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Balenciaga | c. 1967

I would love to see the patterns for this dress.

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Balenciaga | c. 1963

Trudy Campbell realness hunty.

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Steven Arpad for Balenciaga | c. 1939

Published in Vogue in October 1939 as a design for Balenciaga, this pair of extraordinary shoes is actually the work of designer Steven Arpad, and appears in the Arpad archive at the Brooklyn Museum as Model No. 487. Like many designers, most of Arpad’s work seems to have been done anonymously and released under the name of an established fashion house, so the Museum’s archive and collection of shoe prototypes by Arpad provide the sole documentation of this portion of the designer’s oeuvre. In this fantastical interpretation of footwear, Arpad presents an intensely inventive and unique rendition of the platform sole, an important feature at the time. Although the source of inspiration is not known, the arched supports strongly recall building or aqueduct forms, underlining the parallel numerous clothing designers have made between fashion and architecture.

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Balenciaga | c. 1951

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Balenciaga | Lace Baby Doll | c. 1958

my jaw dropped.

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Balenciaga | c. 1961

My grandmother has a very similar dress in a silver/charcol brocade from the early 60s. She had it custom made while living in Japan or Hawaii. I wonder is she saw inspired by this one? I’ll have to ask and post a picture of hers.

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House of Balenciaga | c. 1964