Berkshires - Fashion

These deconstructed balloon black cotton pants by Comme des Garcons founder Rei Kawakubo debuted in her Spring/Summer 2003 collection. Featuring unique cut work that enabled asymmetr...

Designed by Oscar de la Renta in the 1970s, this poppy-red pointelle knit long-sleeve sweater with peek-a-boo textural stripes features a dramatic circular ruffle collar that drapes ...

With a biomorphic print and curvilinear layered design created by Spain-based renowned multimedia artist Sybilla, this rare billowy bias-cut semi-transparent silk crepe sleeveless V-...

Made in Italy in a babydoll style, this Emanuel Ungaro Paris double-ruffle-trimmed bright red layered cocktail mini dress features a handpainted-tulip print that has different effect...

Handmade by New York City-based milliner Jennifer Ouellette who custom-makes head pieces for couture clients, this 1990s tweed wide band or draping tiara is intricately decorated wit...

Made in France, this Balmain Paris vibrant reddish-orange shiny-tomato thick viscose knit mini dress features dozens of spaghetti-laced gold grommets that line both seamless sides fo...

Versatile c.1980s mink jacket that converts to a vest by removal of the sleeves. The thigh-length jacket features a light fox open collar that extends to the hem and furnishes a nice...

A dramatic look in this 1970s gown of polyester matte jersey featuring a strapless, shirred bodice with long scarf ties attached at center; these can be worn in several ways over the...

These couture Roger Vivier Paris platform stilettos with a heel height of four and a half inches feature dark-chocolate brown fine Italian leather and leopard-print animal hair with ...

For his Gucci Fall/Winter 2001 collection, Tom Ford designed this sleek leather-and-knit pullover that features a plunging V-neck collared suede front, which drapes in a reverse V-sh...

Alexander McQueen (1969-2010) designed this curvaceous uniquely-draped wool and hand-shredded intricately-ruched silk-chiffon black evening-gown cocktail-dress for his Autumn/Winter 2002-2003 collection "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious", which set a ready-to-wear $37,500 auction record in 2020 for its complimentary black billowing silk coat. Comparatively, a 1stDibs midi-dress listing similar to ours from his subsequent fashion-season collection for a raw-edge silk chiffon red dress for Spring/Summer 2003 in good condition sold for $10,144. Our sleek lined opaque wool hourglass midi dress with a raw-edge semi-transparent bodice is in very good condition. Although made in Italy, the tagged size 38 will suit a French 38/US 4-6. Like the 2020-auctioned coat from Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, the gown is also among the few that encapsulate this collection according to Alexander McQueen, who was quoted by magazine Numero: "This collection was inspired by Tim Burton. It started out dark and then got more romantic as it went along." This is why The Met Costume Institute showcased a runway ensemble including the aforementioned coat in its museum retrospective, "Savage Beauty", a year after the designer died...

For her Fall/Winter 2002 runway finale with the model embodying a "jeans bride", Stella McCartney debuted this unique ethereal lingerie-like black transparent silk georgette blouse ...

As a variation of the traditional waiter-style apron that Belgian former fashion designer Martin Margiela reworked with his eponymous Maison Martin Margiela since its first collection for Spring/Summer 1989, this minimalist convertible transparent black chiffon rectangular garment was part of his Spring 1994 collection. The iconic corner-stitched textural white-cotton brand label is stenciled with seemingly contradictory text referencing an earlier Fall 1990 collection. Instead of the blank label that had become internationally recognized among progressive-fashion buyers during the brand's initial five years, this black print was added in this manner for only one collection during its founder's tenure. This distinct typography identifies it as one of his favorites that he reproduced from his first 10 fashion shows. This season-less self-curated retrospective collection without any new designs was unprecedented in the ready-to-wear luxury-fashion industry, which sold only newly-designed clothes typically two to five times annually. In the early 1990s, this old-made-new-again collection was astonishing for a Paris-based high-end brand, for which any lack of fresh designs for Spring had otherwise been attributed to the loss of an artistic director or the outbreak of war. Nevertheless, there are subtle differences of color, material and draping possibilities that make our re-edition unique from the 1990 apron and from later "replicas", which was the term that Margiela printed on a different kind of label for his second self-curated retrospective in Spring 1999 following 10 more collections. Aside from the text-printed brand label with four characteristic hand-sewn corner stitches, the only other element that unified Margiela's first collection of favorites was that all the items were overdyed a darker color so that the clothes were various shades of grey, blue or black depending on the original color of the textile and how much dye the thread/yarn absorbed. The first Margiela apron...

Vivienne Westwood (1941-2022) designed this corset-style hourglass-shaped red velvet evening cocktail dress with its outsized double bow and sheer moire faux-underlay while producing her "Dressed To Scale" collection in 1998 with then-decade-long protege Andreas Kronthaler. A design from this collection set a Westwood-clothing auction record at Christie's London when a corseted silk gown fetched over $41,000. This fresh interpretation of the classic Marilyn-Monroe silhouette was dubbed the "MM Corset Dress" for Westwood's semi-couture Gold Label, while it can still be made-to-measure as a bespoke dress (see photo of model wearing version as a white wedding gown...

A unique double coat, the main piece of silky black and brown print featuring a sable collar that continues down the front of the coat to the hem. It is lined with the same fabric an...

These 1990s Casadei limited-edition black patent-leather, calf-leather and ornamental-Chinoiserie metallic-embroidered satin-bound mules with towering five-inch heels are supported by a unique platform with cut-out sides, which pays homage to traditional Japanese-geta sandals...

During John Galliano's first year as Christian Dior Artistic Director for French haute couture and ready-to-wear in 1997, he designed for his Spring/Summer 1998 collection this bias-...

The design of this edition-of-two couture 1994 Maison Martin Margiela "Artisanal" knit pullover was based on a sweater assembled from a vintage pair of deconstructed dancer-leggings ...

Arguable the most significant design in the Stella McCartney Spring/Summer 2003 collection--since our versatile garment debuted in different colors on the runway and was worn by the British designer to take her fashion-show bow--this pink-printed dark-grey silk-blend zip-front bubble-shaped mini dress with white-satin stripes and pink piping was a favorite of the show's Vogue critic and her father Beatles co-founder Paul McCarthy. Vogue wrote: "Her hippest new idea came in the form of puffy satin bombers--she transformed one, a fusion of sport and chinoiserie print, into an off-the-shoulder bubble dress. McCartney is so into the glam-bomber idea, in fact, that she bounded onto the runway wearing a black version herself." The garment's voluminous batwing sleeves with stretch-cotton ribbed neckline and hem, plus custom golden-charm two-way zipper, enable it to have different necklines and lengths to convert to a shorter draping bomber jacket. Notably, the versatile piece that is subtly printed with mock-Beatles lyrics seems to have been the first tribute fashion-design that McCartney created to reference her father. Prior, she had credited her stylish mother Linda for instilling her with a love of fashion and inspiration for her initial namesake collections, which followed her first commercial collections with Phoebe Philo for Chloe. For background, when McCartney was a young girl in 1978, the mock-rock band The Rutles parodied a Beatles song, which was recorded by EMI as "Ging, Gang, Goolie". Given its lyrics, the chinoiserie-style dragon motifs were substituted by McCartney with bird skeletons...

Art Deco evening bag, its body crafted of a floral-design brocade on a black background and seamed to shape. Of note is the ornamented gold metal frame and clasp, the former constructed of ivory colored enamel on the sides centering a blue enamel base decorated with delicate marcasite floral motifs front and back. Carved and pierced jade motifs provide the final embellishments, as the ball clasp on top and the oval on the front of the enameled frame. Matching brocade forms the handle. The black interior, no wear issues noted, features open compartments on either side, each lined in yellow, A sewn-in label reads "Anton Moritz...

While sleek cloche hats were the rage in Art-Deco "flapper" fashion, this antique fur felt hat was commissioned by Parisian couturier Elsa Schiaparelli and...

Given the "YSL" stenciled logo that had been created in 1961 while the founding fashion designer was only producing haute couture, paired with the French-blue bordered "Yves Saint Laurent" brand tag noting only "Made In Italy", this 52x52-inch hand-painted transparent vibrant crepe-de-chine silk panel with intricately hand-sewn rolled edges was commissioned as a couture shawl...

This couture lingerie-like spaghetti-strapped black silk-satin apron vest--with extraordinary graphic cutwork featuring a heavily hand-beaded breastplate and appliques--was custom made by a young designer for a New York City female...

Appearing in several versions on the Stella McCartney Spring/Summer 2003 collection runway with silk oversized long bell sleeves (see our photos of the gold and white versions beginn...

Tom Ford, for his first collection for Parisian Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche while also creative director at Gucci, designed this Spring/Summer 2001 black two-layer evening gown. I...

Clearly inspired by Paul Poiret (see our photo from TheMet museum exhibit of a 1911 ensemble), Stella McCartney designed these one-off balloon pants for her eponymous Spring/Summer 2...

Walborg Art Deco inspired evening bag composed of black and gold beads, both reflective bugle beads and mat seed beads, arranged in a geometric pattern of squares and rectangles. Bot...

With a unique hand-folded, gathered and topstitched square neckline with contrasting triangular "lumps", this asymmetrical lightweight-wool long-sleeve pullover loose-fitting blouse ...

Italian Roberto Cavalli who died in 2024 designed this silk-and-cotton top-and-jeans ensemble for Spring/Summer 2003, which showcases his signature mix of animal prints with luxuriou...

This unique handmade deconstructed cotton and satin cape that is convertible as a wrap skirt was created in 1998 by radical New York City artist-and-architect collective ORFI. The co...

In the 1960s, the Paris-based revolutionary futurist haute-couture designers included Andre Courreges, Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne, who outlived them until 2023 whereafter his vin...

Black plush wool maxi coat features double-breasted styling and self sash. The coat buttons up to the pointed collar. Set-in sleeves with two buttons at each wrist and shoulder epaul...

Valentino red straw hat, the deep back tapering towards the front, where it is creased in the middle and held with a straw knot and tie. The straw is worked in concentric circles and...

Luxurious fisher coat by Alixandre, known for high quality furs. Simple styling featuring a notched collar and round, padded shoulders, the vertical skins ...

1970s coat crafted of gray pigskin suede and featuring white fox trim for the lush shawl collar and front trim that contours around the hem. A self belt with buckle encircles the wai...

Suarez convertible clutch crafted of an unusual shade of lizard, avocado, that will provide the perfect complement to a wide variety of colors in a wardrobe. the clutch has an intere...

Evening clutch of microbeads featuring a black background with an integrated floral in center and lattice design around the edges. Intricate, pierced gold tone frame embellished with...

Rosenfeld c.1960s evening bag with chain of gold metal metal molded in a quilted and wave design. A gold metal triangular clasp, echoed on the rever...

A unique piece from renowned coat and suit manufacturer Lilli Ann, this vest is extravagantly and boldly decorated with large multicolored paillettes in geometric shapes that echo th...

This antique ArtDeco-period couture British wool-and-satin black tuxedo button-decorated open-breasted tailcoat fits a women's U.S.-size 6 so well that we think it was custom made fo...

Azzedine Alaia (1935-2017) designed this knit pullover chemise-style sleeveless lavender violet viscose dress that features bias panels in back defined by his signature curvilinear s...

Black wool-blend cardigan featuring a detachable full fox collar. Waist is adorned with a rhinestone clasp and wrists with two rhinestones. Fur collar attaches on and off with small ...

Stunning Pauline Trigère 1970s ensemble in black wool crepe, the simple dress underneath an unusual reverse cape/shawl terminating in deep black fox trim at t...

Loro Piana large navy scarf/shawl featuring a scrolling floral pattern throughout. Solid wide border all around in subtle textured pattern. Composition is 60% silk, 40% cotton. It fe...

The Traina-Mignon label was active during the 1970s and produced mostly floral and romantically inspired cocktail attire, as seen in this sheer, print dress. The dress features a she...

French Jacques Adnet--before he gained fame designing furnishings for Parisian luxury artisan house Hermes--created this Art Deco-period bar set with his characteristic combination o...

A profusion of multicolored beads and sequins adorns the surface of this eye-catching evening jacket. The mostly pastel beads cover the entire black silk surface in a riotous patter...

Count Romi specialized in all-weather coats, as well as those suitable for travel. This example, from the early 1970s, is crafted of bright red wool knit and features double-breasted...

Italian Miuccia Prada debuted for her Fall/Winter 2000 womenswear collection this Vogue-photographed fashion-show runway "Look 1" three-piece ensemble, which includes a 1940s-inspired thick check-texture wool skirt suit with defined hour-glass waist, padded shoulders and plush fur accessory. While Prada became known in the 1990s for some of the best accessories, this detachable multi-color red-fox collar with thin beige grosgrain ties and silk-lined reverse was featured in its ad campaigns and magazine spreads as the versatile must-have of the season at the turn of the century. With 100% virgin wool, sharp shoulders, flap pockets, and full lining, the warm jacket...

1980s white cotton cropped jacket by Oscar de la Renta features black topstitching at the edges and diagonally placed decorative black buttons fr...

As conceptual art while he transitioned to French luxury-house Hermes Creative Director in 1998, Belgian Martin Margiela--whose creations today debut in the setting of a contemporary...

One of Victor Costa's best designs, this strapless cocktail/evening dress is fashioned of white satin and black velvet alternating horizontal stripes with fitted bodice leading to an...

Cropped jacket in navy blue wool studded throughout with pearls and featuring a short shawl collar and curved front. Set-in narrow sleeves. Navy crepe lining. Approximate size 6.

An unusual mink accent scarf of asymmetric design, half in white mink, the other half in yellow mink. The yellow side features a slit through which the whi...

c.1990s Gianni Versace coat in soft 15% cashmere/wool blend, featuring a true double-breasted style that buttons up to a small round collar. The body of the coat has seams towards th...

As French couture made by Martin Grant at his Paris atelier in the Marais in the mid-1990s, this pale grey plaid lightweight-wool slit-skirt suit has many hand-tailored elements that...

In the 1930s when French fashion 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 that 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...

Orange wool coat of iconic 1960s style, featuring an A-line silhouette with welted empire seam Setting off the orange and providing contrast is the black leather trim around all edge...

Tom Ford for his Gucci Spring/Summer 2001 collection toyed with the mid-century concept of nude sex-appeal embodied by the initial Playboy-bombshell 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. 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 tagged size 40, while suiting a US-size 4 to 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 elements are among the most technically challenging 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. For styling inspiration, we added photos of the jacket worn over our not-included black-tulle-covered ecru strapless balconette corset dress that was the Gucci Spring/Summer 2001 fashion...

For the late British designer's Spring/Summer 1999 fashion show, this Vivienne Westwood runway-look three-piece ensemble of a black corset-sty...