Christian Dior by Galliano Early Sapphire Blue Silk Demi Couture Dress Gown
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1968524451
Christian Dior
When Christian Dior launched his couture house, in 1946, he wanted nothing less than to make “an elegant woman more beautiful and a beautiful woman more elegant.” He succeeded, and in doing so the visionary designer altered the landscape of 20th century fashion. Vintage Dior bags, shoes, evening dresses, shirts and other garments and accessories are known today for their feminine and sophisticated sensibility.
Dior was born in Granville, on the Normandy coast, in 1905. His prosperous haute bourgeois parents wanted him to become a diplomat despite his interest in art and architecture. However, they agreed to bankroll an art gallery, which Dior opened in 1928 in Paris with a friend.
This was the start of Dior’s rise in the city’s creative milieu, where he befriended Pablo Picasso and Jean Cocteau. After seven years as an art dealer, Dior retrained as a fashion illustrator, eventually landing a job as a fashion designer for Robert Piguet, and in 1941, following a year of military service, he joined the house of Lucien Lelong. Just five years later, with the backing of industrialist Marcel Boussac, the ascendant Dior established his own fashion house, at 30 avenue Montaigne in Paris.
Just two years after the end of World War II, the fashion crowd and the moribund haute couture industry were yearning, comme tout Paris, for security and prosperity, desperate to discard the drab, sexless, utilitarian garb imposed by wartime deprivation. They needed to dream anew.
And Dior delivered: He designed a collection for a bright, optimistic future. “It’s quite a revolution, dear Christian!” exclaimed Carmel Snow, the prescient American editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, famously proclaiming, “Your dresses have such a new look.” The press ran with the description, christening Dior’s debut Spring/Summer haute couture collection the New Look. “God help those who bought before they saw Dior,” said Snow. “This changes everything.”
Dior’s collection definitively declared that opulence, luxury and femininity were in. His skirts could have 40-meter-circumference hems, and outfits could weigh up to 60 pounds. They were cut and shaped like architecture, on strong foundations that molded women and “freed them from nature,” Dior said. Rather than rationing, his ladies wanted reams of fabric and 19-inch waists enforced by wire corsets, and the fashion world concurred. The debut got a standing ovation.
In the subsequent decade, Paris ruled as the undisputed fashion capital of the world, and Christian Dior reigned as its king. With the luxuriously full skirts of his New Look, suits and his drop-dead gorgeous couture dresses and ball gowns worthy of any princess, Dior gave women the gift of glamour they’d lost in the miserable years of war.
On 1stDibs, find an exquisite range of vintage Christian Dior clothing, jewelry, handbags and other items.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Los Angeles, CA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Exotic Salvatore Ferragamo Strapless Silk Leopard Print Dress GownBy Salvatore FerragamoLocated in Los Angeles, CAStunning strapless Salvatore Ferragamo leopard print in shades of rich blue, turquoise and purple silk. Boasts an exotic unusual look. Features nipped waist extending into full dra...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Gowns
- Vionnet Runway Veraline Blue Plisse Cut-Out Pleated Dress Gown NWTBy VionnetLocated in Los Angeles, CAVionnet of Paris veraline blue plisse pleated cutout gown is the 1st look that opened the 2016 Spring runway show. (see photo) Sleeveless with pleated panels of bodice twisted toget...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Gowns
- John Galliano 2009 Grecian Sculptured GownBy John GallianoLocated in Los Angeles, CAJohn Galliano 2009 Grecian inspired gown. Fashioned in a rich teal blue fabric designed to delicately drape and showcase the body. Lower back make...Category
Early 2000s Evening Gowns
- NWT Schiaparelli Jeweled Flowers Silk Evening DressBy SchiaparelliLocated in Los Angeles, CAA lovely modern Schiaparelli silk colorblock evening dress adorned with tiny jeweled flowers on skirt and sides of bodice. "V" neckline softly pleated bodice extending into a lightly draped skirt. Back features double panel short train. Back zipper closure. Side thigh high slit. The rich colors of orange and turquoise taken from colors used in older vintage Schiaparelli dress...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses
- Zandra Rhode Beautiful 1978 Mexican Collection Maxi dress with BeltBy Zandra RhodesLocated in Los Angeles, CA1978 Zanda Rhodes silk chiffon maxi dress with satin tie belt. Pattern represents that of the designer's Mexican collection. Dress offered in excellent condition. Dress features ...Category
20th Century Maxi Dress
- KaufmanFranco Asymmetric One Shoulder Runway Gown NewBy KaufmanFrancoLocated in Los Angeles, CAKaufmanFranco black silk gown designed with stunning visual appeal. Boasts lined and padded interior bonded bodice with side zipper closure. Lightly draped skirt with high front s...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Gowns
- Verheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One sizeBy Verheyen LondonLocated in London, GBVerheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One size The Verheyen London Kimono is the perfect dress for evening wear or coat dress to wear with a pair of jea...Category
2010s Cocktail Dresses
- Yves Saint Laurent 1980s Silk Floral Print DressBy Yves Saint Laurent Rive GaucheLocated in Scottsdale, AZShow off your inner chic 80's girl with this amazing YSL dress! Features a black and red floral pattern on top of the contrasting overall bright royal blue color. Includes bishop sle...Category
1980s French Cocktail Dresses
- Verheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One sizeBy Verheyen LondonLocated in London, GBVerheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One size The Verheyen London Kimono is the perfect dress for evening wear or coat dress to wear with a pair of jea...Category
2010s Cocktail Dresses
- Verheyen London Blue Kimono Dress Italian Silk Satin & Faux Fur - One SizeBy Verheyen LondonLocated in London, GBVerheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One Size The Verheyen London Kimono is the perfect dress for evening wear or coat dress to wear with a pair of jean...Category
2010s Cocktail Dresses
- Verheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - Small-mediumBy Verheyen LondonLocated in London, GBVerheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - Small-medium The Verheyen London Kimono is the perfect dress for evening wear or coat dress to wear with a pair of...Category
2010s Cocktail Dresses
- Verheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One SizeBy Verheyen LondonLocated in London, GBVerheyen London Blue Kimono in Italian Silk Satin with Faux Fur - One Size The Verheyen London Kimono is the perfect dress for evening wear or coat dress to wear with a pair of jea...Category
2010s Cocktail Dresses
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Too Soon for the Return of ’90s Fashion? As If
There's a renewed appreciation for the era's aesthetic, perhaps most notably among millennials seeking authentic, easy style.
14 Iconic Luxury Handbags and the Stories behind Them
When the name of a bag is as well-known as its brand, you know it's a classic.