1960s Tina Leser Original Purple Velvet and Brocade Dress

1960s Tina Leser Original Purple Velvet and Brocade Dress

$695.00
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1960s Tina Leser Original Purple Velvet and Brocade Dress

1960s Tina Leser Original Purple Velvet and Brocade Dress

$695.00

From the Closet of: Roya Shanks

Label:  Tina Leser Original

Era: 1960s

Size:

About the Item:

"She is honestly one of my favorite designers," Roya says of Tina Leser. "I probably have six or seven things, and they're all different." 

Roya first became interested in Tina Leser through Family Jewels, the beloved vintage shop that once operated on West 23rd Street. "I got my first Tina Leser dress there," she recalls. "I was very, very sad when that closed." Over the years, she has continued collecting the designer's work, including this striking example with its rich violet velvet bodice and luminous metallic floral skirt. "The skirt is gorgeous," Roya says.

Parting with the dress isn't easy. "I do have quite a few of hers," she admits. But what she admires most is the woman behind the label. "She was a woman that traveled internationally and became aware of African fabrics, Indian fabrics, and started to use that stuff in her clothes in the U.S. I just think she's awesome."

As for where she wore it? The Odeon! "I can wear whatever I want to work and it's enjoyed."

About the Label:

Tina Leser was doing global fashion before anyone called it that. Beginning in the 1940s, the American designer drew inspiration from her travels throughout Africa, India, and the Middle East, translating the textiles, embroidery, and craftsmanship she encountered into richly detailed clothing for American women.

For decades, her designs were regular fixtures in the pages of Vogue. In 1944, the magazine featured her printed damask separates; by the late 1960s, her glamorous creations were worn by the era's ultimate style icons. Marisa Berenson lounged in a gold Tina Leser caftan photographed by Henry Clarke in Sardinia, while Candice Bergen appeared in a jeweled sari silk ensemble trimmed with gilt embroidery. The clothes embodied the sophisticated wanderlust of the jet age: luxurious, worldly, and unmistakably glamorous.

Today, Leser's work is prized by collectors and preserved in the holdings of the The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute



Measurements:

Bust: 17.5”
Waist: 19” (flared skirt)
Hip: 21” (flared skirt)
Length: 57” 

Fabric:

No label velvet top and jacquard skirt

Condition: 

Item is in great vintage condition.

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