Vintage fashion as art

{House of Lanvin, silk & chenille, 1957, London V&A, via}

Hope you had a nice, long (US) holiday weekend! To ease the post-holiday transition, here's some lovely art for you, from 2 favorite museums: London's V&A (Victoria & Albert) and NYC's Met. :)

{Click images to open, click open image to enlarge}

{Givenchy evening gown, silk, 1955, London's V&A, via}

{The gown's sumptuous silk-thread embroidery, via}

Givenchy called this gown Les Muguets (Lilies of the Valley) and it came with long evening gloves. Very Audrey Hepburn, of course.

{Givenchy, ostrich feathers, 1967, London V&A, via}

I sometimes wish people still wore great hats regularly (not just at British weddings, big horse races and such).

{Quant mini-dress, wool & jersey, 1967, London V&A, via}

Without Mary Quant, London in the '60s might not've been so Swingin'. This went with dense tights & a big-brimmed beret or hat (think Twiggy :)).

{McQueen, mille-feuille-like silk organza, 2003, NYC's Met, via}

Couldn't resist non-vintage Alexander McQueen's "Oyster Dress."

{Lanvin evening dress, silk, 1931, NYC's Met, via}

This sweet, soft dress could easily be worn today.

{Lanvin "Roseraie" dress, silk, 1923, NYC's Met, via}

Lanvin painstakingly manipulated ribbon to create every rosette.

{Dior, silk organza & embroidery, 1953, NYC's Met, via}

Dior gone to a garden party -- the pattern is of teeny hand-stitched French knots.

~ Wishing you a great week ahead! ~

P.S. Yes, I have a weakness for Lanvin -- seeing vintage Lanvin up-close is an experience I'd highly recommend to any lover of design, fashion, art or just beautiful craftsmanship!