1920s Gold Ivory Silk Velvet & Silk Chiffon Pearl Flower Beaded Dress

This gorgeous twenties dress combines a rich, golden tone ivory silk velvet with an inset panel of silk chiffon in the same rich color. The front panel where the silk chiffon is inlaid, has been heavily embellished with beads and faux pearls. The execution of the design is very well done and it is quite beautiful. I love the way the back panel of the dress is set so that it falls in one single long line. This is created by having the back set over the inner structure of the dress and simply hooking into place once on. The velvet then wraps around the body to the front with bead work at the waist holding the velvet perfectly in place. The hand work involved in the front design would have taken hours and hours to finish. There is a wide and elaborate band of beading at the center low waist and from that hang a long, double sided, multi strand beaded tassel. These drop right to the hem of the dress and create wonderful movement. Behind this, the silk chiffon has an elaborate, trailing design of little flowers. These are all hand done and made from glass beads, pearls and rhinestones. The dress is cut in a classic flapper tube shape with a long body with no defined waist. The silk velvet top layer sits over an inner dress that gives it some hidden structure, This inner dress is no longer perfect all along where it closes underneath the back panel but this cannot be seen at all once it is on. It could perhaps still be worn as is very carefully, or the inner part could be replaced, or even removed altogether. I love all the romantic touches and feel that this could potentially be a beautiful wedding piece for a girl looking for a more twenties feeling wedding dress. The exterior is in absolutely remarkable antique condition. It is incredibly beautiful and entirely made by hand. An amazing collector piece and beautiful example of the time period. It is far far better in person then how it photoed - more rich feeling and has a softer, more romantic feel in person as well.  Excellent overall antique condition.

Has an elaborate inner dress comprised of silk netting, tissue silk and silk chiffon. The dress slips on to wear with no closures from the waist seam down. It has a series of snaps and hooks from the waist up.  The fabric at the back of the inner bodice has deteriorated badly. I have taken a photo of it on the mannequin and if you turn the layers inside out its even more shredded on one inner layer then how this looks. That said it is very sound still as the netting is there and that is strong. The structure is all there. I see one small tear to the chiffon but it is stable and not readily apparent when in due to the placement and the many layers of chiffon. There is the occasional weak spot to the silk chiffon that lines the outer silk velvet but again the velvet itself is remarkably strong and stable. There may be other areas of weakness here and there as well but I don't see any readily apparent ones. The bead and jet beads seem to be entirely present with perhaps the occasional one missing in that front design. Even with these small defects the dress is remarkably sound and shockingly beautiful. It is almost 100 years old and is considered to be in museum quality condition.

Inner bust: 17" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner waist: 16" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner hips: to 20" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 45 from shoulder  to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Note that antique and twenties pieces are final sale. They will be packed exceedingly well and we only sell pieces that will stand up to the stress of shipping, however, having pieces potentially shipped multiple times through multiple customs and countries is too hard on garments that are historically important and deserve to be treated with love and care. Please purchase accordingly.

Item# E659

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