Bill Blass bell sleeve black lace plunge cocktail dress 1970s
View Similar Items
Bill Blass bell sleeve black lace plunge cocktail dress 1970s
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 12 (US)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:West Palm Beach, FL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: AU130902284659
Bill Blass
Venerated designer and philanthropist Bill Blass helped define style for women of means during the late 20th century and inspired generations of fashion industry professionals and enthusiasts all over the world.
Blass designed garments that saw a playful mingling of notes both subdued and bold, and his clothes were comfortable, easy to wear and sexy. The Indiana native was influenced by the likes of Coco Chanel and became famous for refined, simple looks that appealed to prominent women such as Brooke Astor and Gloria Vanderbilt.
Blass didn’t endeavor to produce showstoppers — he worked with quality materials, and his modern designs boasted meticulous tailoring. He glamourized sportswear with chic lines and dramatic colors, and by way of subtle, graceful ruffles or a tasteful application of sequins, he introduced modest flair to his day dresses and evening dresses. Vintage Bill Blass clothing is just as relevant today as it was during the height of his career.
Blass, who spent his spare time sketching red-carpet looks in his school notebooks as a kid, left home at 17 and moved to New York City, where he trained at the McDowell School of Fashion. After finishing design school, he joined the U.S. Army and fought in World War II. When the war was over, Blass returned to Manhattan. In 1946 he joined the fashion house Anna Miller and Co., where he worked as a design assistant for Anna Miller and her brother Maurice Rentner.
Anna Miller and Co. merged with Maurice Rentner, Ltd. in 1959, and Blass became the company's head designer. There he quickly built a name for himself and was soon a staple of the postwar fashion scene, impressing even the fashion editor of Harper's Bazaar at the time, Diana Vreeland. Blass expanded into designing menswear and was the first couture designer in America to create a collection for men.
In 1970, Blass gained ownership of Rentner and renamed the company after himself. Blass employed a licensing-based business strategy, and soon his name marked a full array of accessories and apparel, including Bill Blass jeans, watches, home furnishings, eyewear and luggage. Blass's renown and success expanded considerably, as fashion bearing his name became more accessible than it had ever been.
Throughout his life, Blass made considerable contributions to the AIDS care center at Cornell Medical Center and to the New York Public Library. In 1962, he became a founding member of the Council of Fashion Designs of America (CFDA) trade association, which promotes American designers around the world. The CFDA presented Blass with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, and he was the first recipient of their Humanitarian Leadership Award in 1996.
Find vintage Bill Blass fashion on 1stDibs.
- Jackie Rogers Classic Black Satin Bias Cut DressBy Jackie RogersLocated in West Palm Beach, FLJackie Rogers classic silky black satin bias cut dress from the 1990s. The perfect black dress to dress up with jewelry and or a belt. The dress slips o...Category
1990s American Cocktail Dresses
- Adolfo Silk 3 pc. Set Print Shirt Pleated Maxi Skirt & Applique Sweater 1970sBy Adolfo, Adolfo at Saks Fifth AvenueLocated in West Palm Beach, FLAdolfo silk print shirt, pleated maxi skirt & applique sweater set from the 1970s. Printed silk in a pale yellow & grey modernist print, the set consists o...Category
1970s American Skirt Suits
- Lanvin numbered Haute couture black silk and velvet strapless cocktail dressBy Lanvin ParisLocated in West Palm Beach, FLLanvin numbered Haute Couture cocktail dress...From the late 1970s or early 1980s...Strapless, black crushed silk velvet bodice dress, closes at the si...Category
1970s French Cocktail Dresses
- Vintage Bill Blass golden silk chiffon metallic tiger stripe cocktail dress 1970By Bill BlassLocated in West Palm Beach, FLFabulous Bill Blass golden metallic stripe silk chiffon, tiger print cocktail dress with gold cord and crystal rhinestone trim at the deep V neckline, under bust band and cuffs...The...Category
1970s American Cocktail Dresses
$750 Sale Price21% Off - Vintage Naeem Khan silk jeweled Raj inspired beaded gown 1980sBy Naeem KhanLocated in West Palm Beach, FLNaeem Khan jeweled Raj inspired beaded gown from the 1980s. The silhouette of the dress reminds me of Paul Poiret's dresses from his famous Arabian Nights party in the early 1900s. The dress is electric blue crepe which is beaded in blue, the center of the dress is an amazing design with beautiful beading at the front and back. Deep V neckline dress...Category
1980s Indian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage Bill Blass evening top and skirt set in cream and black silk satin 1980sBy Bill BlassLocated in West Palm Beach, FLVintage Bill Blass evening skirt set in cream and black silk satin from the 1980s. Sleeveless princess seamed v neck top is fitted through the waist ...Category
1980s American Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage 1930's Cartwright Ivory Striped Silk Rayon Cut-Out Maxi Dress & JacketLocated in Beverly Hills, CAThe vibrant rainbow-stripe used on this ivory silk rayon 1930's "Cartwright" designer dress ensemble has a whimsical allure that I find irresistible. The sleeveless bodice has a flir...Category
1930s American Aesthetic Day Dresses
- F/2012 look # 6 NEW VERSACE MACRAME GOTHIC CROSS COCKTAIL SILK DRESS 38 - 2By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Actual Runway Samole Fall/Winter 2012 Look # 6 Macrame Gothic Cross Cocktail Dress This long sleeve, turtle neck cocktail dress features an allover macrame Gothic cross...Category
2010s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- The little black dress by Chanel black and white silk Sculpted figureLocated in Bilbao, ESAbsence of vulgarity was central to Chanel’s definition of luxury, a view formed during her impoverished early life. Born in 1883 in Saumur, France, as Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, she was just 12 years old when her mother died and her itinerant father put her in a home for orphaned girls run by a local convent. She learned to sew and, upon moving to Moulins six years later, became a seamstress. She also sang in nightclubs, earning the sobriquet “Coco,” an allusion to a popular song of the time. Beautiful, one of a kind vintage silk dress and jacket for everyday ware as a coktail dress...Category
1990s Aesthetic Evening Dresses
$2,739 Sale Price32% Off - Givenchy Printed Plunging Maxi DressBy GivenchyLocated in Geneva, CHWonderful 70's silhouette with this Givenchy maxi dress. Made of airy silk chiffon featuring a red and white graphic print, the dress has a deep plunging neckline at the front and re...Category
1970s French Maxi Dresses
- Azzedine Alaïa F/W 2001 Vintage Halter Backless Black Gown Maxi DressBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Naples, FLAzzedine Alaïa 2001 Vintage Halter Backless Black Gown Maxi Dress Size XS Alaïa black maxi dress featuring halter neckline, open back. flared hem with trai...Category
1990s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Elaborately Beaded French FLapper Dress, c.1920sLocated in New York, NYElaborately Beaded French FLapper Dress, c.1920s Indigo knee-length gauze Flapper dress with intricate beading of art deco style motifs in shades of indigo, blue and silver. Featurin...Category
1920s French Aesthetic Evening Dresses