Valentino's Butterflies

One of my favorite new pieces at RARE vintage is this beautiful Valentino haute couture dress from the 1970s with butterflies.

1970s Valentino Haute Couture Butterfly dress available for purchase here.

I have not yet bought Valentino's new book, Valentino: At The Emperor's Table, but I am looking forward to seeing the world of Valentino.  He has been a long time collector of china and objets and those pieces in his home have influenced his fashion designs as well.

"My tables today, they are almost like one of my dresses, I try to put in detail.  Because I love objects, I love to put flowers, I love to put mint, chocolate, everything on them.  I love color.  And this comes from my fashion design career.  I love colored tablecloths, because china is very beautiful on top of pale yellow, dusty pink, pale and jade green color."

Valentino

Valentino's butterflies in Gstaad on china:

and butterfly detail on Valentino's silk couture dress:

So do you think Valentino would have thought of the color of this dress as mint or a pale jade green?  Either way it is a very beautiful dress, beautifully made, rare and sets just the right tone of lady like chic with its scarf tie front and the bit of the bohemian with the fluttering butterflies.  Perfect for lunch at the Emperor's table don't you think?!

xo, Juliana

Boho Beauties: YSL rive gauche and Ungaro for Coachella and Beyond

So while this is the final weekend of the Coachella festival in the Palm Springs desert, your wardrobe can continue to rock 70s boho style with these classic bags from Yves Saint Laurent and Emanuel Ungaro.

The staple of the boho girl: a 1970s Emanuel Ungaro Parallele fringed and studded bag:

A patchwork 1970s Emanuel Ungaro bag with fringe and a touch of glamour in gold:

A violet colored 1970s Yves Saint Laurent rive gauche bag with violet cording and faux fur trim:

Sweet and bohemian: little 1970s Emanuel Ungaro canvas bags with rainbowed hued trim:

RARE vintage Weekend Style and Inspiration: A Decadent Roman Look

"It was the early 70s - just after Visconti's "Damned" came out - when Bob had the idea of doing this tremendously decadent, very Roman look for Valentino." Angelica Houston

Angelica Houston by Bob Richardson. Valentino F/W 1972

Angelica Houston by Bob Richardson. Valentino F/W 1972 

Angelica Houston by Bob Richardson. Valentino F/W 1972

Angelica Houston by Bob Richardson. Valentino F/W 1972

RARE vintage for Resort: YSL's Plumes and Peplum

Yves Saint Laurent transforms a whimsical feather print and a peplumed top into a Forties-style ensemble for the modern girl.

A Silent Scream of a Dress: Halston 1975

I love finding a dress or a piece of jewelry that I have bought for RARE vintage in a book or magazine.  In a 1975 issue of Harper's Bazaar is a ruffled dotted Swiss dress which I was lucky enough to find not once but twice for RARE vintage.

It is oddly described as a "silent scream of a dress".  Hmmm.  Not even sure what that means but it is a beautiful and special piece.  Feel free to scream silently (because both have sold : (

Fabulous photo by Duane Michaels

Like a Bat Out of London

One of my favorite new finds for RARE vintage...

For Halloween and beyond: a black 1970s suede ensemble from London with an eerily beautiful bead embroidered 'bat' on the back of the top.  The bat has tiny red bead eyes.  Pretty bat-fabulous isn't it?!

Labeled Pat Mariner for Edith Grove London.  

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

Boho Beautiful!

I love, love, love this Chanel Creations dress.  

How much do I love it?  Let me count the ways...

1. Chanel Creations 1970s.  I have a real soft spot for 70s Chanel Creations.  They always seem a bit cooler then the usual Chanel pieces.

2.  I love the light thin silk fabric with the gold lurex.  Cool!

3. I love the cording on the neckline and shoulders.  Super cool!

4.  I love that it can go from day to night.  For day I would wear this Valentino crystal braid thong sandal:

For night I would wear the classic Valentino rock stud leather slingbacks:

 Both shoes available at Saks

Now that is a lot to love isn't it?!

                                                                         PURCHASE

INQUIRY

Ruff-ing It!

Coco Chanel ruff-ing it:

Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth I, ruff-ing it:

Gareth Pugh ruff-ing it in 2009:

A Valentino silk pajama-style ensemble with a ruff of feathers at RARE vintage:

It is a little hard to see in the photos but the neckline is finely pleated.

I absolutely LOVE this ensemble with its super flattering, face framing ruff of feathers

Fearless girls in fashionable print on print ensembles:

Caroline Sieber in Louis Vuitton:

Viviana Volpicella:

Giovanna Battaglia:

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

Valentino Goes Nutty

Lush florals!  50s hot rods!  African tribal prints!  Animal prints!  Hearts!  Audubon imagery!  The Spring collections are a veritable plethora of prints.  

But I think we can safely say that this 1970s Valentino ensemble is the nuttiest.  I love that it is a full on pop of nuts.   Is it a macadamia?  Is it a hazelnut?  Who cares?  You can be a nutcracker and break the pieces up and wear them separately or you can wear all three pieces together: yes, that's right!  Three nut print pieces!  You've got your hazelnut silk blouse, you've got your hazelnut cotton velvet maxi skirt and you've got your hazelnut jacket.  Street style photographers will clamour for your photo and squirrels will adore you!  What more could you want then to be adored by a squirrel?!

1970s Three Piece Valentino 'Nutty' Ensemble.  Size 4.

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

All That Glitters is Glamorous Or If I was Going To Studio 54 I would Wear This And Ride a White Horse

I also wanted to add to the title: and If I Was in a Guy Bourdin Photograph I would Wear This.  But that would have made the title kind of long even though if-I-was-in-a-Guy Bourdin-photo, I would definitely wear this.

The 1970s owned glamorous glitter.  There were slinky silks by Halston,  louche voluminous peasant dresses in vibrant jewel tones by YSL rive gauche, and uber glamorous silk jerseys, dripping with diamantee by Loris Azzaro.  I was really thrilled to recently have been offered a small and wonderful collection of Bill Blass from the 1970s.  The collection is also very uber glamorous and the pieces are beautifully made. Our client went to Bill Blass's studio after the shows and picked the pieces she liked the best (sounds like fun right?!).  

So here is our: All That Glitters is Glamorous Or if I was Going to Studio 54 I Would Wear This and Ride a White Horse and If I Was in a Guy Bourdin Photograph I Would Wear This dress!

1970s berry colored sequin gown with a huge flower by Bill Blass.

PURCHASE

Party Like It Is 1977 For New Year's Eve 2012!

Loris Azzaro said that the ideal dress is one that a man wants to take off.  Natch!  Ladies, we may all say we dress for ourselves but secretly no one really wants to be a man repeller.  Okay!  I love harem pants - speaking of man repeller territory!  I bought Isabel Marant's tie waist pants in the fall which my husband hates and I, very Miss (or Mrs.) Independent,  will wear whatever-I damn-well-want, has gotten a little psyched out of wearing them : (  

So in 1977 when the hair was long, the lips were glossy and designers made dresses to be worn to be taken off as soon as possible, Loris Azzaro designed a buttercup yellow taffeta gown with a pleated bustier (and the interior has a built in bra and boning - so much less to take off later ; )  The waist is defined by a black velvet band.  This gown is very Sexy 70s Princess.  This is the original Sexy 70s Princess in a 1977 issue of French Vogue:

Here is the same gown - expertly restored by our neighborhood dry cleaners, The French Hand Laundry in Pasadena California.  

1977 Loris Azzaro Yellow Silk Taffeta Gown.  Size 2.

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

The Little Things in Life

A quilted leather Chanel bag from the 1970s is not going to solve world peace.  It will not tell you why the sky is blue, exactly how to pronounce the planet Uranus, it will not explain why grown men love packing a car with suitcases and other assorted paraphenilia. It will not tell you which came first: the chicken or the egg.  It will not explain the Bermuda Triangle or tell you if really there is a Loch Ness Monster.  A quilted leather Chanel purse, even in red, will not tell you what really happened in Roswell...

But what will it do you is to offer what you what the little things in life do for us: a gift of happiness, a burst of Seratonin, something that will be timeless (which answers the eternal question, do you really need another bag?  And the answer is, Dah!  It's Chanel!  From the 1970s!  It's an investment for the future!  Seriously?!)   

This thing called love, it's a crazy little thing called love. 

There goes my baby.  She leaves me in a hot cold sweat. 

Gotta be a cool.  Gotta relax.

It's a crazy thing called love: Chanel...

Chanel bag love via Queen.  Just a Crazy Little Thing Called Love.

Chanel Cherry red quilted leather bag

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

1970s Yves Saint Laurent rive gauche

Sometimes it is hard not to play favorites with the dresses that come into RARE vintage - after all, I don't want to offend any of my babies, I love all my children!  But then a dress comes in and I can't help it: we have to immediately take whatever happen to be on our Schleppi mannequin and replace it with my new favorite.  

This rust colored silk jersey dress from Yves Saint Laurent rive gauche with gold leather straps and a back that plunges down to there is my new favorite...

It is slightly Grecian in feeling but all 1970s Parisian.  Think Betty Catroux, Loulou de la Falaise, Marina Schiano... you know, all of the slinky IT girls that were drawn to Saint Laurent like a group of glittering butterflies to YSL's incredible flame.

Red hot and smoking!  1970s YSL rive gauche dress with gold straps.  Size 2/4 (and that boys and girls is the only reason this baby is not hanging in my closet right now!)

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

The Cool Girl: 1970s Bottega Veneta

This is the bag the cool girl will be wearing this fall.  It is 1970s Bottega Veneta in a super soft butterscotch colored leather with the most amazing gold hardware.  It is luxe and bohemian at the same time.

1970s Bottega Veneta Butterscotch Bag

Why don't you wear it with...theyskens' theory courduroy "Pepper' pants

theyskens' theory Pepper Pants $295 available on theory.com

American Woman: Oscar de la Renta

Our American Woman week continues with a 1970s black velvet peasant de luxe dress from Oscar de la Renta.  I love early Oscar.  I was super excited to have found a very beautiful 1969 demi haute couture cocktail dress from Oscar de la Renta awhile back which had been photographed for Harper's Bazaar in 1969.  

The dress in a lustrous black velvet has a fitted bodice.  The full skirt of the dress is in three tiers and epitomizes Oscar de la Renta's romantic and feminine style.

The ballon sleeves are gently poufed and gathered with a tassel.

So get your haute hippie on with velvet Oscar!

1970s black velvet Oscar de la Renta Peasant Dress.  Size 4

PURCHASE

INQUIRY

The YSL Syndrome

Yves Saint Laurent was the master of us all.  Season after season, year after year designers turn to Saint Laurent for inspiration.  Girls and women turn to Saint Laurent for inspiration too.  Sometimes we want to channel the masculine sexy look he so famously made his own.  When do we feel sexier then when we are in a fitted tuxedo?  In YSL you own your sexuality.   You become a provocative Charlotte Rampling.  Or you can channel your inner bohemian or your inner exiled Russian peasant princess.  He enabled us to create the wardrobes of our imagination and dreams.  

So I was very excited to find this extraordinary and beautiful haute handcraft crochet sweater with a fur collar for the Hiver 1974 collection.

Dream a little dream...

Hiver 1974 Yves Saint Laurent haute couture sweater with fur collar.  Size 4.  

Pristine Condition (of course!)

PURCHASE

INQUIRY