My client bought this around 10-15 years ago. It is not a runway piece but I think it should have been. This is Fendi from the Karl Lagerfeld era and it is phenomenal. I think this might be one of the best Fendi dresses I've ever seen actually. Adele and Edoardo Fendi opened the first shop in Rome in 1925. They originally made leather goods and were very succesfull. Edoardo passed away in 1946 and Adele and their four daughters took over the company. In 1965 Karl Lagerfeld became the creative director. He was the one that introduced the famous Double F logo and pushed the brand to world wide recognition. Fur was a focis for many years but he also oversaw the roll out of ready-to-wear in 1977 and a shoe division in 1978. In the 1980s they expanded with boutiques world wide and in 1999 LVMH Moet-Hennesy and Prada giving it even more exposure on a global scale.
This dress is stunning. It is an obvius play on that full skirted fisties dress but in the most modern of ways. the bodice is cut to skim over you and then it nips in and it is banded around the waist for shape. The skirt is incredibly full. It is gathered in around the waist and the way it is seamed and set into the waist combined with the fabric that has been used gives it that extremely full pouf around you. No extra crinolines have been added underneath the skirt. That shape that you see is the shape of the dress and it is incredible. The dress is made from two fabrics. One is a crisp thin cotton that has striping running over it in the traditional Fendi colors. This is set vertically over the bodice and horizontally around the skirt. Between the panels of cotton are wide ribbons of a stiffened nylon netting. This is what allows the dress to hold its shape and gives the support to achieve the fullness through the skirt. It also acts as incredible peekaboo panels. The areas that have the netting have no backing so you can see a touch of skin through them. On the top they have been cleverly placed so that you have vertical hints of skin around the bust and wrapped around the back but nothing scandalous shows. On the skirt there is an inner lining so you never really see a full glimpse of anything but you get the feeling that you are because of the transparent panels. It is just one of the most fabulous dresses I've ever seen. Excellent condition.
The top is unlined and the skirt has an inner black silk lining. It zippers to close at the back with an expose zipper. It appears to have been worn a very little if at all.
Bust: no true side seams
Waist: to 14" flat across from side seam to side seam
Inner hips: to 23" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bodice: 15" from top of shoulder to top of the band at the waist
Skirt: 25" from waist to hem including the 2" band at the waist
Modern Sizing Equivalent: SML-MED
Item# DD4388
This garment has been professionally cleaned, pressed and is odor free. Thoroughly checked over before shipping, it will be ready to wear upon arrival.
