• This is dated to 1971 by the reference photo that we have here.
• It was made under the creative direction of Pierre Cardin
• I had the twin of this many years ago and that one sold to a museum. It is a brilliantly important and beautiful dress and an amazing example of his work during this time period that perfectly illustrates how much of a range he had.
• The entire dress is made out of a printed silk organza. The colours are mixed together like a painting and are done in the prettiest jewel tones. 
• The neckline is scooped and edged with a handset piping in the same fabric. The bodice skims over you to the waist where it curves in slightly for shape and then curves back out over the top of the hips.
• The technical construction of the bodice and upper portion of the sleeve is an absolute master class. The silk has been flat pleated in vertical rows set side-by-side. They are each perfectly spaced apart and then manipulated to form the shape and structure of the dress. Given the fabric that the dress is made out of and the difficulty in working with this fabric the skill required to have this fall over the body so perfectly is not to be underestimated.
• The shoulders are soft and the flat seam work runs down the arm to just about the elbow. Each little pleat opens out and the silk is allowed to expand outwards to create the huge bell sleeve that you see. The immense volume of the fabric that the lower portion of the sleeve has is all from the opening up of those hand sewn flat pleats which gives you an idea of how much fabric was actually used to create this dress.
• The skirt is constructed in the same manner as the bell sleeves but on a larger scale. Its volume is all achieved by the opening out of the vertical pleats that extending down the length of the bodice. I have taken a close-ups of how they open out for you to see. The skirt falls to the floor from there and mimics the shape of the sleeve as it curves outwards to the hem.
• In the reference photo you can see that a solid colour sash was tied around the waist and if you wanted to add more shape you could easily re-create that feel.
• The silk organza for the fabric choice keeps the dress feather light and it is an amazing thing to see in person. It is well deserving of its museum status.
• The dress is fully lined in pale green silk and the bell of the sleeves is a double layer of the organza. It closes with a back zipper. Hand work throughout.
• There is no size tag present so please go by the listed measurements below
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: 22" and are just under 12" around the upper arm
Shoulders: 15"
Bust: to 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 15.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Total length: 55" from top of shoulder to hem with 4" turned under the hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5215

Reference Photo: Jeanne Moreau and Pierre Cardin, June 1971.

All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.

• This great little print Leonard dress dates to the 1970s.
• The Leonard Paris label began as a textile firm in 1954 and for the first four years of its existence it only produced fabric. In 1958 they started making garments but it was not until about 1970 when they started using a printed silk jersey for the majority of their collections that the label really took off. They are often compared to Pucci and during the seventies the two labels battled it out to be the label of choice for the jet set.
• This is a very easy-to-wear and travel with kind of dress. It is made out of one of their signature silk jersey fabrics. This silk jersey fabric choice is what gives these dresses their perfect drape and ease.
• Each of their dresses were made of a custom designed print. On this one a washed over-sized floral print runs over the entire dress. The colours are a beautiful rainbow mix of pastels. The flower print is large and very pretty. Contrasting stripes with the same floral print inside the striping edges the neckline cuffs and hem.
• The entire neckline is finished with elastic so you can wear the dress completely off the shoulder. If you wanted to you could also wear it up on top of the shoulder.
• The bodice is cut extremely loose and easy over the body and drapes over an elastic waist. This makes the dress very easy to fit and it will work on a variety of sizes.
• Each sleeve has that same ease to them that the dress has and are very full. They end just above the elbow and have elastic around their ends so again it is an easy fit. Once on they puff up a bit and are very pretty.
• Under that the skirt skims over the hips and flares out slightly as it nears the hem. With all of the silk jersey that is gathered in and around the waist there is quite a bit of fabric in the skirt so it has great movement when you move.
• The dress is unlined and slips over the head to wear. The waist, around the neckline and cuffs are finished with elastic. It is an easy dress to wear and fit and will just drape more on a smaller frame. The printed part of the fabric is signed throughout. 
• There is no size tag present and I have put the comfortable range of measurements when laying flat below. Between the stretch of the fabric and the elastic that should fit a range of sizes. It will just drape more on a smaller size.
• Excellent condition.

Sleeves: approx 13.5" and are open and full around the upper arm
Bust: approx 16-24" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 11-20" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 25" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: approx 16" from top of natural shoulder to waist
Total length: approx 58.5" from top of natural shoulder to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-MED

Item# DD5214

All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.

• This dress dates to either the 1971/1972 spring season.
• It was made under the creative direction of Jules-Francois Crahay
• Jules-Francois headed the Lanvin ateliers from 1964-1984. He has been noted as one of fashion’s 'great colorists with his colorful patterns making his 1970s Lanvin designs hugely desirable and influential.' His time at the Lanvin label is one of my personal favourites for the house.
• He mainly used this particular type of fabric for his 1971-1972 collections and in the book on his work 'Jules Francois Crahay" by Lanvin there is a detail photo of a couture fabric noted as been most likely from the fall 1971 Couture collection and you can see it has the same weave as the fabric used for this dress.
• The dress has a gorgeous bright colour and print combination. The cotton pique it is made of is light in weight and holds colour exceptionally well so the colours are still crisp and true. A texture runs through the fabric that adds visual interest and structure to the fabric.
• The front halter is created by two triangles that curve up and behind the neck. Each side is set into the top of a wide 5.5" band that defines the waist. This leaves the back completely bare and exposed.
• From there the skirt falls to the floor and it widens as it nears the hem.
• I love how the pattern is laid out onto the dress to emphasize the different parts of it. The halter has a smaller floral pattern and then the waist has horizontal stripes. You see the same smaller floral pattern around the hips and the stripes repeat. Below that is a larger version of the flowers with a double stripe anchoring the dress around the hem to tie everything together.
• The colour is a coral-red with pops of yellow, green and soft orange in the print.
• The perfect finish is the top set pockets that sit on each hip.
• The dress is fully lined through the band of the waist and the skirt is lined in an orange silk. The halter top is unlined. It closes with a low set back zipper. 
• Excellent condition

Bust: each halter covers approx 7" flat across from side to side
Seam at the top of the band: 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist seam at the bottom of the band: 13.75" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 10" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: approx 13" from neck to top of the band at the waist
Total length: 59" from neck to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5211

Reference Photo: From the book "Jules Francois Crahay" by Lannoo.

All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.

• The dress is from 1977 and was most likely a made to order custom or bridal piece.
• It was made under the creative direction of Roy Halston
  
• When researching we found the examples shared here that are almost identical to this dress but without the extra added panels that create the spiralling ruffles.
• This is a beautiful ivory dress that showcases the minimal seaming that Halston was so famous for.
• The dress is made of a heavier weighted silk charmeuse that is cut like the reference photos show through the body but with added panels and seams that go around and cascade down the lower skirting.
• It is completely cut on the bias so it drapes phenomenally over the body. You simply slip it over your head and it drapes over you to accommodate the body underneath. This makes it easy to fit and very easy to wear.
• The sleeves are long and extend out directly from the body of the dress with no seaming around the arm. Each narrows to its cuff where there is a handmade silk covered button and loop.
• The neckline is cut wide across the neckline and has a subtle draping at the centre of the neck at both the front and back of the dress. It is a very pretty detail.
• It glides over the body skimming over the bust, waist and hips to the floor. The vertical ruffles are set on an angle so that they cascade down to the hem. When you move these swirl around the lower part of the dress and create gorgeous movement around you.
• Working with this fabric is incredibly difficult and it is a testament to his skill to create such a seemingly simple but complex pattern.
• The dress is fully lined in a second layer of the same fabric which adds to the technically difficultly of the pattern and rich feel of the silk. It has no closures and slips on to wear. Each cuff has a silk covered button and loop to close.
• There is no size tag and the bias cut will allow it to have it some give. Please go by the range of measurements listed below. The colour is slightly more ivory in person. I see some minor marks and scuffing here and there on the silk of the bottom ruffles. I shot one so that you can see. It is very minor but mentioned for accuracy. The length may come up once on because of the bias cut.
• Excellent condition.

Sleeves: approx 23.5" and are 16" around the upper arm
Shoulders: no defined seam
Bust: 18-22" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 15-21" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 19-25" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: approx 62" from top of shoulder to hem. 

Modern Sizing Equivalent: MED-LRG

Item# DD5201

Reference Photos: (1) Spring 1977 Halston.  /  (2) Fall 1977 Halston.  /  (3) From the book "Halston: An American Original"

All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.

• Note that due to new customs regulations this piece can only ship to a Canadian address.
• This unlabelled piece is one of those things that you will only ever find in vintage. It is very well-made and has the feel of a designer piece but there is no label present.
• The dress is made out of a lightweight silk that has tiny little dots that combine a ultra soft chenille with a gold and silver eyelash fringe. These are scattered over the entire dress. They sit slightly off the surface of the silk to create a beautiful added texture and pattern.
• The silk is ultra light and it is a piece that you just slip over whatever you wish underneath to make it as opaque or transparent as you dare.
• The collar is high and detailed with an elaborate feather collar. I love that the feathers have been hand dyed to be little stripes of blue and white. It perfectly picks up on the pattern in the silk.
• The sleeves are long and easy and each one ends in another elaborate feather cuff.
• The shoulders are soft and the dress drapes over you with an almost caftan feel to it through the body. It skims loosely over the bust and then widen out quite a bit over the waist and hips, continuing to widen out to the hem.
• The pattern on the silk combines stylized little flowers on a feather print feeling background.
• The dress is unlined and has a touch of transparency. It slips on and hooks above a keyhole at the neck. The dress is so well made that I think you could wear the keyhole to the front or the back. The silk is completely cut on the bias and it simply drapes over the body and falls into place.
• There is no size tag present so please go by the measurements listed below. It has an easy and generous cut that should allow it to fit a range of sizes. The length may come up a touch once on the body because of the bias cut.
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: 22" and the feathers extend another 7" past that. They are 14" around the upper arm.
Shoulders: to 16"
Bust-waist: to 22" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 27" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: 60" from neck to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-LRG

Item# DD5191

All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.