Remarkable Spring 2012 Alexandre Vauthier Haute Couture Runway Look 23 Pale Lavender Silk Chiffon Dress

  • The twin of this extraordinary dress walked the Spring 2012 Alexandre Vauthier Haute Couture runway.
  • It was made under the creative direction of Alexandre Vauthier
  • Alexandre Vauthier launched his label in 2009. He started his fashion career in 1993 working for Thierry Mugler as an intern and working his way up to assistant designer to Mugler himself. In 1997 he joined Jean Paul Gaultier where he in charge of the Couture collections for the following eight years. 
  • He left in 2008 to open his own couture atelier showing his first collection in 2009. From 2011 to 2014 the label was a designated guest member of the Chambre Syndicale de haute couture and since December 2014 he has been a full Couture member. Vauthier departed the label in 2025 marking the end of the Couture division.
  • This is the actual piece that was shown on the runway and may very well be the only one in existence. I love that we have both the runway reference photos and video. You can see how fantastically it moves and looks once on the body.
  • The dress would have been made completely by hand in the Paris atelier.
  • The dress is made from a pale lavender silk chiffon that is of extremely high-quality. It has the slightest bit of texture to it, and is all cut on the bias. The colour is even softer than how it photoed and better in person.
  • The seam work on this dress is extraordinary. It is a strong nod back to Couture pieces of the 1920s and 1930s. I have taken some close-ups through the body so that you can see the extraordinary hand done piece-work that has gone into putting the various panels of the dress together to create the flowing masterpiece that you see.
  • The dress is wonderfully simple in the way that it goes onto to the body. You simply slip it on and it hooks and snaps into place around the waist leaving it to flow freely over the body from shoulder to hem.
  • This wrapping around you and hooking into place leaves a high slit up one side so that when you walk or move you see a flash of bare leg. You can see this in the reference photos and video.
  • The bodice is cut to drape loosely over you and has a plunging V at the front, both sides, and at the back. On the runway it was shown over an inner nude piece for the minimum amount of modesty It could be worn like that in real life or a layered over something underneath if you wanted a bit more coverage.
  • The waist is brought in with a wide doubled band of the same silk chiffon and the panels of the bodice blouse softly over the waist band all of the way around you. There is a second interior halter inside at the front that sits slightly more fitted to the body and adds one extra layer of chiffon.
  • The dress curves out over the hips and then the beginning of the volume that you see for the lower skirts is all created by the inset panels that have all been hand placed and sewn.
  • The amount of silk chiffon in the skirt is remarkable. It falls slightly shorter to the front and then curves out around you in a sweep of skirts that is just phenomenal. I love that we have runway videos so you can see how amazing this dress is once it is on and moving.
  • The dress has a single layer interior halter bodice and the skirt is unlined. It slips on and then wraps and closes with a hook and hidden set clear snaps at the waist. This is the actual dress that was worn on the runway and is completely made by hand. It is the original runway sample dress. You could move and adjust the hook and snaps at the waist to get the perfect fit.
  • There is no size tag present because it is Haute couture sample so please go by the measurements listed below
  • Excellent condition

On the runway, the dress was shown with a fur shrug. If you are interested in acquiring that I may be able to source that for you independent of this dress. Please touch base to chat further.

Bust: each inner halter covers to 7" flat across from side to side
Waist: 13" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: approximately 16" from top of shoulder to waist and meant to blouse slightly over the 2.5" band around the waist
Total length: 69" from top of shoulder to front hem and the back extends up to another 17" past that.

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5498

Reference Photo/Video: Spring 2012 Alexandre Vauthier Haute Couture, Look 23.

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SIZE GUIDE

Please review all measurements carefully. More often than not, vintage garments do not fit any size category exactly. If in doubt, measure a garment of your own that fits and is a similar cut and compare it's measurements to the listed measurements below.