The Shrimpton Couture Archives

• The twin of the dress walked the runway for the Spring 1988 collection.
• It was made under the creative direction of Christian Lacroix
• The dress is very well documented. Besides the runway shots it was photographed on Yasmin Le Bon and one is held in the permanent archives of The Met Museum.
• Lacroix's Luxe label was only produced the very first couple of seasons after launching his label. It was a very high-end (very expensive) ready-to-wear line that was made to demi-couture standards. It was available primarily to his couture clients and a select few beyond that. It was the predecessor to his regular ready-to-wear collections. The label only lasted the first two seasons because some of the couture clients complained at how close the garments were to their Haute Couture pieces. Very few pieces were made so they are almost as rare as finding one of his Haute Couture pieces.
• The dress is spectacular. It is strapless and meant to be fitted to the body. The bodice is covered with a black lace that is finished with an iridescent silk ribbon that follows the underlying pattern. This gives it a gorgeous 3D texture.
• The inner bodice is boned and shaped and I love the two pink grosgrain bows that sit on the top of each peak. The back dips quite low to expose an expanse of bare skin.
• It curves in at the waist and the inner underskirt is attached there and acts almost like a bit of a corset around the waist. 
• The bodice ends in a point at the front and the back with the skirt is set under its edge. The skirt has wide inverted flat pleats that open out to achieve the fullness that you see. The skirt is made out of a brilliant yellow silk and I love the vibrant colour and contrast to the pink bows.
• Over that yellow silk base is a lace overlay that combines a striped lace with a floral. The lace lets the yellow peek through and it adds a bit of a cabaret feel to the dress.
• The underskirt underneath is what gives the dress its incredible volume. It is made out of a stiffened lace and all the volume that you see is from the underskirt. It has added built-in side panniers inside to add extra volume and hold the width of the skirt. The very lower edge is finished with a stiffened netting and then that is covered with a band of black lace that peeks out from under the edge of the skirt.
• The dress is fully lined in a black silk through the bodice and has built in boning to hold it in place around you. The inner attached skirt hooks to close around the waist and the dress zips to close over that. Hand finishes throughout. I see a couple of extremely minor marks near the hem at the back. Please see the photo after the label shot. Perhaps the tiniest bit of fade to the pink ribbons but this feels more like natural aging than a flaw. It otherwise appears to have been more very little if at all.
• There is no size tag so please go by the measurements listed below
• Excellent condition

Bust: 16.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 13.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Bodice: 11.5" from top of bodice to inner waist
Total length: 31" from top of bodice to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Reference Photo: (1-2) Spring 1988 Christian Lacroix.  /  (3) Yasmin Le Bon in Christian Lacroix photographed by Gilles Bensimon for Harrods Magazine Spring 1988.  /  (4) Spring 1988 Christian Lacroix Dress in The MET Collection.

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