Elie Saab 2019

From his humble beginnings as a self-taught designer in war-torn Lebanon, Elie Saab has grown his fashion label into a global empire. Saab’s haute couture, ready-to-wear and bridal collections — as well as his fragrances, jewelry and home furnishings — are found in more than 160 locations worldwide, and vintage Elie Saab dresses and gowns are fashion favorites all over the globe.

Saab was born in 1964 in Damour, a coastal suburb of Beirut. At the age of nine, he taught himself how to sew, making clothing for his sister out of scraps of material he would find in his mother’s closet. Aside from spending one year attending a fashion school in Paris, Saab has no formal education in design. However, his innate talents soon caught the eye of Lebanon’s fashion elite.

In 1982, aged only 18, Saab opened a dressmaking studio in Beirut, employing 15 workers to create his bridal couture designs. That same year, he made his fashion debut with his elaborate wedding dresses featuring high-quality silks and lace, detailed embroidery and pearl and crystal embellishments. Despite his young age and a raging war in Lebanon, Saab’s reputation as a leading bridalwear designer soared.

In the 1990s, Saab focused on expanding his designs to include evening gowns and day dresses. His approach to fashion — a combination of Middle Eastern ornamentation with Western silhouettes — was fresh and unique, garnering serious interest among Europe’s most acclaimed fashion organizations. 

In 1997, the prestigious Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana invited Saab to show in Rome, and he became the organization’s first non-Italian member. In 2000, he was asked to present in Paris by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Coutre of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode — in 2006, he became their first Arab member.

Throughout his career, Saab has dressed and continues to dress the world’s most renowned celebrities and royalty. In 1999, Queen Rania of Jordan chose an Elie Saab design to wear to her husband’s coronation. In 2002, Halle Berry dressed in a floral and burgundy Elie Saab gown at the Academy Awards, where she won the Oscar for best actress. Saab’s clothes, shoes and handbags are also frequently worn by such stars as Angelina Jolie, Katy Perry, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, to name a few. 

Saab’s fashion house continues to grow and evolve. In 2011, he launched his debut fragrance, Le Parfum, and in 2019, he started a home collection, collaborating with Italian designer Carlo Colombo on Art Deco–inspired tables, armchairs and other furniture.

On 1stDibs, discover a range of Elie Saab clothing, furniture and jewelry.

With entire museum exhibitions dedicated to examining fashion designers and their creations, we’re finally recognizing that costuming is art. Evening dresses over time have conveyed specific statements about social class, position and beliefs. Fashion is a powerful means of self-expression, and sophisticated vintage evening dresses and gowns by our favorite couturier play no small role in making us feel wonderful but, perhaps more importantly, making us feel like ourselves.

In the 16th century, dresses and gowns were so important that England's Queen Elizabeth I defined rules about what dresses women could wear — guidance included long skirts and fitted bodices. Forward-thinking designers have responded to this history.

Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel reimagined traditionally masculine garments for feminine shapes, and her elegant evening dresses and gowns promoted comfort and grace in women’s wear that had been dominated in the previous century by layers of fabric. Christian Dior's gowns celebrated luxury and femininity in the late 1940s — and gave to women the gift of glamour they’d lost in the miserable years of the war. French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent introduced innovative and highly coveted dress designs in the 1960s while at the same time challenging sexist stereotypes about which members of society could wear tuxedos.

Works by unconventional British designer John Galliano — featured in houses like Givenchy and Dior — redefined limits that dressmakers faced in terms of material, construction and vision during the late 20th century. From his embroidered absinthe-green Oscars gown for actress Nicole Kidman to the iconic sleeveless Dior newspaper dress that Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw made famous, Galliano’s intricate and multifaceted work is reliably collectible and newsworthy

Today’s designers target an increasingly broad audience with their boundary-crossing work, and their tendency to play off of each other’s ideas means that every walk down the runway is also a walk through an entire history of fashion design and dress craftsmanship.

Whether you gravitate toward backless maxi dresses or silk charmeuse gowns by Alexander McQueen or embellished, ruffled floral-print designs by Chloe or Versace, there is an extraordinary collection of vintage and designer evening dresses and gowns waiting for you on 1stDibs.