Pre-Fall 2017 Alexander McQueen by Sarah Burton Look 52 Strapless Dress w Silk Chiffon Skirt & Embroidery

The twin of this dress was presented as Look 52 for the Pre-Fall 2017 Alexander McQueen collection. It was made under the creative direction of Sarah Burton I love that we not only can see it on from the presentation photos but it was also seen on Jessica for the 70th Festival de Cannes red carpet. It is incredible on the body. I think this is one of my favourites from Sarah's time at the label. The dress combines a inky black velvet bodice with a sheer silk chiffon skirt finished with a velvet hem. It has a heavy application of embroidery on the entire bodice and it is absolutely fabulous. The bodice is strapless and is cut to follow the curves of the body to past the hips. Internal structure is created with a built-in inner corset to hold the dress perfectly in place. The waist nips in and then it curves back out and over the hips. The curb over the hips is slightly exaggerated and there is inner padding inside the hips to help hold the shape. This slight exaggeration in shape feels perfectly and quintessentially McQueen. The velvet of the bodice is just long enough to cover you and then the skirt flares out from there all the way to the hem. The skirt is done in a sheer black silk chiffon that is completely cut on the bias. This gives it incredible movement around you as you move. Where the skirt attaches into the bodice, it is cut on a curving line all the way around you. This gives it the suggestion and nod to the shape of a 1950s full body corset. It is very sexy. A wide band of the same black velvet circle circles around the hem. There is an incredible amount of fabric in the lower skirt and the bit of extra weight created by the velvet, anchors the dress and helps to hold the shape that you see. The entire bodice is covered in the most beautiful embroidery that has been applied on top of the velvet. The contrast between the pop of colour of the embroidery and the inky black backdrop is fantastic. The embroidery features stunning birds and flowers that curve and wrap around the bodice on both the front, sides and back. Interspersed between the embroidery are tiny coiled metallic metal beads and prong set rhinestones. It is extremely decadent and luxurious. The dress is fully lined in a black silk with a built-in boned and cupped corset that is made from a combination of black net and silk. The inner corset closes with its own back zipper and then the dress has a hidden set zipper over that. I see a slight stress mark and a couple of tiny very thin vertical pulls on the silk chiffon of the skirt. These are very minor but noted for accuracy. Please see the photos after the label shot. It otherwise appears to have been worn very little if at all. Tagged a vintage McQueen 38 Excellent condition Bust: to 17" flat across from side seam to side seam Waist: to 12.5" flat across from side seam to side seam Hips: to 18" flat across from side seam to side seam Bodice: approximately 9" from the top of bodice to the inner waist of the corset. It is 23.5" from the top of the bodice to the higher points of where the bodice meets the skirt and 26" to the longest parts. Total length: 57.5" from the top of the bodice to hem Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML Item# DD5834 All items are thoroughly checked over before shipping. Unless noted everything in our shop has been professionally cleaned. All sales are final. Overseas clients will be emailed to obtain agreement to our final sales policy before the order is shipped as per our return policy.