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1998 AFVandevorst FirstCollection Lingerie Boxed SheerBodystockingHosieryCatsuit
By A.F. VANDEVORST
Located in Chicago, IL
As nostalgia for antique silk stockings repeatedly tapped for lingerie-inspired A.F. Vandevorst womenswear until its Belgian founding design duo retired their brand in 2020, the obso...
Category
1990s Belgian Bodysuits
MartinMargiela 1990s MissDeannaKnit GoldLurexThreaded FauxDipDyed Ombre Pullover
By Maison Martin Margiela
Located in Chicago, IL
When Belgian former fashion designer Martin Margiela debuted gold Lurex knits while French Hermes womenswear artistic director, simultaneously in Fall 1999, he introduced at his epon...
Category
1990s Italian Pullovers
MartinMargiela 1990 1stRetrospectiveCollection1994 Sheer Black Convertible Apron
By Maison Martin Margiela
Located in Chicago, IL
Dating this minimalist convertible transparent black chiffon rectangular garment by Belgian former fashion designer Martin Margiela to Spring 1994 among his many variations of the tr...
Category
1990s Italian Aesthetic Evening Dresses
MartinMargiela RunwayLook1 Spring/Summer2007 Game-Changing Red Short Cape
By Maison Martin Margiela
Located in Chicago, IL
Belgium former fashion designer Martin Margiela for his eponymous Paris-based Maison Martin Margiela Spring/Summer 2007 collection in a minimalist style debuted this cherry-red visco...
Category
Early 2000s Italian Capes
Modernist BertoiaStyle Kinetic Silver 8Bead SpiralWire 3Band Asymmetric MensRing
Located in Chicago, IL
Recalling some early-mid-century modernist one-of-a-kind unsigned silver jewelry featuring delicate kinetic parts, tiny forged balls and thin-wire work by American metal-worker Harry...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Modernist Band Rings
Materials
Silver
1990s JilSander BiasCut Black Sheer Linen DeepVneck LongSleeve Tunic MiniDress
By Jil Sander
Located in Chicago, IL
With the finest fabric and tailoring--the base expectation for all progressive minimalist luxurious fashions designed for powerful women by German Jil Sander before the Prada-buyout ...
Category
1990s German Mini Dress
1938 ElsaSchiaparelli CouturePagan DeposeFrance FeatherCrystalGold Bird Brooch
By Elsa Schiaparelli
Located in Chicago, IL
Unusually decorated with small partridge feathers like the yellow-gold gilt necklace commissioned by Elsa Schiaparelli (1890-1973) that is featured on the front-and-back covers and centerfold of the French costume-jewelry hardcover book, Lina Baretti Parures, by Patrick Mauries, this unique pave-crystal yellow-gold gilt metal partridge-on-a-branch brooch is further distinguished as an unsigned Parisian-couture piece for Italian-born Schiaparelli with its combination of embossed text "Made In France" and "Modele Depose", along with the trombone clasp often used in the early 20th Century for custom-made French small brooches.
The book centerfold on pages 90-91 shows a closeup of the feathered necklace created by French-born Corsican Baretti, whose intricate decoration often mixed ready-made textural or shiny materials like velvet, cork, wire, rhodoid or raffia with custom-made metal, plastic or glass by specialized Parisian workshops such as Gripoix. The Baretti-book caption about the attributed necklace notes: "Collier realise pour Elsa Schiaparelli. Liege, soie, cannetille, perles de verre et plumes de perdix. Chaine en metal." While none of the captions date this necklace--which could have been from the same commission as our brooch--Baretti created one-of-a-kind jewelry for Schiaparelli from the 1930s until the early 1950s when the fashion designer retired.
Our brooch was most likely made for a fashion-show debut of one of Schiaparelli's themed clothing collections in the late 1930s for which she commissioned many costume-jewelry paruriers including Baretti. See our photo of a Schiaparelli 1930s...
Category
Vintage 1930s French Brooches
Materials
Crystal, Gold, Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal
Balenciaga 2006 Ghesquiere Brocade & Boucle Rounded 3/4Sleeve Ecru Jacket
By Balenciaga, Nicholas Ghesquiere
Located in Chicago, IL
Lauded for his innovative couture-like construction with atypical ready-to-wear luxurious fabrics tailored to perfection in the 2000s, French-born Nicholas Ghesqueire designed for Ba...
Category
Early 2000s French Single-Breasted Jackets
Couture 1990s MartinMargiela Unique OpenworkMohairKnit Snap&Tie Convertible Top
By Maison Martin Margiela
Located in Chicago, IL
With Belgian former couture-fashion designer Martin Margiela's original blank-white textural-cotton corner-sewn label from the early 1990s visible above the prominent circular knit h...
Category
1990s Italian Vests
TomFord For YvesSaintLaurent RiveGauche Slim StraightLeg Black FineDenim Jeans
By Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Tom Ford
Located in Chicago, IL
In the sexy sleek skin-tight style that Texan Tom Ford introduced as the former artistic director at Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche while the French esteemed eponymous designer was r...
Category
Early 2000s European Jeans
Cavalli S/S 2003 Embellished SilkLeopard Set SequinsNetBlouse & CuffedCapriJeans
By Roberto Cavalli
Located in Chicago, IL
Over 20 years ago, the late Roberto Cavalli who recently died in 2024 designed this silk-and-cotton top-and-jeans set showcasing his signature mix of animal prints with luxurious emb...
Category
Early 2000s Italian Trouser Pant Suits
Couture Montague 1950s French WiredGlassBeads CrystalEnameledRondelles Earrings
By Francoise Montague
Located in Chicago, IL
In the 1950s while he operated an eponymous Parisian couture costume-jewelry boutique, Francoise Montague designed these unique handmade ornate pair of sparkly clip earrings featurin...
Category
Vintage 1950s French Artisan Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Crystal, Enamel, Gilt Metal, Mixed Metal
MidCentury SculpturalTexturedGoldBowClasp Graduated4StrandSnakeChain Necklace
Located in Chicago, IL
This mid-century shiny yellow-gold-plated snake-chain multi-strand necklace features a sculptural finely-textured gilt-metal bow that is positioned to rest on the upper left chest to...
Category
Vintage 1940s American Modern Multi-Strand Necklaces
Materials
Yellow Gold, Gold Plate, Base Metal, Gilt Metal
Antique HandPressedGlass European GoldFiligreeCapped Beaded Heavy Necklace
Located in Chicago, IL
This antique rare hand-pressed-glass necklace features semi-translucent grape-green large beads that are capped with gilt-brass filigree. Based on the combination of bead seams, spring-ring clasp, and metal findings on the unmarked faux Chinese-jade necklace, it dates to the late Victorian period most likely from Western Europe.
Around WWI, hand presses, which stamped molten glass into a mold to create a bead with a hole and a seam, were often used to produce costume jewelry as a cottage industry in Germany and the Czech region. This was while there was a lack of factory machine presses and finishing tumblers that used sand to polish out the seam lines.
Another reason that the cloudy green beads can be identified as atypically hand-pressed is that they are more opaque and therefore harder and less prone to breaking during formation than fully-translucent glass, which was better suited for automated-machine pressing. Also the green beads are an unusual swirled color including white, which suggests that their production was more limited than machine-pressing would enable.
Without the bead-seams, this necklace could be mistaken for one by Coco Chanel. Her 1920s couture...
Category
Early 20th Century German Late Victorian Beaded Necklaces
Materials
Gold, Brass, Gilt Metal
Vintage EnameledSilverHeartPendants Linked AdjustableChain Decor Belt Necklace
Located in Chicago, IL
This vintage amusing enameled silver pendant adjustable-chain unsigned necklace, belt or novel interior decoration features heart-shaped two-inch-long links painted in six colors of ...
Category
Late 20th Century Decorative Objects
Couture Early Chanel Marked MadeInFrance WiredPearl&LampworkGlass ClipEarrings
By Chanel
Located in Chicago, IL
Stamped "Made In France" on their antique brass back-plates like the initial unbranded couture costume-jewelry commissioned by French Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel beginning in 1924, these floral-motif wired earrings with early handcrafted brass clips are decorated with button-like cultured mother-of-pearls mixed with Parisian organically-coated lampwork glass, which we photographed in indoor sunlight for the most accurate colors. The pair were designed by Chanel to accessorize a one-of-a-kind clothing ensemble (likely including cultured-pearl buttons and a brooch) for a client of this pearl-associated couturier whose earliest one-of-a-kind jewelry--unlike other 1920s fashion designers--sometimes mixed real and faux gems.
The intricate glass artistry, wired clustered arrangement and earring findings are characteristic of one of Chanel's first Parisian paruriers, Louis Rousselet, who was a lampwork master with a workshop since 1920 specializing in faux-pearl glass beads and wire-work construction. As the three-piece flat-brass lever clips without hinge-holes on both sides predate Rousselet's wire-horseshoe clips, they can be dated like the patinated well-worn brass hardware to the mid-1920s.
The beads of various sizes and ecru colors that are wired to each earring include five round graduating iridescent mother-of-pearl disks, along with lampwork glass replicating nine baroque pearls, five round pearls and two seed pearls. There are natural imperfections on the green-and-rose-reflecting cultured pearls, while there is some nacre-enamel loss on the glass beads that is not eye visible. On closer view, one of the central round glass beads has a lighter blister, which appears like the texture of some uncultured pearls.
Of note, Chanel did not include a brand signature on any of her couture costume jewelry prior to the mid-1950s. As many of her clients who came to Paris for their couture-clothing fittings were foreign, the coordinated unique jewelry that was expected to leave the country was merely stamped "Made In France" or "France".
We acquired these earrings in The States along with a similar set with less but larger "petals, berries and leaves", which we priced the same in a different listing despite the slightly greater size and weight of this pair. So we know that they both were created for a single commission of multiple unique earrings with like lampwork-glass shapes and findings to be paired with the ecru mother-of-pearls provided by Chanel. While we have acquired over a dozen pre-signature pieces commissioned by the founder, these are the earliest earrings that we have discovered by Chanel. We have never found a single match to contradict our recognition of her early couture creations nor to attribute them to another designer.
Further, Art Deco couture...
Category
Vintage 1920s French Artisan Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Brass
ArtDeco 5BlackDiamond-FacetedSpinels 6BezelSetCognacDiamonds CastSilver Earrings
Located in Chicago, IL
Featuring five sparkly black opaque spinels with diamond-shaped facets and splintery vitreous surfaces, along with bezel-set champagne diamonds with yellow or peach reflections in su...
Category
Mid-20th Century Art Deco Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Spinel, Black Spinel, Brown Diamond, Silver
MiriamHaskell Late1920s Hess SignatureGrapeClusterPendant GlassPearl Necklace
By Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell
Located in Chicago, IL
Featuring the earliest white-swirled glass and enameled faux-pearl round beads handcrafted by Parisian lampwork-master Louis Rousselet for American entrepreneur Miriam Haskell and he...
Category
Vintage 1920s American Baroque Revival Beaded Necklaces
Materials
Pearl, Silver
ArtDeco 491 ProngSetCrystals SchreinerStyle SilverSolder 35" Belt ChokerNecklace
Located in Chicago, IL
With settings and construction like Art Deco unsigned high-end crystal costume-jewelry by Bavarian-born blacksmith Henry Schreiner (1898-1954), this mid-century unsigned silver-solde...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Art Deco Multi-Strand Necklaces
Materials
Crystal, Silver, Base Metal
Couture Early Chanel Marked MadeInFrance WiredPearl&LampworkGlass Clip Earrings
By Chanel
Located in Chicago, IL
Marked "Made In France" on their antique brass back-plates like the initial unbranded couture costume-jewelry commissioned by Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel since 1924, these beaded early-handcrafted-clip earrings are arranged with wire in a floral motif featuring button-like mother-of-pearls accented by smaller pieces of lampwork glass with an ecru organic coating that mimics pearl nacre. The pair were designed to accessorize a one-of-a-kind clothing ensemble (likely including cultured-pearl buttons and a brooch) for a client of the pearl-associated French couturier whose earliest jewelry--unlike her fashion-designer peers--sometimes mixed real and faux gems.
The glass artistry, clustered arrangement and earring findings are characteristic of one of her Parisian paruriers, Louis Rousselet, who was a lampwork master with a workshop since 1920 specializing in faux-pearl glass beads and wire-work assembly, along with other decorative elements. Since the three-piece flat-brass lever clips without hinge-holes on both sides predate Rousselet's wire-horseshoe clips, they can be dated like the patinated brass hardware to the mid-1920s.
The beads of various sizes and shades of white that are wired to these earrings include four round graduating iridescent mother-of-pearl disks, along with lampwork glass replicating four baroque pearls, three round pearls and two seed pearls. There are natural impurities present on the green-and-pink-reflecting cultured pearls, while we can clean dust from the coated-glass crevices upon request.
Of note, Chanel did not include a brand signature on any of her couture costume jewelry prior to the mid-1950s. As many of her clients who came to Paris for their couture-clothing fittings were foreign, the coordinated unique jewelry that was expected to leave the country was merely stamped "Made In France" or "France". We acquired these earrings in The States along with similar pair with additional but smaller "petals, berries and leaves" from the same Rousselet commission.
Further, Art Deco couture...
Category
Vintage 1920s French Artisan Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Brass
French ArtDeco BonazStyle BlackRinged EcruResinCabochonBeaded StretchBracelet
Located in Chicago, IL
In the style of Art Deco two-tone galalith beaded stretch bracelets by French Auguste Bonaz, this unsigned chunky ecru cabochon galalith beaded bracelet is linked by a set of tight black cords that are unseen when worn on an arm. The large highly polished beads that remain in excellent condition were hand-carved on each side so that the larger black rings...
Category
Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Beaded Bracelets
1930s JeanneLavinParis ArtDeco TulleSilk CoutureAdaptation Black Evening Jacket
By Jeanne Lanvin
Located in Chicago, IL
In the 1930s when French couturier Jeanne Lanvin (1867-1946) was creating decorative bias-cut silk tulle overlays for her feminine full-skirted sleeveless "robes de style", she designed this black semi-transparent silk-tulle formal jacket featuring diagonally-striped topstitched silk-crepe appliques throughout the bias-cut panels. This sheer geometric-patterned cape-like jacket has a skirt that drapes from an open waistline and a top-fastening bodice with gathered rounded 3/4-length sleeves that each have two arm seams and shirred embroidered cuffs. It could have been the first "swing coat" design that was given that name around 1935, when Lanvin was the "uncontested leader in the haute-couture field" according to the French Palais Galliera that has collected and exhibited similar garments at its fashion museum in Paris. In New York, TheMet collected a House of Lanvin black evening coat with a similar shape that also features dramatic linear appliques, but in a white starburst, which it dates to Spring/Summer 1927.
The unprecedented modern look of this Art-Deco women's jacket, which was inspired by 18th-Century French and Spanish topcoats for aristocratic court dresses, may have been good cause for Maison Lanvin to custom-make some close reproductions of a one-of-a-kind couture original for additional clients in Paris, which is implied by the remaining French brand-label noting "Adaptation Jean Lanvin...
Category
1930s French Swing Coats
Alaia Paris 1990s BiasCut CurvilinearSeamedButt DropWaist Draping Knit Dress
By Azzedine Alaïa
Located in Chicago, IL
In the early 1990s, Paris-based Azzedine Alaia (1935-2017) designed this knit pullover chemise-style sleeveless lavender violet viscose dress that features bias panels in back define...
Category
1990s French Chemises
1930s Haskell FrankHess EnameledBrassCappedRedFruitPendants Bib Chain Necklace
By Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell
Located in Chicago, IL
With an organic flora motif characteristic of American Miriam Haskell's first designer Frank Hess, this 1930s Russian-gilt brass oval-link chain necklace features a tiered bib of fre...
Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Drop Necklaces
Materials
Brass, Base Metal, Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal
1930s Haskell Hess Fringe BlueGlass & BrassBar Pendants ChainLinkNecklace
By Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell
Located in Chicago, IL
Featuring a relatively heavy fringe of dangling Russian-gilt brass bars and contrasting French-blue textural hand-pressed glass beads topped with filigree caps to resemble flower bud...
Category
Vintage 1930s American Art Deco Pendant Necklaces
Materials
Brass, Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal
KineticPuppetStringsPinocchio GoldTexturedChainLink3Strand Early20thC. Necklace
Located in Chicago, IL
Acquired in The States and likely inspired by the American 1938-commissioned animated-feature movie, Pinocchio, that was produced for two years by Walt Disney based on an Italian children's story, this unsigned pre-WWII yellow-gold-gilt brass necklace with elegant draping chains features a three-inch-long playful kinetic multi-textured faux-carved-wood puppet-on-strings pendant with pointed hat, filigree-capped collar and waist, and flexible geometric-shaped limbs. Structured with three chains, notice the additional texture on the slightly larger links of the upper necklace.
Unlike the movie, as the marionette on our necklace wears a lace-like collar resembling the original character illustrated by Enrico Mazzanti in the book by Tuscany-born Carlo Collodi, The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883), the necklace otherwise could date no earlier than the turn of the 19th Century when the spring-ring clasp was first in use. Since that time, Pinocchio became one of the most reimagined characters in literature based on multiple authors whose protagonist was a similar anthropomorphic puppet.
To be conservative about its age as the necklace is in good condition, we suspect that Austrian-born Hattie Carnegie commissioned it to accessorize her "hat-to-hem" custom-made or ready-to-wear clothing that frequently featured amusing figural subjects with articulated parts, such as mythical creatures, fauna or clowns. Before her death at the age 69 in 1956, not all of the pieces in the costume-jewelry parures of her eponymous brand since 1919 were signed, while based on experience we assume that at least clip earrings accompanied this creative necklace...
Category
Early 20th Century American Artisan Pendant Necklaces
Materials
Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal, Brass
AzzedineAlaia S/S1986 PrinceOfLinesBlackSet Knit & TripleBrassZipperStuddedSkirt
By Azzedine Alaïa
Located in Chicago, IL
Featuring a dramatic never-worn zipper skirt from Alaia's iconic Spring/Summer 1986 collection--which dominated the Vanity Fair published preview of the French Foundation Azzedine Al...
Category
1980s French Skirt Suits
SignedSchiaparelli MidCentury LeavesMotif AustrianCrystals GiltLinks Bracelet
By Schiaparelli
Located in Chicago, IL
Signed "Schiaparelli" in script, this mid-century link bracelet features a textural-leaves motif characteristic of the Parisian couturier Elsa Schiaparelli. Like many of her couture ...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Post-War Link Bracelets
Materials
Crystal, Yellow Gold, Base Metal, Gilt Metal
Couture 1960s PacoRabanneParis HandPainted MadeInFrance SilkChiffon Pareo Dress
By Paco Rabanne
Located in Chicago, IL
In the 1960s the futurist Paris-based revolutionary haute-couture designers included Andre Courreges, Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne, who was the last to died in the 21st Century in ...
Category
1960s French Delphos Gowns
TomFord 2001 1stYearYSL Silk PlungingV Ruched Draped Black MaxiDress EveningGown
By Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, Tom Ford
Located in Chicago, IL
For his first collection for Yves Saint Laurent Paris/Rive Gauche while also creative director at Gucci, American Tom Ford designed this Spring/Summer 2001 black formal evening gown ...
Category
Early 2000s French Maxi Dress
1930s Schiaparelli Baretti GalalithRoseMotifFuchsiaGarland CordTiedBrassNecklace
By Elsa Schiaparelli
Located in Chicago, IL
With 1930s findings in the distinct highly-textural and unusual-mixed-media style of French parurier Lina Baretti (1899-1994), who was a frequent designer of unsigned one-of-a-kind c...
Category
Vintage 1930s French Artisan Pendant Necklaces
Materials
Brass
Trifari AlfredPhilippe ArtDeco Jade&GoldGlass MicroBead 20Strand Necklace
By Alfred Philippe for Trifari
Located in Chicago, IL
Indicating that French-born Alfred Philippe designed this bicolor glass-beaded necklace between 1936 and 1955, the crown-topped Trifari signature appears without a U.S.-copyright sym...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Art Deco Multi-Strand Necklaces
Materials
Jade, Gold, Yellow Gold, Base Metal, Gold Plate
Antique GiltFiligreeSet FauxEmerald Chrysoberyl Pearl Gold Link & Chain Bracelet
Located in Chicago, IL
Possibly as old as the 1800s or a later Baroque-revival imperceptible reproduction, this antique handcrafted gilt silver filigree-frame textured-chain link bracelet likely originated in the European region of Austria-Hungary-Germany. We partly base this on its brilliant blue-green glass jewels in the rare trace-mineral saturated color of authentic alkaline Columbian emeralds. Including a decorative box-clasp, the ornate bracelet also features 14 prong-set round white pearls mostly mounted on the open-work filigree and 6 marquise-cut vanadium chrysoberyl...
Category
Antique Early 1900s Austrian Baroque Revival Link Bracelets
Materials
Zircon, Chrysoberyl, Beryl, Pearl, Emerald, Silver, Gilt Metal, Gold
Schreiner 1950s 22 RuffleProngSetCrystals PaleYellow AuroraBorealis ClipEarrings
By Henry Schreiner
Located in Chicago, IL
In 1956 when Christian Dior's ultra-feminine New Look had dominated fashion for nearly a decade, Schreiner New York handcrafted these opulent unsigned earrings with 22 prong-set open-back crystals to accompany the evening-wear of an American high-end fashion designer. They may have been for client Pauline Trigere when her ready-to-wear collections with accessories including unmarked-Schreiner jewelry were sold by NYC's Bergdorf Goodman and worn by her clients including Grace Kelly, Jacqueline Kennedy, and Elizabeth Taylor. Comparatively, Schreiner jewelry produced in the 1950s for direct sale to high-end department stores, such as Neiman Marcus, Henri Bendel and Saks Fifth Avenue, were the only pieces to include a brand signature.
Using the best quality European crystals that were custom-made for him, the founder Henry Schreiner was among the world's leading glass-jewelry designers before he died in 1954, whereafter his daughter and her husband continued with their handcrafted production. The family shared this distinction with Western Germany-based Max Muller and Paris-based Roger Jean Pierre, who were commissioned to create haute-couture pieces for the world's leading fashion houses. Notably in 1949, Henry Schreiner was commissioned by Dior to create several exclusive pieces.
We know these earrings were not created earlier than 1956 because of the use of iridescent coating on some of the crystals that produces a rainbow effect. Known as aurora-borealis (AB) stones, Swarovski initially produced them exclusively for a haute-couture collection that year by Dior. Shortly thereafter, the Schreiner team had access to such colorful stones, and most certainly used them as soon as possible to enable their American fashion-designer clients to compete with the new Dior iridescent-colors trend.
As Schreiner introduced its "ruffle" settings in 1957, we can see that they evolved from a smaller ruffle the year prior that is present on the tips of the marquise-shaped pale yellow stones...
Category
Vintage 1950s American Modern Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Crystal, Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal
Gucci TomFord 2001AwardYear Leather TuxedoPeakLapel SingleClasp EcruDinnerJacket
By Tom Ford for Gucci, Gucci
Located in Chicago, IL
Tom Ford for his Gucci Spring/Summer 2001 collection toyed with the retro mid-century concept of nude sex-appeal embodied by Marilyn Monroe, who inspired that season's designs and ad campaign. With the themes of bare skin and black-seamed sheer stockings, Ford's opening looks on his fashion-show runway featured ecru corset dresses with black transparent or leather overlays and stiletto heels (see our other listing for runway "Look 2"). Our versatile ecru leather tuxedo-influenced sharp-shoulder dinner jacket is from the same award-winning collection.
Significantly, 2001 was the year that Tom Ford (b. 1961) won the Council of Fashion Designers of America womenswear award for Designer of the Year, while The Met acquired Ford's signature corset dress for its Costume Institute collection.
Purchased at the Gucci boutique on Manhattan's Upper East Side, this "Made In Italy"-labeled jacket is an Italian-size 40 or US-size 6 with the padded shoulder-to-shoulder seam measurement of 15.4 inches and 23.6 inches arm length.
The jacket is streamlined by marked and angled peak lapels, sleeve vents with concealed buttons, back symmetrical vent, and single-point closure near the interior seam via a tiny Gucci branded silver-tone metal clasp. Notably, these are among the most technically challenging elements to tailor.
Fully lined in ecru silk-blend fabric, the jacket's left interior chest pocket sports button-and-fabric-loop closure and a fully sewn larger black Gucci brand label.
We added photos of the jacket worn over our black-tulle-covered ecru strapless balconette corset dress that was the Gucci Spring/Summer 2001 fashion...
Category
Early 2000s Italian Tuxedo Jackets
Couture Cis Zoltowska FingerlikeProngSet Red CrackleGlass Balls Silver Earrings
By Countess Cis Zoltowska
Located in Chicago, IL
In the mid-century, Austro-Hungarian Comtesse Cissy Zoltowska designed haute-couture costume jewelry with elements of hand-craftsmanship for some of the leading European houses inclu...
Category
Mid-20th Century European Modern Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Silver, Mixed Metal
Couture ThierryMugler 1990s CorsetStyle SilkLined Denim WideShoulder Power Dress
By Thierry Mugler Couture
Located in Chicago, IL
In the 1990s, French Thierry Mugler designed this haute-couture labeled and numbered corset-style topstitched zigzag-panel ecru 100%-cotton-denim cocktail dress, which is fully lined...
Category
1990s French Cocktail Dresses
StellaMcCartney RunwayFinale2002 LingerieLike Transparent PlungingV Silk Blouse
By Stella McCartney
Located in Chicago, IL
For her Fall/Winter 2002 runway finale as the "jeans bride", Stella McCartney debuted this unique ethereal style of lingerie-like transparent silk georgette blouse as "Look 36" (see ...
Category
Early 2000s British Blouses
JimmyChoo London 1990s Stiletto Tall PointedToe BlackLeather BackZip DressBoots
By Jimmy Choo
Located in Chicago, IL
These Jimmy Choo tall stiletto pointed-toe black smooth calf-leather dress boots with an invisible zip in back were among the most coveted of his finely crafted "Made In Italy" shoes...
Category
1990s British Shoes
Antique 1920-40 Surrealist Sculpture Unique Set Hammered SteelWire Female Torsos
Located in Chicago, IL
This antique Surrealist sculpture set of two one-of-a-kind female figurines was handmade in hammered steel wire with patina estimated as early as the 1920s. Each ribald three-dimensional self-standing torso study of a woman features either three spiral springs (suggesting pregnant belly with large breasts...
Category
Early 20th Century Unknown Sculptures
StellaMcCartney 2003 Runway RedPatent&Translucent 4InchStiletto OmbreResin Heels
By Stella McCartney
Located in Chicago, IL
Among the early standout sexy shoes designed by Stella McCarney for her eponymous British brand, these four-inch stilettos with maroon-ombre-resin silver-st...
Category
Early 2000s British Shoes
MartinMargiela S/S2008 PlungingVneck Bias Ruched Halter SlitDress Black Top
By Maison Martin Margiela
Located in Chicago, IL
From one of the last fashion collections by legendary Belgian artist Martin Margiela, this asymmetrical plunging V-neck black jersey pullover that he designed for Spring/Summer 2008 ...
Category
Early 2000s Italian Aesthetic Evening Dresses
S/S1997 GianniVersaceFinalYear CoutureRunwayMilan RenaissanceStyle Silk Corset
By Gianni Versace, Gianni Versace Couture
Located in Chicago, IL
The late Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace near the end of his life--cut short by his murder in July 1997--designed this couture heavily-embroidered semi-transparent silk chiff...
Category
1990s Italian Bodices
S/S1999 Galliano ChristianDiorBoutiqueParis CoutureSilkWoolCrepe HipAccentDress
By John Galliano, Christian Dior Haute Couture
Located in Chicago, IL
Acquired from the French flagship Christian Dior Boutique in Paris when John Galliano was its artistic director of both haute couture and ready-to-wear, he designed this hip-accentua...
Category
1990s French Sheath Dresses
BillBlass 1970s TuxedoLike EcruSatinTrim BoldShoulder BlackWoolCrepe ShiftDress
By Bill Blass
Located in Chicago, IL
Around 1970 when he introduced his eponymous brand after becoming a leading couture fashion designer among New York City society, American Bill Blass created this sleek tuxedo-like e...
Category
1970s American Evening Dresses and Gowns
Balenciaga NicolasGhesquiere SilkFlowerPrint StructuredShortSleeve BiasCutDress
By Balenciaga, Nicolas Ghesquière
Located in Chicago, IL
While at Balenciaga in late 2007, Nicolas Ghesquiere designed this 100%-silk bias-cut paneled dress that explodes with a grey and pale-yellow flower print and features unique technic...
Category
Early 2000s French Aesthetic Evening Dresses
ChristainDior Galliano 2001 MadeInFrance LaceNetCorset Black HalterBustier Boxed
By John Galliano, Christian Dior Haute Couture
Located in Chicago, IL
While John Galliano was creating haute-couture in Paris for French Maison Christian Dior as its artistic director beginning in the late 1990s, he designed this "Made In France" black stretch-lace-and-net low-back boned corset featuring a bold halter neck, padded underwire bustier with a rounded bustline silhouette, and cinched waist with a lettuce-edged ruffle. Along with leading couture-fashion designers Jean-Paul Gaultier and the late Vivienne Westwood, Thierry Mugler and Gianni Versace, Galliano is closely associated with the popularity of the contemporary corset, which was the focus of his most recent couture show in 2024 as the creative director of Paris-based Maison Margiela for the past decade. Notably, a Galliano corset from his turn-of-the-century Christian Dior collection--with like tags and similar low back with bustier--can be viewed online among the collections of the Underpinnings Museum, which is dedicated to the most outstanding lingerie.
In addition to the tags noting "Christian Dior Made In France" along with the size, Galliano added subtle logo embroidery to the cleavage that reads "DIOR". There is no tag noting the materials of the multiple laces, tulle mesh, bones and additional padding or strap fabrics, which seem primarily synthetic for desirable stretch-to-fit. Instead, care-instruction symbols can be found on the back of the size tag.
The neck straps for this B-cup French-size 85 or U.S.-size 34 can be adjusted to one of the three tiers of hooks that suits the wearer, while the corset has two tiers of hooks to cinch the waist. As worn by our small-size mannequin, the top will flatter even an A-cup breast size.
As noted in our listing sidebar, the buyer will receive the corset packed in its original Christian Dior silver shoebox-size cardboard packaging, while the lingerie will be wrapped in the original logo tissue paper. The box and paper are in good condition without rips or perforation, while the lingerie is in like-new excellent condition as if it had only been tried on and not worn for an event.
For price comparison, a later dated Galliano/Dior bustier corset top--with like tags but strapless--recently sold on 1stDibs for $6,200. The previous sole owner of our top recalled making their purchase as new lingerie in 2001.
This French ready-to-wear complex-structure garment should not be confused with international lingerie lines with different but similar labels--"Christian Dior Intimates...
Category
Early 2000s French Corsets
1980s VictorCosta GatheredRuched RedSatin BlackVelvet LongSlit Formal Maxi Gown
By Victor Costa
Located in Chicago, IL
For a formal special event, this 1980s maxi dress sleeveless gown by American designer Victor Costa features glamorous glossy red satin that is gathered, ruched and topstitched in bo...
Category
1980s American Maxi Dress
1941 ChanelRelevant American Reinad ArtDecoStyle Silver PolkaDot LargeBow Brooch
By Reinad
Located in Chicago, IL
In Spring 1941 after French fashion couturier Gabriel "Coco" Chanel had stopped production of her clothing designs while she remained in Europe during the WWII era, the decades-old American costume-jewelry company Reinad began imprinting pieces in its new retail line, Chanel Novelty Co, with the script signature "Chanel". As this was prior to the use of the sans-serif capital-letter signature "CHANEL" on French-made jewelry that was commissioned by the Parisian designer, as well as before U.S.-copyright protection began in 1955, the House of Chanel that was mostly owned by the Jewish Wertheimer family of venture capitalists (who remarkably still produced Parfums CHANEL and French-vineyard wine via legal proxy while they lived in asylum in The States during the war) filed a U.S. lawsuit to demand that Reinad halt the use of its founder's famous last name.
As the Werthheimers' quickly won, Reinad only produced the single seasonal collection stamped with the French brand name, and subsequently only imprinted its company name as the sans-serif capital-letter signature "REINAD" without a copyright symbol, which was different that its prior signatures dating back to its founding in 1922. When Chanel herself resumed French-made fashion production in Paris in 1953 (with Werthheimer support leading to their acquisition of all rights to her name despite her post-war eight-year exile in Switzerland due to close association with Nazis), for the first time all of her creations were signed "CHANEL" like the original packaging of the exceedingly profitable "No.5" perfume.
While Reinad continued to produced costume jewelry until 1954, in the last decade of this business, the U.S. company continued to try to appeal to potential Chanel buyers by at least making Chanel-style designs. As such, owning an attractive and well-made Reinad piece can be considered a useful investment in fashion history as evidence of a little-known turning-point involving the most famous ongoing luxury-fashion business Chanel, as well as of the impact of that legal judgement had on advancing U.S. design protection for brands that later used the copyright symbol.
Like early ArtDeco-style oversized heavy metallic costume jewelry by Chanel, this three-dimensional monochrome silver-alloy polkadot bow brooch imitates a pale polkadot-textured ribbon. Notably, while high-quality ribbon for styling hair or decorating clothing in a non-functional way was still an expensive accessory...
Category
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Brooches
Materials
Rhodium, Silver, Base Metal
Couture 1980s Castelbajac TuxedoSequin BiasCut Cashmere AsymmetricOversized Knit
By Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Castelbajac
Located in Chicago, IL
Uniquely designed as couture by French Jean Charles de Castelbajac in the 1980s, this oversized soft cashmere-viscose-wool bias-cut Italian-knit black sweater with made-in-France tux...
Category
1980s French Pullovers
Couture 1960 PierreCardinParis Bubble Motif "Creation" Leather Silk Black Gloves
By Pierre Cardin Paris
Located in Chicago, IL
Made in France in 1960 by the late leading futurist fashion designer Pierre Cardin (1922-2020), this "Creation Paris" (all capitals including brand) couture pair of supple kidskin le...
Category
1960s French Gloves
1990s StephenJones HandmadeInEngland AbstractWoolFelt SatinLined Ecru Cloche Hat
By Stephen Jones
Located in Chicago, IL
Recognized as "one of the world's most radical and important milliners" according to the British V&A Museum, English Stephen Jones (b. 1957) made London the mecca for fashionable hat...
Category
1990s British Hats
1980s BergdorfGoodman Costa Corseted Strapless Quintessential Little Black Dress
By Victor Costa, Bergdorf Goodman
Located in Chicago, IL
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 when 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 a status-conscious Texas woman 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...
Category
1980s American Cocktail Dresses
Trifari Alfred Philippe YellowGold HeavyChainTasselSautoir Textural DemiParure
By Alfred Philippe for Trifari
Located in Chicago, IL
Signed "Trifari" with a crown and without a post-1955 U.S.-copyright symbol on all three matching pieces, this likely late-1930s highly-textured yellow-gold-plated demi-parure was designed by American Trifari's French-born head designer Alfred Philippe after he had honed his fine-jewelry craftsmanship while creating luxury parures for Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels. The set features a heavy tasseled eight-strand chain sautoir necklace and earrings with dropped fluted-ball pendants,
With French-style signed clip fastening, the contrasting-texture two-inch-long earrings each have two twisted fluted round beads in different sizes, with the larger one capped at both ends with additional shapes and textures.
On the necklace, this textural contrast is amplified with the inclusion of many chains. The decorative chain caps and...
Category
Vintage 1930s American Baroque Revival Chain Necklaces
Materials
Gold, Yellow Gold, Gilt Metal
1990s France Handcrafted Exotic Fishskin RainHat LeCorre "LuxuryTramp" Fedora
By Jacques
Located in Chicago, IL
With an exotic black fishskin exterior this Made In France brimmed denim-lined fedora hat handcrafted by the acclaimed late French milliner Jacques Le Corre...
Category
1990s French Hats
ChristianLacroix 1980s EyelashLace TopstitchedSilk LayeredSkirt EveningEnsemble
By Christian Lacroix Paris
Located in Chicago, IL
Evoking late-1980s couture with complex construction showcasing a wide variety of sewing techniques and French lace, this like-new "Christian Lacroix Paris Made In France" fuchsia-la...
Category
1980s French Dress and Coat Ensembles
Couture Christian Lacroix Paris SilkSatin RareBlackLacquerTop Large Evening Bag
By Christian Lacroix Paris
Located in Chicago, IL
Designed to accompany Parisian couture by French Christian Lacroix, this unused late-1980s large pale-celadon-green silk satin, which feature textural black topstitching and a sleek ...
Category
Vintage 1980s French Artisan Bangles
Couture Chanel Pre1955 Signed France Gripoix PouredGlass Goosens Earrings
By Maison Gripoix for Chanel
Located in Chicago, IL
This couture pair of gold-gilt earrings are both stamped "France" on their convex gold-gilt metal ear-pads, which is characteristic of one-of-a-kind designs commissioned by Parisian ...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Art Deco Clip-on Earrings
Materials
Crystal, Turquoise, Pearl, Gold, Gilt Metal
Couture 1927-1933 ElsaSchiaparelliSigned Paris FurFeltSilk Grey AntiqueClocheHat
By Elsa Schiaparelli
Located in Chicago, IL
While sleek cloche hats were the rage in Art-Deco "flapper" fashion, this antique fur felt hat was designed by Parisian couturier Elsa Schiaparelli and han...
Category
1920s French Hats
Couture TextileArt Vienna Austria ArtistSigned Vintage Brocade&Silk TeddyBearToy
Located in Chicago, IL
As unique vintage handcrafted textile art including a 20th-Century tag with its artist signature, Vienna-Austria origin and stuffing content, this multi-color "clown" teddy bear has ...
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