Saint Laurent Blue Calfskin Leather & Suede Medium Cassandra
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Height: 6.5 in (16.5 cm)Width: 8.67 in (22 cm)Depth: 2.17 in (5.5 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Bishop's Stortford, GB
- Reference Number:
Saint Laurent
French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent pioneered “cross-design” in fashion, taking inspiration from street trends to modernize haute couture.
Saint Laurent was the first to launch a ready-to-wear label, YSL Rive Gauche Prêt-à-Porter. He was the first couturier to open boutiques for both men and women. Using traditional menswear fabrics and designs for women, Saint Laurent also literally cross-dressed, giving men and women alike chic pant suits, elegant tuxedo jackets and urban safari gear. By blurring gender-specific design, he empowered individual style while creating a scissor-sharp fashion aesthetic of sensual ease and beauty. Many of his designs are today considered timeless classics. Saint Laurent also consistently used Black models, like Mounia, Iman and Naomi Campbell, and he drew endless inspiration from different ethnicities and cultures, in no small part because of his Algerian roots.
Born to French parents in Oran, Algeria, in 1936, Saint Laurent went to Paris at age 17 to study fashion at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture. Just two years later, in 1955, his remarkable sketches were shown to Christian Dior, then the world’s reigning couturier, who hired him immediately.
Surprisingly soon thereafter, Dior publicly chose Saint Laurent as his successor, which sadly proved prescient when the fashion legend died unexpectedly, in 1957. A mere slip of a youth, the 21-year-old Saint Laurent was nevertheless up to the challenge. He shook the traditional couture clientele to its core with youthful silhouettes and styles like the A-line trapeze dress that hung with seeming effortlessness from the shoulders, the antithesis of the pinched waists and molded skirts that had been all the rage after the deprivations of World War II.
After a mandated spell in the torturous French military, Saint Laurent suffered a nervous breakdown and was dismissed by Dior in 1962. Out of the ashes rose the Age of Yves. With Pierre Bergé, his then-lover who became his lifelong business partner and friend, the designer founded Yves Saint Laurent YSL to encompass prêt-à-porter, or ready-to-wear. In 1966, they opened the first YSL Rive Gauche women’s boutique in Paris, followed soon thereafter by YSL Rive Gauche for men. Saint Laurent had given birth to a global brand.
His revolutionary Mondrian mini dress from 1965 is a core element of his fashion biography. It is a prime example of how Saint Laurent, an avid art lover and collector, looked to painters, from Goya to Picasso, Ingres to Matisse, for inspiration.
With its pure lines and hues, Mondrian’s ground-breaking 1935 color-block painting Composition C transmutes beautifully into a dress that is highly valued by collectors of contemporary fashion and widely copied commercially to this day. The design is the epitome of Saint Laurent’s aesthetic, requiring a meticulous hand piecing of each color block so that, despite the body’s curves, the visual plane is as flat as a canvas when the garment is worn. Mondrian’s purity met its match in Saint Laurent.
“I am no longer concerned with sensation and innovation, but with the perfection of my style,” Saint Laurent said four years before retiring, in 2002. After a long period of ill health, he died at his home in Paris on June 1, 2008. Under creative director Hedi Slimane, the house’s ready-to-wear collection was rebranded as Saint Laurent in 2012.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Saint Laurent evening dresses, shirts, handbags and other clothing and accessories today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Bishops Stortford, United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- Hermès Black Epsom Leather Constance 18By HermèsLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireHermès Black Epsom Leather Constance 18 Brand- Hermès Model- Constance 18 Product Type- Crossbody, Shoulder Serial Number- * Age- Circa 2021 Accompanied By- Hermès Dust Bag, Box, In...Category
2010s French Structured Shoulder Bags
- Chanel Cream Caviar Leather Vintage Braided Shoulder BagBy ChanelLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireChanel Cream Caviar Leather Vintage Braided Shoulder Bag Brand- Chanel Model- Braided Shoulder Bag Product Type- Shoulder Serial Number- 52***** Age- Circa 1997 Accompanied By- Chan...Category
1990s French Structured Shoulder Bags
- Louis Vuitton Damier Azur Coated Canvas NaviglioBy Louis VuittonLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireLouis Vuitton Damier Azur Coated Canvas Naviglio Brand- Louis Vuitton Model- Navigilio Product Type- Crossbody, Shoulder Serial Number- SR**** Age- Circa 2007 Colour- Beige Hardware...Category
Early 2000s French Structured Shoulder Bags
- Chanel Beige & Grey Ombre Caviar Leather Jumbo Classic Single Flap BagBy ChanelLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireChanel Beige & Grey Ombre Caviar Leather Jumbo Classic Single Flap Bag Brand- Chanel Model- Jumbo Classic Single Flap Bag Product Type- Crossbody, Shoulder Serial Number- 17****** A...Category
2010s Italian Structured Shoulder Bags
- Hermès Cuivre Vache Hunter Leather & Bubblegum Toile Herbag Zip 31By HermèsLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireHermès Cuivre Vache Hunter Leather & Bubblegum Toile Herbag Zip 31 Brand- Hermès Model- Herbag Zip 31 Product Type- Shoulder, Top Handle Serial Number- *...Category
2010s French Structured Shoulder Bags
- Gucci Beige Embroidered GG Supreme Canvas & Brown Suede Medium DionysusBy GucciLocated in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireGucci Beige Embroidered GG Supreme Canvas & Brown Suede Medium Dionysus Brand- Gucci Model- Medium Dionysus Product Type- Shoulder Serial Number- 40*********** Age- Circa 2015 Accom...Category
2010s Italian Structured Shoulder Bags
- CHANEL New Medium Chevron Boy Bag Dark Red Embroidered Calfskin Gunmetal HW 2014By ChanelLocated in Huddersfield, GBCHANEL New Medium Chevron Boy Bag Dark Red Embroidered Thin Chains Calfskin with Light Gunmetal Hardware 2014. This stunning bag is still in very good condition; it still keeps its ...Category
2010s Structured Shoulder Bags
- Chloe Pink/Brown Leather Paddington SatchelBy ChloéLocated in Dubai, Al Qouz 2This satchel is rendered in the finest quality materials into an elegant design. Versatile and functional, it is well-sized for your daily use.Category
2010s Italian Shoulder Bags
- Chanel Casual Riviera Bowling BagBy ChanelLocated in West Hollywood, CAChanel Casual Riviera Bowling Bag. The bag is crafted of quilted leather on the outside in a neutral tone and the interior is red. The bag has a should str...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Shoulder Bags
- Dior Vintage Diorissimo Black Lady Dior Handbag MediumBy Christian DiorLocated in Montreal, QuebecIntroducing this classic style Dior bag called the Lady Dior which was made famous my Lady Diana in the 1990s. This vintage rendition is made of black leather and features oblique mo...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Shoulder Bags
- CHANEL Chain Around Shoulder Crossbody Bag Black Calfskin LeatherBy ChanelLocated in Takamatsu-shi, JPAn authentic CHANEL Chain Around Shoulder Bag Crossbody Black Calfskin Leather. The color is Black. The outside material is Leather. The pattern is Solid. This item is Contemporary. ...Category
2010s Italian Structured Shoulder Bags
- Prada Navy Blue Saffiano Patent Leather Small Promenade SatchelBy PradaLocated in Dubai, Al Qouz 2This satchel is rendered in the finest quality materials into an elegant design. Versatile and functional, it is well-sized for your daily use. Includes: Damage Detachable StrapCategory
2010s Italian Shoulder Bags
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
How to Spot a Fake YSL Bag
Counterfeiters know that savvy fashionistas cherish YSL bags. Learn how to tell if yours is the real deal. Of course, you don't have to worry about that on 1stDibs, where every seller is highly vetted.
This Golden Saint Laurent Handbag Feels Like a Disco-Era Throwback (in the Best Way Possible)
If you're looking for an accessory that brings the party, this is it.