Dress #108: Charles James evening dress in black and turquoise Anteater Based on a dress from

Based on a dress from Fox and Kelly's Fashion Catalogue Illustrated: Fall and Winter 1888-9

or using custom dress forms that combined the measurements of his customer with the fanciful contours used to sculpt the dresses into the desired shapes

and is considered by the Met to be the ‘only American to work in the true couture tradition’

Frances Cashel Hoey

This hand-stitched early Victorian paper gown is based on an American day dress from ca

Dress #108: Charles James evening dress in black and turquoise Anteater Based on a dress fromThis hand stitched paper dress is based on an evening dress created by Charles James in ca. 1955; the original, in black velvet and blue green satin, is held by the Museum at FIT (accession 91. 241. 132). The most striking feature of the dress is a three foot long metal zipper that spirals around the gown. With only a low resolution image to work from, I couldnt identify the path of the zipper, but its there, somewhere! Ive chosen a Nepalese Lokta