Victor Costa

Damask boléro jacket with fur edge. Shell fabric composition: 67% rayon, 33% metal. Fur : Fox. No indication for the lining composition but probably rayon. Hook&eye closure on the m...

Ivory raw-silk and lace cocktail dress with fabric flower. No fabric composition tag but the lining is probably in rayon. Zip closure on the middle back+ hook&eye. Hook&eye closure...

Gorgeous Victor Costa bolero jacket in a deep fuchsia pink raw silk and decorated with folded silk ribbon and beaded detailing all over including a beaded fringe. Shoulder pads give...

Gorgeous vintage late 80s VICTOR COSTA taffeta flower gown / maxi dress! Features a tropical flower print in vibrant colors of pink, fuchsia, blu...

This dress is a holiday dream. Like you stepped off the set of White Christmas. A 1980s Victor Costa in red and green plaid taffeta with a full skirt and plisse ruffle hem at the b...

Beautiful vintage 80s VICTOR COSTA red, black and white rose and polka dot print off the shoulder fit n’ flare cotton dress ! Tailored boned bodice that sits off the shoulder with a ...

Damask bustier cocktail dress. Shell fabric composition: 40% rayon, 30% polyester, 30% metal ( lurex) . No fabric composition tag for the lining but probably rayon. Stiff tulle petti...

This timeless quintessential corseted, shirred, ruched and topstitched "little black dress" produced by Victor Costa in the 1980s was made for the high standards of New York's trendsetting Bergdorf Goodman. It was the first U.S. luxury department store to order exclusive special-occasion dresses from this Texas designer and subsequently to give him a namesake in-store boutique. He soon became associated with the feminine glamorous gowns worn by "PYT" (Costa-speak for pretty young things) on the Dallas-based television-series "Dynasty", which idealized status-conscious Texan women mostly via fashion. With a strapless curvaceous sweetheart neckline (spared from '80s shoulder pads!), narrow sinuous folds of crepe silk-blend jersey cross diagonally below the decollete, while contrasting vertical ruching defines the seven bones of the invisible corset structure that is fully lined on the interior. Under the bust in front below the empire-like peaked high waist, the fitted tucked underlay of the cocktail dress wraps around the back to end as an overlay in front, where the opening on the left side extends to the bodice like a discreet slit. The freely hanging bias-cut overlay in front is gathered underneath each breast for a forgiving central drape that adds additional curves to make the wearer's torso underneath appear in sleek condition despite a potentially less than ideal figure. The dress closes with a concealed zipper in the center of the back, with exterior hook-and-eye fastening to narrow the waist. There is a second concealed hook-and-eye fastener at the top of the zipper. Although the only remaining tag is the Costa/Bergdorf label, it is a contemporary U.S.-size 8, which will also suit a large-busted size 6 or a svelte size 10. Now 88 years old, Victor Costa (b.1935) became widely known by the 1980s in The States for perfecting affordable luxurious gowns that could be mistaken for one-of-a-kind flamboyant designs by foreign couturiers Christian Lacroix, Arnold Scaasi, Oscar de la Renta or Valentino Garavani. Early on, the avid female sketcher...