Vintage CHRISTIAN DIOR White Floral Lace Dress Size 8
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Length: 35 in (88.9 cm)Bust: 34 in (86.36 cm)Waist: 32 in (81.28 cm)Hip: 37 in (93.98 cm)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Beverly Hills, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU178218822862
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: Beverly Hills, CA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- Marni White Midi Dress, Size 40By MarniLocated in Beverly Hills, CAProduct details: The dress features white, cream and beige colors with abstract brush stork print, crew neck line folded bottom detail and rear silver tone zip closure.Category
2010s Day Dresses
- Vintage LEONARD Paris Silk Leopard 3/4 Sleeve Mini Dress Size 42By LeonardLocated in Beverly Hills, CAVintage LEONARD Paris Silk Leopard 3/4 Sleeve Mini Dress Size 42 Product details: Size 42 Beige/ light brown leopard print with LEONARD Rear zip closure ¾ sleeves measure 22” long ...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Mini Dresses
- Vestimenta Multicolor Silk Midi dress, Size 34Located in Beverly Hills, CAProduct details: The dress is made out of 100% silk, it features pink, green, yellow and orange colors with floral pattern, ruffle design and tie detail at the waist and the sleeves...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Day Dresses
- Bill Blass Black Babydoll Dress Size 8By Bill BlassLocated in Beverly Hills, CABill Blass Black Babydoll Dress Product details: Black striped textured pattern Featuring spaghetti straps, measure 6" on the front and 10.5" on ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Babydoll Dresses
- Sonia by Sonia Rykiel Sailor Ivory and Blue Tank Mini Dress Size MBy Sonia RykielLocated in Beverly Hills, CASonia by Sonia Rykiel Ivory and Blue Cotton Tank Mini Dress Size M Product details: Size M Ivory and blue striped pattern with embroider red anchor and two ...Category
Late 20th Century French Casual Dresses
- Vintage Missoni Multi Color Coat Cover Up Mini Dress w/ Belt Size 42By MissoniLocated in Beverly Hills, CAVintage Missoni Multi Color Coat Cover Up Mini Dress w/ Belt Size 42 Product details: Size 42 Brown/ beige and yellow with zig zag pattern Short sleeves Mini length Featuring adj...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Mini Dresses
- Kenzo Vintage Lush Plum Brown and Gold Floral Print Dress w Gold Velvet TrimBy KenzoLocated in Portland, ORThis gorgeous vintage Kenzo dress is in an abstract floral print in rich shades of plum, soft gold, copper and brown with gold velvet trim at the c...Category
20th Century French Day Dresses
- Pink Floral Strapless Cocktail Dress Size 4Located in Los Angeles, CAThis cocktail dress is composed of a pink floral applique fabric with gold detailing. There is a center back zipper, features interior bustier foundation with boning. In excellent v...Category
20th Century American Cocktail Dresses
- Ossie Clark Celia Birtwell Print Dress c. 1970s Worn by Julia RobertsLocated in New York, NYOssie Clark Celia Birtwell Printed Dress c. 1970s Worn by Julia Roberts in 1997 Conspiracy Theory; Empire dress with self ties at neckline a...Category
1970s British Empire Waist Dresses
- 1940S Ethnic Medallion Printed Cotton Seersucker Button Front Dress With Tie BeLocated in New York, NY1940S Ethnic Medallion Printed Cotton Seersucker Button Front Dress With Tie BeltCategory
1940s Casual Dresses
- 1920S Champagne Silk Crepe Back Satin Low V Neck Dress With SleevesLocated in New York, NY1920S Champagne Silk Crepe Back Satin Low V Neck Dress With SleevesCategory
1920s Casual Dresses
- 1920S Tan Silk Chiffon As-Is Beaded Flapper DressLocated in New York, NY1920S Tan Silk Chiffon As-Is Beaded Flapper DressCategory
1920s Casual 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.