1980s Yves Saint Laurent Khaki Wool Skirt Suit
About the Item
- Designer:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Toronto, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU22829629881
Yves Saint Laurent
French 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, Saint Laurent 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.
Browse an extraordinary collection of vintage Yves Saint Laurent evening dresses, shirts, handbags and other clothing and accessories today on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Toronto, Canada
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 1 day of delivery.
- 1960's Blue and Beige French Wool Skirt EnsembleLocated in Toronto, OntarioAdorable powder blue and beige double faced wool 3 piece French skirt suit from the 1960's. The jacket is light blue with a beige notched lapel, two round buttons down the front and ...Category
1960s French Skirt Suits
- 1960's Ulrique Cream Coat & Dress EnsembleLocated in Toronto, OntarioBeautiful coat, dress ensemble from the 1960's designed by the French label Ulrique. All three pieces are cut from a monochromatic white wool brocade. The coat features bracelet leng...Category
1960s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Early 1980s Yves Saint Laurent/YSL Houndstooth Skirt SuitBy Yves Saint Laurent Rive GaucheLocated in Toronto, OntarioYSL Rive Gauche skirt suit from the early 1980s. Black and white wool houndstooth with contrasting black velvet collar detail. Classic blazer wi...Category
1980s French Skirt Suits
- 1990s Akris White and Blue Polka Dot & Embroidered Leaf Cotton EnsembleLocated in Toronto, OntarioVery pretty Akris shirt and skirt set from the 1990s. Beautiful white cotton with an all over royal blue abstract polka dot print that looks hand painted. The set is further detailed...Category
1990s Swiss Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- 1990s Christian Lacroix Tweed Suit With EmbroideryBy Christian Lacroix, Christian Lacroix ParisLocated in Toronto, Ontario1990s Christian Lacroix tweed skirt suit with pastel floral embroidery. The long jacket is flattering and hugs the body with U shaped pockets on the hips...Category
1990s French Skirt Suits
- 1960's Anonymous Bonded Wool Glen Check Dress and Coat SetLocated in Toronto, OntarioThis uber chic Italian black and white hounds tooth ensemble dates from the 1960's. 7/8th length A-line coat is collared and double breasted. Four patch pockets detailed with a singl...Category
1960s Italian Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Oscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - MBy Oscar De La RentaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLOscar de la Renta Ivory & Navy Silk Chiffon Beaded Blouse & Tank Set - M. This set is in excellent vintage condition with the only issue being some discoloration by the arm pit area ...Category
1990s French Twin Sets
- Les Copains Jacket Pink Fantasy Tweed Suede Edging Skirt Set 6 NewBy Les CopainsLocated in Miami, FLGuaranteed authentic Les Copains fantasy teed and suede trim skirt set. 3/4 Sleeve jacket edged in a small fringe and accentuated with a touch of metallic. Mocha brown suede trim and...Category
2010s Italian Skirt Suits
- Missoni, Museum Documented, Wool, Aqua Blue Plaid, Ensemble, 1972By MissoniLocated in Kingston, NYMISSONI, Museum three (3) piece ensemble, 1957 with Museum tags Plaid blue and red, knit skirt, vest and matching jacket with coordinating belt red buckle belt with Museum tags on i...Category
1970s Italian Suits, Outfits and Ensembles
- Off-white guipure skirt-suit Victor CostaBy Victor CostaLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FROff-white guipure skirt-suit. Shoulder pad. White Beads decorative button. Size 10 (L)Category
1980s American Skirt Suits
- Italian Bouclé Dress and Jacket Set by Peter Langner Saks Fifth Avenue Size 6By Peter LangnerLocated in Palm Springs, CAReady for the Holiday Glam Parties. A rare 2 piece sleeveless dress and jacket set made exclusively for Saks Fifth Avenue by uber talent Australian designer Peter Langner who has set up shop in Italy and designs clothing for the rich and famous that want to buy unique clothing...Category
2010s Italian Dress and Coat Ensembles
- Houndstooth and Vichy pattern skirt suit Jacques Fath for Neiman MarcusBy Jacques FathLocated in Saint-Ouen-Sur-Seine, FRHoundstooth and Vichy black and white pattern skirt suit. Shoulder pads. Black gros-grain piping. Branded buttons ( one is damage on the pocket) Numbered: 13096 (jacket) 03626 (sk...Category
1980s American Skirt Suits
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.
Quiet Luxury May Be Trending, but These Famous Interiors Prove That Quality and Quirk Endure
Because truly timeless design requires personal vision, transcendent taste, real fortitude and top-notch objects, even if the wider world hasn’t caught on yet.