• The twin of this dress was shown for Look 67 of the resort 2017 Valentino collection.
• It was made under the creative direction of Pierpaolo Piccioli & Maria Grazia Chiuri.
• This ended up being the final collection that Maria worked on for the Valentino label.
• The inspiration behind the collection was Cuba and the looks were rife with embroidery and bead work. Piccioli remarked that "It gave us a real freedom to mix, like a souvenir, lots of pieces together."
• The dress has the added provenance of being the twin of the dress worn by Bee Schaffer that year on the red carpet. She wore it beautifully and it shows you just how spectacular the dress is once on the body.
• The dress is made out of a light weight white gauze cotton that sits over a white gauze lining to make it opaque enough to wear. Onto that is a beautiful mix of bead work that highlights the lines of the dress.
• The neckline is set wide across so that it sits at the edges of the shoulders and a wide 6" ruffle follows the entire neckline. It gives it the prettiest flounce all the way around you and creates the feel of little cap sleeves that float over the top of the shoulders.
• The neckline is set into a V at both the back and the front for a little bit of added bare skin to show.
• Under that the bodice skims down to the seamed waist and then the skirt is set into the waist.  The waist is slightly more on the generous side and accentuated with a band of the intricate bead work.
• From there the skirt expands outwards and by the time it reaches the hem it has an amazing amount of volume. The back is cut slightly longer than the front so you get a beautiful sweep.
• The lower portion of the skirt has a ruffle that picks up on the one around the shoulders and that ruffle is a full 15" wide. Underneath the top layer skirt is a second layer white. I love how this added touch of under-skirting along with the beautiful cut of the skirt creates the volume. It also gives you fantastic movement when you move.
  
• You can see where the edges and seams between the different panels have all been finished with bead work. The beads have all been done in a combination of ivory and soft taupe beads placed by hand and they have the feel of being hand painted.
• This is an absolutely stunning dress and this particular cut of dress is one of my favourites. 
• The dress is fully lined in a white gauze feeling fabric as described above. It closes with a hidden set back zipper. There is the tiniest faint mark near the waist. Please see the photo after the label shot. It otherwise appears to have been worn very little if at all. It has its original hang tag and packet of extra beads.
• Tagged a modern Valentino 46
• Excellent condition

Bust: to 20" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: to 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: 16" from top of shoulder to the top of the 2" band at the waist
Total length: 58.5" from top of shoulder to the shortest parts of the front hem well the longest parts of the skirt extend another 3" past that

Modern Sizing Equivalent: MED-LRG

Item# DD5540

Reference Photos: (1) Resort 2017 Valentino, Look 67.  /  (2) Bee Shaffer at The Franca Sozzani Award gala dinner, September 2017.

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 walked the runway for the Spring 2017 collection for Look 52.
• It was made under the creative direction of Pierpaolo Piccioli and the print was done in collaboration with Zandra Rhodes.
• Historically, this was an important collection as it was Pierpaolo's first solo show at Valentino. It was also his first collaboration with Zandra Rhodes.
• On the runway the dress was shown without a lining so had a higher level of transparency that you can see in the photos and the video.
• The dress and collection were very well received and was one of the most documented dresses of the season.
• Meryl Streep famously wore its twin to the 2017 SAG awards. Laetitia Casta and Lee Young Ae appeared in one for Elle France and Elle US, and it was shot for other editorials. This really lets you see how spectacular it is on and in a variety of circumstances.
• The dress is made out of a beautiful lightweight white silk chiffon that has a custom Zandra Rhodes print covering the entire dress. Written in between the print are the words "In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas corpora" which is the opening line of Ovid's epic poem, Metamorphoses, and translates to "My mind is bent to tell of bodies changed into new forms" or "My soul inclines to speak of forms changed into new bodies". This powerful opening sets the poem's central theme of transformation, with Ovid's narrative beginning from the creation of the world and continuing to his own time, weaving together many myths about how beings and objects were transformed into new forms."
• The shoulders are soft and the sleeves are long. They are a single layer of the silk chiffon so they have a beautiful delicacy to them.
• The dress skims over the bust from a scooped neck and drapes easily over the body to a more generously cut waist.
• Built-in and under the top layer of silk on the bodice is a second layer of the same silk that creates a covered curving deep plunge at the front. The same effect has been created at the back as well and there the V has been set wider across. I love the play on transparency that this gives the dress. You are completely covered but at the same time the plunge is there on both sides. It is an unexpected sexiness that still feels elegant and refined. 
• The waist is cut more generously so that you have a beautiful flow from head to toe. You can see this in all of the various reference photos and how it sits on the body. This cut was to become one of Pierpaolo signatures.
• The skirt flows to the floor from there and it is extremely full. It has a second ivory silk chiffon layer underneath so that it is opaque enough to wear. The excessive amount of fabric used through the skirt gives it a ton of movement when you walk and move. The back is cut slightly longer than the front for a beautiful sweeping feel behind you.
• The lightness of the silk and the way that it lays over the body allows it to move spectacularly over you and it will pick up the slightest bit of air.
• The dress is partially lined through the bodice to create the plunge as seen and described above. The skirt is fully lined in a solid silk chiffon layer. It closes with a hidden set back zipper. This is a dress that is easy to fit and wear because of the easy cut through the body. It appears to have been worn very little if at all
• Tagged a vintage Valentino 44
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: 24" and they are 12" around the upper arm
Shoulders: 15"
Bust: 17.5-18.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 15-16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: approximately 15" from top of shoulder to waist
Total length: 60" from top of shoulder to front hem in the back extends another 7" past that.

Modern Sizing Equivalent: MED-LRG

Item# DD5541

Reference Photos/Videos: (1-3) Spring 2017 Valentino, Look 52. Model Jessie Bloemendaal.  /  (4-6) Meryl Streep at the 2017 Sag Awards.  /   (7) Laetitia Casta for Elle France, June 2017.  /  (8) Photograph by Ken Browar & Deborah Ory.  /  (9-10) Lee Young Ae in Valentino for Elle.  /  (11) Harper's Bazaar, 2017. 

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 walked the runway for Look 41 for the Spring 2013 collection.
• Vogue said of the Collection; "When Peter Dundas inherited this historic Florentine house—famous since the 1960s for its kaleidoscopic prints—he made reworked archival patterns a major part of his story line. Last season and this one, though, he's started inching away from them. These days, the label is just as well known for Dundas' confident, louche brand of glamour as it once was for its founder's graphic swirls and geometries." 
• It was one of three white dresses that closed the show before the final look. 
• The dress is made out of a light silk that is light in weight but just heavy enough to keep the structure. It is very close to a true white.
• The front neckline is done in a halter style with the upper part above the bust line finished an a white netting that has a secondary abstract print work through it. This allows you to see the skin underneath. The front is gathered over the breasts almost like a bandeau and seamed in the centre.
• Under that is an open cut out for a bit more skin to show.
• The dress curves in to follow the waist under that and and skims over the hips.
• The skirt falls to the floor and widens out quite a bit as it nears the hem. This gives the dress incredible movement when you walk and you get a sense of that in the runway video.
• I love the loose slightly draped pockets that sit on each hip.
• The back is mostly open with a criss-cross of straps and an open cut out between the waist and the back strap.
• Decorative frog knots sit at the low waist for added detail.
• The dress is fully lined through the bodice and the skirt is unlined. It closes at the side with a hidden set zipper. Light boning and padding through the bodice. I see some some faint marks here and there around the hem.
• Tagged a modern Pucci IT42, FR38, US8, UK10.
• Excellent condition with the minor note above

Bust: to 17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: to 13.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 64" from top of neck to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5542

Reference Photos/Video: Spring 2013 Emilio Pucci Runway Look 41. Model Kasia Struss.

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