Mary McFadden Dress with Tassel and Balloon Skirt
View Similar Items
Mary McFadden Dress with Tassel and Balloon Skirt
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:Mary Fadden
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 6 (US)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Austin, TX
- Reference Number:Seller: cl_69851stDibs: LU1612102543
Mary McFadden
Less could have been expected from a well-bred society girl like Mary McFadden, who stepped out of the safe confines of the haut monde to create iconic designs for evening dresses, jackets, skirts and other items inspired by ancient and ethnic cultures and traditions. Fashion, in fact, was not initially on her agenda.
“I fell into it backwards,” she told the New York Times in 1979.
Born in New York but raised on a cotton plantation in Memphis, Tennessee, McFadden spent a few months at the Traphagen School of Fashion in 1956 and moved on to study sociology and anthropology at Columbia University. Afterward, she spent a short period of time in public relations at Christian Dior during the early 1960s, but she was unsure exactly what would lie ahead for her. McFadden decided to relocate to South Africa with her first husband, who oversaw production of the De Beers mines. While there, she began to design her own clothing — tunics that featured African prints, made of silk she’d found in Madagascar — because she couldn’t find anything that suited her.
In 1970, following two divorces, McFadden returned to her native New York City and was offered a job as an editor at Vogue magazine. Her colleagues admired the sophisticated garments she made in South Africa and had been wearing to work, and the magazine staffers pleaded to feature her designs, which meant she’d need to go into business in order to make them available to readers. So, in 1973, McFadden took the jump, soon becoming known for refreshing kimono-shaped jackets and richly colored pleated dresses that evoke the freedom of a Greek chiton — a far cry from the dull routine office attire for working women at the time. A collection of jewelry followed, and in 1977, McFadden patented her “marii” fabric, a pleated synthetic charmeuse that fell “like liquid gold on the body, like Chinese silk.”
In 1976, McFadden won her first Coty American Fashion Critics’ Award, and a few years later, she entered the Coty Award Hall of Fame. While her business shuttered in the early 2000s, the beloved designer’s timeless styles endure.
Shop vintage Mary McFadden day dresses, accessories and jewelry on 1stDibs today.
- Badgley Mischka Black Evening Gown with Lace InsertBy Badgley Mischka, BADGLEY MISHCKALocated in Austin, TXBadgley Mischka black evening gown with lace insert. Condition: Excellent. Size 10Category
1990s American Evening Dresses
- Dolce & Gabbana Mini Dress with Cut Out c. 2000sBy Dolce & GabbanaLocated in Austin, TX2000s Dolce & Gabbana mini dress black and brown with cut out silk condition: Excellent 26" bust, 25" waist, 23" hips, 30.5" length sz US4 / IT40Category
Early 2000s Italian Cocktail Dresses
On Hold$2,400 - 1991 Dolce & Gabbana High Waist Corset Skirt Lace Top " pin up collection "By Dolce & GabbanaLocated in Austin, TXF/W 1991 Dolce & Gabbana 'Pin-up' collection High Waist Corset Skirt Lace Bra Top Condition: Excellent Skirt is elastane & spandex- top is un...Category
1990s Italian Day Dresses
- S/S 1993 GIANNI VERSACE Floral Strapless Bustier GownBy Gianni VersaceLocated in Austin, TXS/S 1993 GIANNI VERSACE Floral Strapless Gown Built in Bustier One Side Slit Condition: Excellent Made in Italy Bust: 34", Waist of inner bustie...Category
1990s Italian Evening Gowns
- 1980s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche Taffeta Evening Skirt and Sheer Bow BlouseBy Yves Saint Laurent, Yves Saint Laurent Rive GaucheLocated in Austin, TX1980s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche Taffeta Evening skirt and sheer bow blouse. Condition: Excellent. Size Small / 36 35" bust, 25" waistCategory
1970s French Evening Dresses and Gowns
- F/W 1991 Azzedine Alaia Dress Sheer SidesBy Azzedine AlaïaLocated in Austin, TXF/W 1991 Azzedine Alaia Stretch Dress with Sheer Sides Long Sleeve knit Condition: Excellent Bust : 30.25", Waist: 19.75", Hips: 25", Length: 34.75" Size XSCategory
1990s French Cocktail Dresses
$2,470 Sale Price35% Off
- 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
$2,730 Sale Price32% Off - 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
- Thierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown, c.1980sBy Thierry MuglerLocated in New York, NYThierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown, c.1980s Thierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown featuring asymmetrical, gathered corseted bodice with rhi...Category
1980s French Aesthetic Evening Dresses
- MICHAEL KORS Purple Stretch Jersey Draped Gown with Open Back Size 10By Michael KorsLocated in Los Angeles, CAThis Michael Kors gown is composed of a radiant soft stretch purple jersey. The classic long sleeve style is modernized with an exquisite open back. There is a top button closure at ...Category
20th Century Unknown Evening Gowns
- 1980s Sequin and Satin Cocktail DressBy Saks Fifth AvenueLocated in Alford, MACocktail dress featuring an all-over black sequin bodice and a gunmetal satin skirt, the bodice with jewel neckline and long sleeves, the satin skirt with box pleats sewn down with a...Category
Late 20th Century Indian Evening Dresses
- GALANOS Black Silk Gown with Structured Shoulder and Blouson Sleeve, 1990'sBy GalanosLocated in Los Angeles, CAThis is a long sleeve black silk crepe gown by Galanos, from the 1990's and labeled from I. Magnin. The gown has long, puffy sleeves, shoulder pads, and zips up the back. There is ...Category
1960s Evening Gowns