• Mary McFadden patented her Fortuny inspired pleating technique just a couple of years after launching her label in 1973.
• By the eighties she had many licensing agreements and her dresses were being made on a larger scale. Mary was known to say frequently that there was no greater beauty than pleated cloth on the human body and she said then when she developed her 'marii' fabric her aim was to have it 'fall like liquid gold on the body, like Chinese silk.' 
• Once on this looks like a true dress but it is actually a separate top and skirt. I love that because it means that you can mix and match the pieces with other things you already own.
• Both pieces are made from a beautiful green silk feeling synthetic that has been pleated in McFadden's signature pleating technique.
  
• The top slips over the head to wear and is cut in an easy one shoulder silhouette. Is cut wide and open through the body and then you use the matching belt to cinch it in around you. The hem of the top is set on an angle and I love the effect this creates once it is layered over the skirt.
• The skirt falls to the floor from the elastic waist and I love how the bottom hem has a slightly ruffled feel. This picks up on the same slightly ruffled feel of the hem of the top.
• I also love that the skirt is cut very long which is a rare thing to find in her work. As she progressed in her career she preferred to design pieces that ended at the ankle so you could see the shoe underneath so the full length pieces are a bit rarer.
• The set comes with its original extra extra long braided belt that was another of Mary's signatures. This one is spectacular with a thick braided finish and long dangling ends. These are really what gave her pieces such impact.
• Both pieces are unlined and slip on to wear. The waist has elastic so is an easy fit. The belt is original to the dress and is just over eleven and a half feet long.
• Tagged a vintage McFadden Medium. The cut is loose and easy but could still be worn on a smaller frame because of the belt that you can cinch the top in with. The fabric has a lot of stretch. One small mark on the belt.
• Excellent condition

Top
Bust: 16.5-21" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist-hips: open
Total Length: 33" from top of shoulder to the shortest part of the hem, 41.5" to the longest

Skirt
Elastic waist: 12-19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Total Length: 43" from waist to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-LRG

Item# DD5103

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.

• Arnold Scassi launched  his boutique line in 1984 and it was high end ready-to-wear and very expensive.
• Arnold Scaasi was born Arnold Isaacs in Montreal and the name Scassi is simply his own surname in reverse. He studied in Montreal and in Paris, apprenticed at the house of Paquin and then worked with the legendary Charles James. In 1964 he opened own couture salon.
• The sleeved version of this dress walk the runway for the Fall 1987 collection. It's very rare to find documentation from this time period and I love having that say that you can see how amazing it is on. I think this strapless one is even better.
• You can easily see the influence of Arnold having worked for Charles James in this piece. The lines are dramatic and yet elegant. 
• The dress is strapless and the top portion of the dress is made from an inky black velvet. It is dramatically shaped at the front with wired peaks and a V plunge at the front. 
• It nips in at the waist and then angles down from one side low on the hip on the other. On the side that sits higher up, there is a large bow detail that gives the effect of holding all the gathers of the skirt in place.
• The skirt is set under that and the long angling seam on the opposite hip adds visual length to the dress as it extends down and into a deep point. The skirt is quite full and the shape and volume that you see is held by the inner construction which is quite amazing.
• Layers of tulle netting set underneath the outermost layer of silk. The green of the skirt is a true brilliant emerald. This unexpected shock of colour is fantastic.
• Fully lined in a green silky rayon. The bodice is lightly boned and it closes with a hidden set side zipper. Built in stiff tulle under skirts and the skirt is interlined in a green organza. 
• There is no size tag present so please go by the measurements listed below.
• Excellent condition

Bust: to 17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13.4" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Length: 51" from top of peaks on bodice to hem with 3" turned under the top layer

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5101

Reference Photos: Fall 1987 Arnold Scaasi.

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.

• From the Fall 1985 Givenchy Haute Couture collection and we have included some photos showing the extensive use of this particular fabric for pieces shown on the runway.
  
• Under the creative direction of Hubert de Givenchy
  
• Completely made by hand in the Paris atelier to Haute Couture standards.
• This gorgeous dress is made out of a black silk velvet with a leopard print done in a different finish of velvet within the fabric. This pattern gives the velvet an extra depth and richness, and also catches the light as you move. It is stunning.
• It drapes absolutely beautifully over the body. It is really an outstanding fabric. The bodice is set into a V that crosses over itself where it is set into the waist. The bodice drapes more loosely over you at the front. 
• The waist is seamed and cut slightly on the more generous side. I have added a ribbon and if you wanted more shape, you could have it cinched and even more with a belt or it also works perfectly well without.
• The sleeves narrow down to a hand set zippered cuff.
• The skirt falls to the floor in a pretty sweep of fabric that is at the front. This lets the front hem curve up slightly.
• It is a gorgeous dress and a wonderful piece of his fashion history.
• Fully lined in a black silk. There's a inner built-in half skirt. It closes with an inner side set zipper and the outside snapped into place with a series of hidden set, snapped around the waist. And inner waist state hooks to close. Each cuff has a hidden set zipper. It appears to have been worn very little if at all. 
  
• There is no size tag present so please check the listed measurements below
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: 23.5"
Shoulders: 15"
Bust: 16-19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner hips: to 22" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 17" from top of shoulder to slightly dropped waist
Total length: 55" from top of shoulder to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED

Item# DD5100

Reference Photos: Fall 1985 Givenchy Haute Couture.

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 1987 collection.
• Made under the creative direction of Yves Saint Laurent.
• The dress is made from a black silk faille base and then the upper part of the dress is covered in a layer of black net detailed with little dots.
• The ruffle that goes around the hip is in the same fabric as the base and then it was dyed to the coral orange colour that you see. The inner skirt under the ruffle is made from the black silk faille.
• This choice in fabric gives the dress its structure and shape and also allows for the volume that you see in the ruffle detailing that wraps around the waist and hips.
• The bodice is strapless and is lightly boned on the inside for shape. It skims over the waist and curves back out for the hips.
• The ruffle is the star of the show and makes a wonderful impact. The ruffle flare outwards from the body to create a more full shape.
• Fully lined in a black silk and closes with a side set zipper. The bodice is lightly boned and shaped. An inner waist stay hooks to close. 
  
• Tagged a vintage YSL 38
• There is a bit of fading along the fold lines on the skirt and a couple of minor areas where it has lightened. Please review the photos after the label shot.
• Excellent condition otherwise

Bust: 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 12-13" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: to 18" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: 27" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD5082

Reference Video/Photo: Spring 1987 Yves Saint Laurent.

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 regulations this coat can only ship to a Canadian address 
  
• This appears to be the actual Haute Couture sample coat that walked the runway for the Fall 1985 Jean Patou collection for Look 12
• Made under the creative direction of Christian Lacroix 
  
• This is an extremely rare and important piece of fashion history. Very few pieces of his work at Patou come up for sale and this is more then likely the only piece to exist.
• Made in the Paris atelier
• Made of a soft orange wool shaped in an enveloping cocoon shape highly reminiscent of a 1920s flapper coat.
• It is all cut on the bias so once it is on the body it wraps around you beautifully. It is extraordinary. 
  
• The sleeves are quite extremely wide and they have a long wide cuff that flips up and over the sleeve. The cuff is completely covered in hand dyed feathers.
• More of the same hand dyed feathers are used to create a huge shawl collar that drapes down and over the shoulders. It continues to run all the way to the hem and circles around to the back hem.
• The coat narrows in as it reaches its bottom. This is a classic cut for this style of cocoon coat
• It feels wonderfully decadent and opulent, both key design elements in Lacroix's work. It is literally like wearing a work of art.
• Partially lined in a silk through the upper body of the coat and through the sleeves. The rest is unlined.
• Has its hand written Haute Couture sample label in place and attached metal couture tag
• Excellent condition

It is very full and open and has no closures so should fit almost any size. It is approximately 52 inches from neck to hem but that will come up a bit once it is on the body.

Modern Sizing Equivalent: OSFA

Item# DD5048

Reference Photo: Fall 1985 Christian Lacroix Haute Couture.

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.