This is an incredible dress with its matching stole lands somewhere in that time period between the end of Christian's reign, Yves Saint Laurent's time there, and Marc Bohan's appointment as the was head of the Dior atelier. The closest I have found was a 1958 piece by Yves and I have added that reference photo here for nothing else but to give you an idea of what it will look like on the body. Regardless of under whose directorship it falls, it is a beautiful and early example of the work being produced by Christian Dior in this time period. This is the Christian Dior - New York label and is considered to be demi-couture from this time period of Dior's history. These where made for the American market based on the runway designs and with many of the same high standard finishes that Haute Couture pieces incorporated. This would be an incredible dress for any collector and it might even make an amazing dress for the bride looking for a non-traditional choice or as an alternative dress in a more extended wedding celebration. It is seriously beautiful

This is a dress that makes you draw in your breath the first time that you see it. The dress is made out of a very high end ivory silk that feels like it has some weight to it. It's not so heavy that is unwearable it just is that fantastic earlier silk that has a richness to it that is hard to replicate in modern fabrics. The dress is strapless and the bodice is simple and perfect. It is boned and shaped but that is all hidden inside. This hidden interior shaping allows it to perfectly mold to your shape. The waist is seamed and nips in. The dress falls to the floor from there and here is where it really gets incredible. The upper portion of the skirt is the same silk as the bodice so you get this sleek feel from the waist to just about the knee. Below that the silk has been sewn into horizontal ribbing. Each individual section of ribbing has interior padding inside of it so that they stand out for an incredible 3-D feel. This gives it this incredible texture. Besides being a beautiful design detail it also weights the fabric so that it holds the shape once the dress is on you. These are techniques that you often see in older couture pieces that you just don't see as often anymore in modern design. Inside, the dress is lined in silk and silk organza and it is almost completely finished by hand. There's also a wide inner waist stay that hooks to close and acts as an inner support so that the dress stays perfectly in place once on. The dress comes with its original matching stole. The stole is finished with the flat silk on one side and the same puffed ribbing technique on the other. These were worn to cover the shoulders and act as a evening wrap against cooler nights. It is wonderful to have this original extra piece still with this dress. The stole is also an exact match to the bottom of the skirt so in theory you could also add all or part of it the bottom if you needed more length. The colour is a touch richer feeling in person than how it photoed. Incredible in person. There are endless couture level details put into this one and the workmanship throughout is perfectly and meticulously done. It is an amazing example of the fine workmanship and attention to detail of this time period and it is a true piece of fashion history. Excellent condition

The dress is fully interlined in an ivory silk organza and then lined again with an ivory silk. Hand set hidden and exposed boning in the bodice. A wide waist stay hooks to close. Hand finished to demi-couture standard throughout. It closes with a hand set, back zipper. I see a tiny repair on the inner lining of the bodice above the center boning.

Bust: 17" flat across from side seam to side seam with a A-B cup
Inner waist: 12" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 10" from to waist
Skirt: 41" from top of bodice to hem
Stole: 14.5" wide x 60"

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD4160

Reference Photo: A model poses for the presentation of the first Yves Saint-Laurent's Dior collection, 04 February 1958, Avenue Montaigne in Paris.

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 the all white ready-to-wear a version of that famous 1992 Valentino dress in black and white. Linda Evangelista wore the original on the runway and just recently Zendaya wore its twin to a premiere. It is one of the most instantly recognizable Valentino dresses and I love this more unusual all white version. This is the kind of dress that you can dress up or down and it might even make an amazing dress for the bride looking for a non-traditional choice or as an alternative dress in a more extended wedding celebration. Absolutely gorgeous and you can't go wrong in a piece this well-known. It is gorgeous

Like its famous graphic black and white counterpart this dress is made of multiple long vertical panels pieced together. Each panel has a tiny seamed piping along its edge and slightly overlaps its neighbor. Where the panels meet there is the slight three dimensional feel. The bodice is strapless and I love how the top of each panel has been rounded off to create a pretty and feminine scalloped effect along the neckline. Inside the bodice there is a full built-in shaped corset that helps to give you support and to keep the dress in place. This inner piece closes with its own zipper and holds the dress on the body. From there it starts to widen out and skims over the waist and the hips. It then flares as it reaches the hem. When you're standing still the panels create this gorgeous soft ruffled feel. But when you move you get a kick of fabric around you that is fantastic. The dress highlights the body but in that very refined and classic Valentino kind of way. I love that there are so many reference photos out there of the other version of this dress. It really gives you an idea of what it's going to look like on the body but just in an all white. This is one of the most recognizable Valentino dresses that there is and it is an incredible find. Excellent condition

Unlined with a full inner built-in corset. The dress closes with a side zipper and the inner bodice closes with its own side zipper. Ribbon edge finishes at the hem. The fabric has a slight stretch to it. The dress is perhaps a tiny touch more ivory in person than how it photoed. There is the tiniest bit of darkening to the edges here and there that I am just mentioning for accuracy. The exterior layer of the dress has more room through the waist than the inner foundation piece. So if you needed more room in the waist you could add to the inner piece and probably get at least another inch if not more

Bust: 17.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 18-21" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 52" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD4161

Reference Photos: (1-3) Spring 1992 Valentino Runway Collection. Model: Linda Evangelista.  /  (4-5) Zendaya in Vintage Valentino at the Euphoria Premiere, 2022.

This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.

Isaac Mizrahi presented his first collection with a trunk show at Bergdorf Goodman's in 1987. By 1992 Chanel had bought a stake in the company and Isaac's name was everywhere. He was doing custom work for clients and Hollywood on top of his mainline. In 1995 Isaac was the subject of the movie 'Unzipped' based on his Fall 1994 collection. He is known as much for his personality as he was for his clothing. The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) recognized him with the Perry Ellis Award (now called the Swarovski Emerging Talent Award) in 1988 and the women's wear designer of the year award in 1989. This is a fantastic example of how he could do very luxe evening wear and I love it.

My client worked one on one with Issac when she had this dress made for herself. It is stunningly beautiful. The dress is made to demi-couture standards and to the best of my clients knowledge it is the only one ever made. The bodice is amazing. It is strapless and then the cups are heavily covered with black beads mixed with prong set black glass crystal rhinestones. They are so densely set together that it creates this fantastic 3 dimensional feel. I love that the bead work continues to the sides and then all the way to meet at the back zipper. The top of the bodice is set on a curve and the cups are shaped. The dress falls from directly under the bust and is cut to skim past the waist and hips. The dress is covered in a fine black lace set that over a inner nude silk lining. From a distance this gives the effect that you are covered in just a layer of lace. Once past the hips the skirt sweeps outwards and flares with a ton of volume. Underneath the lower skirt there are layers of attached tulle to help keep the volume. The extra fabric lets it move around you with your slightest move. It is even better in person. Just gorgeous. Excellent condition

Fully lined in a two layers of a nude silk. The skirt has additional tulle built in around the hem to help hold the shape. The bodice has a built in inner corset that closes with its own set of hook and eye and the dress closes over that with a back zipper. Some small marks to the inside of the hems otherwise pristine. 

Bust: 16.5" flat across from side seam to side seam with an approx A-B cup
Inner waist: 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 22" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 56" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD3564

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 dress is a tough one to date as the label style that is in it covers the period from the 1980s to the early 1990s. It is most likely from the time period when Karl Lagerfeld was the designer for the Chloe label but could potentially be Martine Sitbon. Karl designed for them from 1965 to 1983 and then Sitbon took over from 1987 to 1991. In 1992 Lagerfeld again headed the design team until 1997. Either way this is a rare find and I look forward to sending the new owner verification when I confirm one way or the other one day as I am sure I will stumble across it at some point. The dress is fantastic even beyond that question and I am obsessed with it.

The first thing you will notice about the dress is that it is as light as air. It is made from a feather light silk organza that has just enough crispness to it to hold the shape but that adds as little weight as possible. It also has this ultra fine finish that gives it a bit of a liquid look but in a subtle way. It is quite a remarkable fabric actually. The dress is strapless and the bodice is gathered into soft draping pleats that are gathered in and held in place down the seam on both sides, the back where the zipper is and down the front. There is no added inner foundation and just light boning down each side. It simple drapes over your body and your coverage is provided by the gathered top layer of gathered fabric and the opaqueness caused by a single inner layer of black silk. The gathers run from the top of the bodice to just below the hip. The seam that ends at the hip is softly curved as it is gathered in and up towards the center. The skirt falls under that to the floor and it is also made from a double layer of the silk. The two layers of the skirt float over each other and will move with your slightest movement. Attached at the center of the bodice is a wide sash of fabric that is shapes into a big soft bow. From that bow there are long ties that extend down to softly fall over the front of the dress. This adds so much detail and volume and I love it. The fabric has a touch of transparency to it and with the double layer of the silk there is a depth created by the layers sitting over each other that is fantastic. It is a beauty. Excellent condition

The second inner layer of the same fabric n the skirt acts as the lining and the bodice is lined in a black silk. It closes with a back set zipper.

Waist: 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 53" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent:

Item# DD4076

This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.

At the age of 31, Stephane Rolland took over as Artistic Director for the Jean Louis Scherrer Haute Couture atelier, making him the youngest of the 20 official couturiers at the time. That was in 1997 and he remained as the head of the Couture division until the last showing in 2005 when the house officials shuttered is couture business altogether. This dress is from the Fall 2001 Haute Couture presentation and it is the actual runway sample that was worn on the runway. It was Look 7 In the presentation that day. I have included several runway reference photos for you so that you can see just how spectacular the dress is once on an actual body. In addition this dress was lent and worn by Alexandra Daddario and we have induded those shots here as well so you can see just how fabulous this is on an actual body. This also adds to its provenance and I love that,

Having the actual Haute Couture runway sample is just that much more amazing even in the land of Couture. Having the sample means that the dress is still completely made by hand to Couture standards but has the added touch of all those last minute adjustments that would have been done  by Stephane and the atelier to perfectly fit the model to walk the runway that day. This is an amazing opportunity to see what few see; a dress straight from the atelier, overseen and fitted by the couturier himself for its debut on the runway. The dress is covered with various sized panels of a red silk gazaar. These have been hand set to overlap as they cascade down the length of the dress. The panel size gradually become larger as they run down the dress to the train at the back. By layering the panels the dress has a sense of depth and texture then even the photos can truly convey. It also adds a subtle movement when you move. Each panel is secured to the base fabric just along its edges so that there is a movement and lightness created when it is on and you move about. The bodice is strapless and the panels are set slightly more towards one side so that they form a bit of peak there. The inner part of the dress is cut to above the knee so that you get a long flash of leg at the front. The rest of the dress flows back and around you from there. At the back the train is long and dramatic. The interior is corseted and structured so that it firmly holds the dress on the body and gives you shape. This is an incredible piece of modern Haute Couture. Excellent condition with one small note to review below.

Fully lined in a fine red silk and closes with two zippers. One is on the interior corset and the second is on the outer layer of the dress. The interior corset is boned and shaped. The skirt is lined in a red silk taffeta. Done with Haute Couture construction techniques. The hand written runway sample tag is present. There is some deepening of the colour/ marks on some of the squares of silk that make up the train and some minor grubbiness from being worn for the runway and then stored. The inner zipper pull is missing and has been replaced by a ribbon. Nothing that detracts once the dress is on. It is closest to a true zero

Bust: 15-15.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner waist: 11.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner dress length: 26" from top of bodice to hem NOT including panels that go over the edge of the dress a bit above and blow the actual inner structure
Length including train to the very longest point:  Approx 92" from top of bodice to final tip of the train

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XXS-XS

Item# DD3054

Reference Photos: (1-4) Fall 2001 Jean Louis Scherrer Haute Couture Runway Show.  /  (5-8) Alexandra Daddario photographed by Storm Santos.

This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.

John Anthony is an award-winning American fashion designer best known for simple, elegant clothing with a strong sense of chic. His work veers towards minimalism, with sharp tailoring, striking evening wear being his signature. He is renowned for his cutting and tailoring. From the day that he launched his atelier in 1971 his design philosophy is a fusion of function and purpose. The function is his logical, wearable approach; the purpose, his pared-down ideas. As a designer, he considers it his job to make things easy for the customer. He designs with focus and a narrow palette for both day and night, so items can easily intermingle. He uses natural fabrics and is noted for contradictory daywear fabrics in his evening collections. In the early 70’s he was one of the first designers to promote the idea of easy-to-travel clothes that resist wrinkling. By 1976, he was showing soft, liquid separates in muted colours that became his trademark and received 2 Coty awards, one in 1972 and one in 1976, as recognition. His business was all done on a made to order basis. That means the majority of pieces you will find are a one-off, or if there are similar pieces, very few of each piece exist. This personal attention to each dress is clearly seen in the workmanship of his pieces. His work is very expensive and beaded pieces did, and still do, retail for over $10,000. His work is a personal favourite of mine and I am thrilled to begin to offer these exclusive pieces and samples that John pulled from his own archives. I have included a reference photo of Janet Jackson wearing a similar version of the dress that he made for her Today's Black Women cover in 1998. That design was based on this original piece from 1982. It is stunning

The dress is very light in weight and the fabric is absolutely beautiful. The innermost lining is a blue silk chiffon and then a blue net lace is layered over that. Then onto the are thousands of blue iridescent sequins that follow the pattern in the lace and cover the entire dress. This allows the dress to catch the light from every angle. The effect that it creates is stunning. The dress is strapless and the bodice is set on a curving sweetheart shape to emphasize the bust. The edges at the hem and bodice are done to follow the pattern of the lace and I love the touch of romance this gives to the dress. To wear the dress, the closures have been set down the front of the dress with a hidden zipper. Tiny little hidden set snaps are set to follow the edges of the lace and these snap into place over the zipper. So once you have it on there is no zipper line to break the eye. The snaps under the lace run to about the mid-thigh. This leaves a subtle slit under the overlapping sides. This gives you a flash of leg when you move or sit and it is very sexy. The lower hem is set on a curve so that it comes up slightly at the front and is longer at the back. The skirt is lined in a blue silk chiffon and this gives it a slight transparency in the light. I love the little rosette sitting at the side at the waist for the perfect finishing detail. It is a wonderful dress. Excellent condition.

Fully lined in a hand set deep blue silky rayon through the bust and a silk chiffon through the skirt. It closes at the front with a hidden set zipper and a series of hidden fabric covered snaps. Lightly boned through the bodice. Hand finished throughout. It appears to have been worn very little if at all. 

Bust: 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 9" from the top of the bodice to waist
Length: 46" from the top of the bodice to longest point of the back hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD3831

Reference Photo: Janet Jackson in John Anthony for Today's Black Women, June/July 1998.

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 especially interesting dress from Alexandra McQueen. It is from the Spring 2010 collection and it is a one of the original variations of a dress whose silhouette they still make to this day. Julianne Hough just wore a black version of one of those newer ones from my archives. The one that she wore was from a later collection released under the creative direction of Sarah Burton but based on this dress and others similar that McQueen designed. If you missed that you can see it on my Instagram here. This dress I have today is one of the originals that McQueen himself designed. This was a production piece that did not make it to the runway presentation but you can see similarities in the prints from that season. It’s a spectacular example of his work and it is still brand new with its original tags. It is like finding a time capsule piece.

The dress is made from a floral printed silk crepe that has an explosion of flowers in pale pastel colours covering the entire dress. It is strapless with a built-in inner cupped bodice that gives you support and holds the dress in place. The cups are shaped and these cups are one of the things that you see that is different from the later versions of this dress. In this version the cups are shaped almost like a 1950s bullet bra. The seams in the inner cups are exaggerated and this gives them this beautiful curving angle shape at the sides and peak at the front. The silk is all bias cut. The dress glides over the inner structure and falls in column to the skirt. The waist is just a suggestion created by the seaming and it skims over the hips. At the hem you see one of the biggest differences between this dress and later versions. He has gathered the hem up and underneath so that it is sewn to the inner lining. This gives it a slight bubble effect. It is also slightly twisted so that it narrows in around you at the hem. However, the fullness of the skirt is still there so that you are able to walk with ease. It is quite genius. It also creates this incredible movement when you walk and has the added bonus of always immediately going back to that long lean line. The print that covers the dress is spectacular. It is a beautiful and romantic floral print done in dreamy shades of blue-greys, pale purples, pinks and blue. It has its original tags attached and was never worn. It also comes with a detachable pair of matching straps if you don't wish to go fully strapless. Excellent condition

Fully lined in an ivory silk and has a built in cupped corset. The inner corset closes with its own zipper and the dress zips to close over that with a hidden set zipper. Tagged a McQueen 42. It has its original hang tag still attached. The inner corset has some stretch. You could have the inner corset adjusted if you needed more or less room.

Bust: to 17" flat across from side seam to side seam with a B-C cup
Inner corset waist: 13-16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 23" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 60" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item#

This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.

I have had one of these dresses in the shop before and it is one of my favorites. It's twin walked the runway that season and then the dress was photoed by David Seidner before it was released to the public to purchase. It is a beautiful example of Yves work during this time period and one of my favorite dresses by him. I myself own one and I love it. It is extraordinarily beautiful.

The first thing you will notice about the dress is that it is as light as air. It is made from a feather light silk voile that has enough crispness to it to hold the shape but that adds as little weight as possible. The dress is strapless and the bodice is gathered into soft draping pleats that are gathered in and held in place down the seam on both sides. There is no shaping or boning inside. It simple drapes over your body and your coverage is provided by two layers of the fabric and the opaqueness caused by that double layer of silk combined with the draping. The gathers run from the top of the bodice to just below the hip. The seam that ends at the hip is cut on a slight downward angle so that the visual line it creates adds length. The skirt falls under that to the floor and it is also made from a double layer of the same fabric. The two layers of the skirt float over each other and will move with your slightest movement. Attached all the way around that seam at the hip is a wide sash of fabric. It extends out into extra long ties at one side. This is how you create that fabulous big soft bow at the side. This adds so much detail and volume and I love it. The print that runs over the entire dress is the perfect final finish. It combines a pretty purple with a muted green and an off-white. The fabric has a touch of transparency to it and with the double layer of the silk the pattern floats over itself and there is a depth created by the effect of the two patterns layered over each other that is fantastic. One of my favorite pieces ever. It is even better in person. Excellent condition

The second inner layer of the same fabric acts as the lining. It closes with a side set zipper. It appears to have been worn very little if at all.

Bust: to 17.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 20.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 52" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD3960

Reference Photo: (1) S/S 1984 Yves Saint Laurent Runway Collection. Model: Anna Bayle.  /  (2) Yves Saint Laurent 1983, David Seidner Archives.

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 stunning set is from the Fall 1984 Haute Couture collection and its twin was photoed that season as well. Who knows this might be the actual set! I have included that reference photo here for you so that you can see how amazing it is on the body. I love how they pushed the sleeves up for the shots which gives it a totally different feel. Ungaro launched his label in 1965 after working for both Balenciaga and Courrreges. He was a brilliant designer who was known for his of extravagant fabrics and flamboyance. His Haute Couture pieces are not easy to find and this set is fantastic.

Both of the pieces that make up this set are stand outs and can be worn together as intended or you can mix and match them with pieces you already have to really extend their wearabilty. The inner dress is amazing. It is cut in that signature Ungaro silhouette for this time period. These little fitted dresses were meant to hug and highlight every curve of the body. The dress is made out of a silver silk velvet that has a metallic silver and gold foil worked through the velvet. This gives is a subtle shimmer and allows it to catch the light from every angle. The fabric is hand draped over the entire dress to give it an incredible texture. The bodice has a highly modified sweetheart shape with one side set at a high peak and the other in a soft curve. The gathers are shaped to follow the line of the bust and emphasize the breasts. On the side that it zippers to close there is a pretty strip of hand applied beads and sequins that run down that side of the dress for extra detailing. Over this is the jacket. The jacket is made from an ivory lace that is backed with a silk. Onto the lace is a mix of embroidery work, little silk applique, rhinestones and faux pearls. The shoulders are padded and the top of the sleeve is gathered around the shoulder for a bit of a high capped feel. The sleeves narrow in a touch from there as they reach their ends. The waist is brought in and shaped with vertical seaming and then the hips flare out. There are no closures on the jacket, it is meant to just slip on and sit over the dress. It is finished with a dramatic Ostrich feather border that that wraps around the neck, down the front and all the way around the hem. It is completely made by hand and the proper Haute Couture numbered tape is present. Excellent condition

The dress is hand lined in a ivory silk and closes with a hand set side zipper. The bodice is boned. Interior waist stay hooks to close. The jacket has no closures. Padding in each shoulder. I see minor marks on the interior lining of the dress and perhaps a slight grubbiness to the inner arms of the jacket. Please see the last photo after the label shot.

Dress
Bust: 16.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 9" from top of bodice to waist
Skirt: 25" from waist to hem

Jacket
Sleeves: 23"
Slightly extended shoulders: 16"
Bust: to 20" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: approx 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: approx 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 32" from neck to hem, including the feathers

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD3367

Reference Photo: Fall 1984 Emanuel Ungaro Haute Couture. (via @only_french_couture)

This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.