is barely defined, it skims the body almost flapper style and the crepe gives it a good weight so it seems to settle where it is meant to do the most good. The bodice has a flattering V neck and the skirt cut long and lean. Over the entire dress is a wonderful "fireworks" type design with each burst of beads defined by a 3D raised circle of glossy black tube beading all swirled around each other. The waist, neck and arms are defined with a tight band of beading. Very pretty piece and in great condition.
This dress has all the things that make dresses from this time period so wonderful. The construction is superb, the lining is all attached inside, a process that takes much time and precision. The bodice has been properly gusseted under each arm. The dress feels substantial, while remaining as lightweight and comfortable to wear. The waist nips in and the skirt under the swagged overlay is actually a fitted pencil skirt. The design on this one is all angles and overlays and unusual shapes. One portion of the front sweeps up and over the bust and ends in almost a point over one shoulder. The skirt has a whole overlay that warps from the back fabric, swoops over and up to end in a huge ruffle of fabric on one hip. Add to this the silk itself with has a wonderful design woven directly into the fabric. A really wonderful piece in excellent condition.
Shoulders: no defined seams
Bust: 19" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Hips: 19" flat across the back from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 16" from shoulder to bottom of waist seam
Skirt: 25" from bottom of waist hem to bottom hem
The dress is fully lined in black silk and closes with a back painted metal zipper. The original belt is present and it closes with large hook and eye.
Modern Size Equivalent: SML
Item# DD579
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival
This was sold to me by my client as an unlabeled Oscar De la Renta. Since I have had its almost twin in the past I have absolutely no reason to doubt that this is indeed and Oscar. It has not tags however so is priced based on being the fabulous little dress that it is! A wonderful golden orange metallic brocade is used to construct this little beauty. The top portion is simple with pretty seaming details and no sleeves. The skirt lands just above the knee and has a pretty amount of fullness to it. The original belt allows you to nip in the waist as much as you please. I love the color and the silhouette - it seems exactly right for the mood at the moment and the subtle gold glint is killer! Excellent condition.