• A version of this dress walk the runway for the Fall 1979 Haute Couture collection.
• It was made under the creative direction of Yves Saint Laurent.
• The dress is completely made by hand to Haute Couture standards and it is incredible.
• I love having the runway photos so that you can see just how amazing it is in the body and I think the longer version is even better. It's more balanced and proportional with the upper body.
• The dress is made from a crisp black silk and this fabric choice allows it to hold those beautiful lines that you see.
• The neckline dips into a shallow V and the dress is vertically seamed to follow the curves of the body.
• The sleeves are amazing. Each is cut on a curve to follow the shape of the arm in the traditional manner of making a sleeve. They are set into the shoulders with a beautiful series of soft pleats so that you get a bit of volume at the shoulder. They puff out slightly around the upper arm and then narrow down at their ends.
• At the back the dress scoops low to give you a bare expanse of skin across the upper back. The back has a low set seam under the open scoop and this allows the top of the back skirt to lift slightly off and away from the body. A tiny detail that feels very sensual on the body.
• That same seam curves over the hips and angles up towards the waist at the front. The skirt falls under that. on a curve that widens out as it reaches the hem. The back is fuller and it also falls a touch longer to give it the feel of it sweeping out behind you.
• Underneath the skirt is a built-in ruffled black silk net underskirt and when you move or sit you see just a peek of the ruffle around the inner hem. Layers of silk net have been added under the sea, where the skirt starts to help to hold the fullness there as well.
• The dress is detailed with hand applied sequins to form little varying sized circles that run over the entire bodice, the waist and the top part of the skirt. Two types of sequins have been used - tiny silver sequins one and others that are an iridescent pale blue. The blue ones catch the light and range in colour from silver to an ice blue. Mixed into that are some circles that are made from little glass crystal beads. 
• The bodice is unlined and the skirt is fully lined with a built in underskirt in a black silk net and taffeta. Built in interior panniers around the hip area that I have photoed. It closes with a hand set back zipper and the skirt snaps into place with silk covered snaps over that. Hidden set zippers at each wrist. Hand finished throughout. There is the occasional sequin or crystal missing on the dots here and there and I have photoed one area for you to see as an example. Please see the last detail photo for that. Unlabeled. Completely made by hand to Haute Couture standards.
• There is no size tag present, so please go by the listed measurements below.
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: 23.5" and are 16" around the upper arm
Slightly inset shoulders: 14"
Bust: to 18" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Length: 58" from top of shoulder to front hem, 60" to the back hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5188

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 is a superb Christian Dior dress made under the creative direction of Marc Bohan
• It is a wonderful example of the work being done during this time period and shows how well the label could be when it delved into a more minimal cut combined with that full out glamour.
• The dress has classic feel of the best of Old Hollywood and the closer you get to it the more you see the incredible and elaborate amount of detail that has been put into this fabric.
• The dress is made from a black silk net with a floral pattern worked through the lace. The flowers are edged in black silk cord and then it is beaded with an elaborate beading that follows the pattern
• The top beaded layer sits over a black silk chiffon layer. Under those is a nude silk chiffon inner layer that is backed in a black silk. Adding that nude layer gives the dress a bit of an illusion of wearing nothing underneath.
• The dress is suspended from two beaded straps that curve over each shoulder. The front neckline dips into a slight V and the back is a simple scoop.
• It is cut to skim over the body from bust to hips with no seaming to break the eye or the design created by the bead work. The shape of the dress is created by vertical seaming on the inner layers and then the top layer is shaped to follow. The skirt widens out a touch as it nears the hem.
• The lace netting is covered with an elaborate design made of glossy black beads in various sized along with black sequins. The design is heavier around the top the bodice, lightens in coverage as it goes over the hips and then becomes dense and heavy again at the hem.
• The sequins have been applied so that they are stacked and layered over each other to give a slight 3D feel.
• Small faceted beads follow other parts of the pattern and these are the same beads that are used to cover the straps. Tiny little seed beads are thrown into the mix and then there are square pailettes and oval faceted beads on a much larger scale to really create impact.
• The beads are all applied by hand and catch the light from every angle.
• The label on the dress is numbered and when you see that in a Dior Boutique label it most often meant that the piece was a special order or was a custom made order for a client in the atelier but fitted at the boutique store rather then in Paris.
• Fully lined as per the description above. It closes with a hidden set side zipper. Numbered tag. Perhaps the occasional bead missing but you would never tell because of the extent of the pattern. The slight bias cut will allow for a bit of movement in the measurements.
• There is no size tag so I have put the comfortable range of measurements below
• Excellent condition.

Bust: 16-18" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: to 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 18" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 60" from top of shoulder to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5168

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 twin of this dress walked the runway for the Fall 1979 Givenchy show.
• It was made under the creative direction of Hubert de Givenchy.
• On the runway they showed it belted with a wide wrap belt. From what I understand that was sold separately. We have added a thin black ribbon for ours and I prefer it with a more narrow belt as it really allows the beautiful softness of the bodice to show better. I love that you can choose to wear it either way, or with no belt.
• The dress is two separate pieces. It has an inner black silk chiffon slip and then the outer silk chiffon layer pops over that. I love the large silk velvet dots fused onto the silk chiffon of the outer layer and that the chiffon of the outer layer has a slight texture. There is a fantastic play on transparency that this creates between the two layers.
• The inner slip is suspended from ivory mesh straps and is made out of a black silk chiffon. The front is scooped and the upper back is bare. It skims over the body and then widens out to the hem.
• Over that is the phenomenal outer dress. It falls from top gathered shoulders and is cut wide and easy so that it softly blouses to the waist. Each side is open from shoulder to waist for your arms to slip through. From the side you see the inner chiffon piece for coverage. It hooks to close at the back of the neck and then there is an open slit there that runs all the way to the waist.
• We cinched in the waist with a ribbon, that will be sent with the dress, and it looks equally good with a more structured belt or worn without any.
• From the waist the dress falls to the floor in a long sweep of silk. The silk is gathered into the waist and the fabric is set so that it extends past the waist on both sides with a little opening at the top as a fabric folds from the front to the back. Once this is on, that extra fabric drapes down and over each hip. This is a ingenious way to add subtle shape that still feels soft and feminine. It also picks up on the way that the sides of the bodice falls.
• The silk of the skirt is all cut on the bias and when you are standing still it falls in a beautiful column to the floor but there is an incredible amount of fabric in the skirt. The bottom flares out a touch and it has incredible movement when you move.
• The silk slip acts as a lining. It closes with a back zipper. The outer dress closes with a hook at the back of the neck and then it snaps to close at the waist. Snapped continue slightly under the waist as well. An inner waist stay hooks to close.
• Tagged a vintage Givenchy 40
• Excellent condition

Inner Slip
Bust: 16.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 18.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: 58" from top of the shoulder to him

Outer dress
Bust: open with no true side seams
Waist: to 13" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: approx 15" from top of shoulder to waist
Total length: 65" from top of shoulder to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-MED

Item# DD5163

Reference Photo: Fall 1979 Givenchy.

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 is a very rare Haute Couture dress set by Madame Gres.
• While researching the dress we found that the 1958 and 1959 collections in particular were ones that featured braided details and cape elements like this dress has and this timeline matches when the original owner would have worn this set.
• Madame Gres' work has had profound effects on Haute Couture and her influence still resonates to this day. Her attention to detail, master draping techniques and respect for the female form is unparalleled. She was known for designing and creating garments directly on her models and this became a signature of her work.
• She opened her first atelier, La Maison Alix in 1932. A partnership briefly changed the house's name to Alix Barton and then the label went to simply Alix. In 1942 she married, and the label made its last change to became Madame Gres, which was a partial anagram of Serge, her husband's first name. Her work spans over five full decades with the vast majority of it, with the exception of a short-lived RTW line begun in 1980, dedicated solely to creating Haute Couture. She is one of the greatest couturiers of our time and her pieces are very rare and hard to find.
• This Haute Couture dress is exceptional. It comes to me directly from the family. Her son told me that 'Madame Grès would let her (his mother) wear many dresses as she was size model and those she really liked she purchased afterwards.' This was one of those that she kept.
• We have included some examples of other dresses by Gres that share some of those common elements to this one from those years for you to see.
• The dress is made from a bias cut silk chiffon with a small abstract print on it. From a distance it gives you that beautiful mottled red / pink effect. Then as you look closer at the fabric you see that there is a deeper red, coral, soft green and a blue that all work together to form a pretty abstract floral print.
• The cut is simple and minimalist.
• On the dress, wide straps have made from hand twisting and stitching the silk chiffon and then it curves over the shoulders.  It extends from there to detail the neckline at the back and front.
• The body of the dress falls from under that in a swoop of bias cut silk that widens out as it nears the hem. The dress is lined in a layer of bias cut ivory silk and this gives the top patterned layer more depth. The silk is as light as air.
• Every seam on the dress has been finished by hand. Working with a silk chiffon as fine as this makes that an incredible achievement that would have taken countless hours of handwork.
• It comes with a matching caped piece that has an unusual design. Two wide single layer panels are attached at the top and then they hook together at the front. The panels fall over each shoulder to the floor and just past the hem of the dress. They are incredibly light in weight. This allows the slightest bit of air to pick them up so that they waft and float around you as you move.
• The cape is topped by an oversized hood that is cut extra long at the back and in such a way that its end twirls. I have taken a photo of this for you because it is just such an incredible detail.
• When the hood is up it falls gently around the face to frame it
• It is a work of art and very rare. It very well may be the only one that exists.
• The dress is lined in a fine ivory silk. A handmade soft inner corset is set inside and under the ivory layer and it closes with its own zipper. The ivory silk lining closes over that with its own zipper and then the outer layer of the dress closes with hidden set tiny snaps. The cape hooks to close at the front. An inner waist stay hooks to close with metal couture hooks. I see a couple of small holes near the hem of the one panel that were left as they are stable. There is a very tiny and finely done seam at the base of where it snaps to close at the front and I'm not sure if it is there deliberately or if it was a repair at one time but it's invisible when the dress is on. Please see the photo after the label shot.
• The dress is finished to Haute Couture standards and entirely made by hand. The proper Haute Couture label is present.
• No size tag is present. The bias cut of the dress should work for a range of measurements and I have listed the comfortable range laying flat where that applies.
  
• No matter how good you think it looks in the photos it is better in person.
• Excellent condition and appears to have been worn very little.

Bust: 14-17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner waist stay: 12.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner hips: to 23" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: 58" from top of shoulder to hem
Cape: 65" from neck to hem and will come up a touch when on the shoulders

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD4254

Reference Photos: (1) 1958 Madame Gres Evening Dress in The MET Collection. /  (2) Madame Gres evening dress, L'officiel de la mode, 1958.  /  (3) 1959 Madame Gres Evening Dress in the Chicago History Museum Collection.

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 twin of this dress walk the runway for the Fall 1979 collection.
• It was made under the creative direction of Roy Halston.
• From what I am aware the dress was made in three colour ways. This green and gold version, a blue and gold, and a version that has a deeper gold and more brown feeling combination. 
  
• It is from his main couture line and these would have been primarily made-to-order during this time period.
• This is an amazing couture Halston dress and a very rare and special find.
• It is entirely cut on the bias above and below the elastic waist and utilizes his signature minimal seaming. Halston defined how woman dressed in the 1970s and his dresses in particular were tremendously flattering to the body.
• It is feather light and you are barely conscious of wearing anything.
• The fabric is a very fine light gold and green silk lurex lame that moves and drapes beautifully.
• The bodice is generously cut. The neckline is scooped and there is a little keyhole at the back below the hook there. The sleeves extend out from the waist with no seam around the arm and then they narrow down to their ends. This leaves the bodice loose and generous over you.
• There is elastic set around the waist so it is very easy to fit. The dress also comes with its original matching tie belt in the same fabric. The belt is shaped more like a cummerbund with a wider panel that extends into smaller ties on each side. This lets you wrap in shape it around you and cinch in the waist much as you wish. You can leave the ties at the front or the back.
• The skirt falls from there and slightly widens out as it nears the hem. There are pockets on each hip.
• This is a rare example of Halston at his very best and is a rare example of when he chose to use a print over a solid colour.
• The dress slips on with an elastic waist. It hooks at the back of the neck above a keyhole. Comes with its original belt. Pockets on each hip. Hand finished throughout. 
  
• Its easy fit should allow it to work for range of sizing.
• There is no size tag so please go by the measurements listed below
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: approx 25.5" and are open through the upper arm
Shoulders: no true defined seam
Bust: open with no true side seams
Elastic waist: 14-20" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 20-26" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: approx 16.5" from neck to waist 
Total length: 61.5" from shoulder to hem but may come up a bit on once on and belted

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-LRG

Item# DD5144

Reference Photo: Fall 1979 Halston.

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.