I cannot get this dress out of my mind. That trailing festoon on the side? Peacock feathers, dyed black, traces of the original blue and green iridescence.
See, I wore my 12-year old little black Narciso Rodriguez for our Thursday Thanksgiving a deux, and I noticed that it felt perhaps too body-focused for me now, at 64. It’s not that I feel ashamed of my silhouette, more that I might want to present with less skin, to communicate how more of how I feel in that selfsame skin than how I look.
I then of course indulged in recreationally browsing black dresses yesterday, only to meet the Peacock Feather Dress. From a fairly new label, Duncan New York, founded 2 years ago by a woman who runs something or other at Estée Lauder. They sell only at Matches, in England (where it’s on deep enough sale that I might have considered a purchase but they only have one size left and it is not mine), and on their own site here in the US. (Also, no, I probably don’t need a new dress given the coat and trousers we saw here just last week. Nevertheless, things appeal, don’t they, independent of need?)
But my real question is, if we are thinking about communicating how we feel in our skin, what impression would you form of a woman you saw wearing this dress? Out to dinner with a man in a suit, or at a holiday party, or sitting in a corner of a hotel bar with a man in a blazer, for example. Who might you think she was?
I hope you are having a very, very nice weekend.
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66 Responses
How about adding feathers to your Narciso Rodriguez dress. A serious suggestion and not difficult if you have access to a good habadashery. I have made maribou cuffs to add to plain sleeves to zhush them up.
@Melissa Ellen O’Neill, I have learned that I cannot handle objects smaller than a breadbox with anything like skill;). But I bet your sleeves are great! Also, the Rodriguez dress has seaming that makes it EXCEPTIONALLY body-conscious. I’ll take a better photo and show it to you all soon.
I think it’s an incredibly cool dress, especially with the black oxfords. I’d love it with a black tuxedo style blazer over the shoulders too. Too bad it’s not left in your size.
Have you ever considered dying your Christopher Kane dress black? I think you’d get more wear out of it in black than the white? It’s still such a great dress.
@KSL, I can see a blazer over the shoulders…
Wow, yeah, I’d love to dye the Christopher Kane dress but it’s decorated with tape, along with the lace, and what would I do with that? Sharpie it? I could, you know, I could…The fabric on that piece is amazing, a silk gazar, sigh.
I’m having difficulty reconciling the top half of this dress with the bottom half. The top is very 9-5 business proper and the bottom says, “Ooh weee, let’s party!” Perhaps that’s the point.
I would definitely omit the clunky shoes and choose nice pumps or the dressy sling backs pictured.
@Karen G, I completely agree. Too half preppy, bottom kinda cool.
@Karen G, That is totally the point, I think. And I am not sure I’m cool enough to wear it with oxfords, but a pair of slingbacks, heck yes.
I’d wear it with red suede kitten heels. Red lipstick and a black velvet hair band.
@Mary Henderson, Oh my god I am now OBSESSED with the idea of a velvet headband. The kind that’s cushioned, you know what I mean? I’d even get a bob just to wear my hair like that.
Agree with Karen G. Business up top, party down below. I think it would holiday or a cocktail party fare. I think you would need to dress it up with accessories to mute the “business” ‘tude of the collar, etc. BIG earrings. Statement bracelet. Kicky coiffure. I’m a red lip/red kitten heel girl myself, but I think I’d choose electric blue satin pumps to bring out the color in the feathers. And, yeah, STUNNING dress.
PS haven’t heard much about the writing lately, but I’m going to be president of MWA coming in January. Interested in joining?
@claire, Blue pumps. I have some navy blue, but probably the embellishments would be too much. As for the writing, I am girding my loins to query number one and “ideating” as they say number two. Congratulations! I joined WFWA. I’d be happy to join MWA, but I don’t think I’m a mystery writer at heart, sadly. The next one I’m thinking of is well-nigh a romance if you can believe it.
It looks like a two piece dress. I like the idea of adding peacock feathers to a black skirt, but then wearing a black knit top with it. You can buy peacock feathers on Etsy. You could make your own version of this. Dyeing them would be the hardest part. I’d make the feathers removable, though, for dry cleaning. Maybe attach with snaps.
@AK, I think some of the look here could be achieved by doing exactly what you say.
What kind of woman? One who does not live with a cat that would seek this out and destroy it like a guided missile.
@Joannawnyc, Thank you for answering my question, which I guess I should ask again of the other readers?
*clears throat* What kind of woman would wear this dress?!? What would you think a woman was like, as a person, if you saw her in this dress? Thank you in advance!
Buy the dress! Life is too short. Love it. Too bad your size isn’t available. I would find the owner of this dress fascinating. I’d want to know all about her. Love the creativity!
@Sandra Sallin, If it signals creativity to you, that’s a very good sign, as you burgeon with it.
This is one hell of a dress, agreed. The dissonant top and bottom are perhaps zoom-perfect. For my feet: tall and high heeled black boots, pointy. Prada has them in suede, but a kitten heel though.
@Sarah Finnie Robinson, Pointy high heeled black boots, ooooh ma’am!
If anyone told me I’d like peacock feathers on a BBD I would have denied it!
This dress is so elegant and timeless! You have a great ‘eye’
@K, Thank you very much.:)
I follow another blogger, a DC Attorney, and this dress is her down to the chunky platform oxfords. Demure collar, asymetrical hem, business plus whimsy. She’s appropriate for cocktails with the colleagues or clients.
Lots of skin isn’t her thing.
But you aren’t a DC Attorney, and you’re retired!
The Rodriguez dress might be a tad too dramatic in the neckline for CVOID style, but I wouldn’t trade it out for the first dress. It’s too structured.
@RoseAG, I’m going to make the effort to take some better pictures. The Narciso dress has some seaming that is REALLY body-conscious. That’s my issue with it, along with the neckline I guess. The contrast between my neck/jawline softening and the silhouette the dress calls out just feels a little off now that I’m 64.
It is Devine. I would change nothing about it. If the top were more revealing
It would take away from the drama. Perfection!
@Lyndon Dupuis (self), I am glad you like it!
Let me try and actually answer your question for you. I come from British stock and live in the Antipodes, and this is my perspective. This woman is comfortable in her own skin. Her style is Classic with a Twist. She would be wearing this out to a lunch date with girlfriends, to an expensive chic restaurant, where they would share a bottle of bubbles with entree, then a nice white with a light lunch, while they discuss their partner’s comings and goings and what they are planning for Xmas what with this darn pandemic and how travel to the Continent is off the list for now. Her scent is Chanel Coco or Mademoiselle, her jewellery understated with diamond studs and a diamond tennis bracelet, her watch a Longines or a Raymond Weil. She speaks with a lovely soft English accent, is confident but doesn’t like to draw unnecessary attention to herself but doesn’t mind being a ‘little out there for fun’ occasionally, not to impress but just because it appeals to her fun side. She is practical (that’s hwo she was raised), but loves and appreciates luxury, the classic understated kind – she knows her thread counts. She appreciates the lady who comes to clean and tidy her London home a couple of times a week, and the chap who keeps her town car clean and smelling fresh. She is educated, and may or may not be pursuing her career, as she has time to shop and go out with friends. This is a dress you wear for your girlfriends.
@TJ, Oh gosh I love this. I can see it so clearly, and never would have imagined her without you telling her story. Thank you.
The woman ? I’d think she had excellent taste and was a bit daring . Probably with interesting and unexpected conversation so I’d get closer to eavesdrop .
And I prefer the high heels with the dress
@Rukshana Afia, I prefer the heels too, although I’d be open to platform oxfords too. A dress to provoke eavesdropping…
I love everything about it!
@Susan LaMountain, love the variety of the responses. Love it.
To answer your question. I think the dress signals: a woman confused or in transition. The dress sends two signals. Signal #1 preppy (as stated above). Signal #2 sexy….come hither. Maybe it appeals to the combination preppy/sexy. Not entirely a bad combination. Also, not something I would wear.
@Susan, It is a combination with which I have some familiarity;). In transition, a liminal state.
Oh, I would think a woman wearing that dress is an artist and living on her own terms. I would want to be that woman.
@Maryellen Reardon, This is my reaction to it too.
GET.THAT.DRESS.
@Courtney, HA! Love this:).
Your question must be answered, apart from I love the dress. This woman is confident, creative, sure of herself, and eccentric. While raised in a WASP/WASP style household, she has a bit of the artsy cousin d(peacock feathers) and a bit of the sturdy girl (oxfor shoes) and a bit of the grande dame (satchel handbag).
She would wear this dress on her own to the lobby bar in a lovely hotel, and to dress for a long evening date with a man when she needs to be comfortable and ready to walk to the theater, jump over puddles (oxfords), and simultaneously impress no one and everyone with her je ne sais quoi.
@Susan, Ah. And is that not the woman I dream of being? Unifying my identities and yet recognizing that the parts of ourselves may retain their atomicity? (Not to overthink this or anything;))
Sorry, the dress is divine, but the model really picked the wrong shoes.
@Holly Rose, My theory is that it’s to appeal to the young It girls, the cool ones. And I see the appeal but am not sure I could carry it off. I will experiment.
What a brilliant dress! 1940’s meets 1920’s? This dress is worn by a woman (or maybe even the right man) in late 2021 after the virus has been mostly subdued and the world is beginning to come out to party again. The wearer respectfully pays homage to the sacrifices of the austere world of 2020 and to the losses sustained by many while still looking forward to the future with hope, courage and optimism. The wearer is clearly very intelligent and forges their own path while honoring the paths of others as well. The wearer is subtle but not afraid.
@Vicki, I love this to the moon and back. And yes, why not the right man? (I did ask my son and my husband what they thought;)).
She’s someone who appreciates whimsy but doesn’t sacrifice for
it. She wears this when she wants a little more zaz (as in pizazz) but isn’t ready to break out the serious party dresses. I’d like to be her friend.
Also firmly part of the Get The Dress Club.
@Jacqueline, I can’t imagine a better recommendation for a piece of clothing than that it would make you want to be my friend.
The woman wearing this dress has entered the restaurant/bar [with a man, according to your narrative, dressed High WASP]. She, either a WASP or not, is intent on not showing up WASP-forward, she wants to be noticed all across the room, maybe even talked about, maybe even interpreted but with, male escort notwithstanding, her own WASP terms jettisoned upon entry. On the other hand, the woman wearing your NR LBD, totally WASP-forward, prefers the lowest key impact, she doesn’t want any of the above, has no need for edge, she just wants eye contact with her dinner partner, with no need to be otherwise noticed across the room.
@Flo, Ah, I’m so glad I checked your IG this morning because there you are: radiant in your NR LBD! But feeling unconfortable, so there you are. It is zee decolletage perchance? If that’s the only problem, consider this: take the divine dress to your trusted dressmaker and have him/her sit w/ you over sketches toward fashioning a skilled insert of extreme sophistication to fill in the area causing the discomfort. Too awful of an idea? YOU LOOK FABULOUS in that photo!
@Flo, There is absolutely a desire to make a statement. To break through the glass WASP walls. Thanks for the kind words on the Narciso dress. It is the decolletage in combination with the form-fitting seams. I am doing to do a follow up post in the next several weeks with a photo that shows better what I’m going on about.
The woman who would wear this dress is such a “cool operator” (as my FIL would say) that she does not care what other people think. She is comfortable in her own skin, in a way that only comes with some amount of age/wisdom. And she wears the dress because it makes her feel great.
@Emily, A cool operator;). Or, perhaps, a hot operator who has been prone to overflowing but has aged, and cooled with age;). May we all wear clothes that make us feel great.
This dress requires a woman with a svelte but voluptuous up-top figure and a cool attitude. I would wear this if I had that but I’m not that cool or have the right figure. I think you fit the bill however. I love both shoe choices but would go with the sturdy oxfords.
@Jane, Thank you. I have ordered the dress, and plan to do a follow up post. We will see then if the dress suits my body. Because all else aside, questions of dreamed identity still require fit.
My answer to your question (and written before I have read all the other answers) is:
This is a woman who doesn’t know who she is, and is trying too hard to be someone she most definitely is not.
@Victory, Definitely a case of split identity. And the question is, what if the woman does know, and is trying to unify conflicting influences and tendencies? What if there is no homogenous self!?!?! I truly appreciate your comment. I feel like you’re illuminating the entire spectrum. Thank you.
If I saw a woman over 50 wearing such a dress, I would understand her as possessing imagination, sense of humor, and a rich internal life.
This is a dress for Madame, a woman of the world. It would look divine on you. (And it would be a train wreck on myself– I’m not projecting).
Could one argue that in this season, supporting the sartorial arts is a mitzvah of its own?
Also, for any fellow Patricia McKillip fans here, it reminds me of what the Blind Lady from the Cygnet story might wear if she went out to dinner in 2021.
The symbolism of the peacock eyes, etc.
@Elizabeth B., I didn’t know of Patricia McKillip, and I love good fantasy novels. Thanks for the reference! I’ve ordered the dress. So we shall get to see whether it does or does not look good on me!
I love this dress.
At a holiday party, I would think the woman in this dress would probably be one of the most interesting women in the room, a woman of quiet wit, sharp intelligence who acknowledges convention but is confident enough to wink at its constraints and can have fun. I’d probably think the same thing if I saw her sitting at a bar. At a dinner with a man in a suit, well, this woman surprises, and that is one of the joys of this dress.. The demure top, while sitting may be bland, but the dress as a whole says confident, smart and in control, with a definite attitude of “careful, you might get burned” for those who might underestimate her.
@Mardel, Oh, oh, to be both quiet and confident! I love this character you see.
I hate that I can’t appreciate the impractical/whimsical beauty of this. I do but then I want to argue against it. I am torn. I think it would make a real statement in some situation–signing divorce papers? How could you use the bathroom without crunching up the feathers? I am hopelessly prissy in the face of this, but oh I wish I weren’t.
@K Patterson, In my experience divorce papers are signed remotely when one is hiding at a beach hotel in Hawaii wholly unaware of what one is wearing. So, no, you are not prissy, you are gloriously imaginative.
I adore the overall style, especially the sleek top (including the collar!) and overall silhouette. However, I’m pretty sure the peacock feathers would break and crumple after two wearings, making it nearly useless for those of us (like me) who prefer to buy nice items and wear them over a long period.
@Leslie, Even if the dress were worn only to restaurants, and family dinners? We shall see!
I’d take the dress to a good professional to have it dyed. They know what to use on each of the different materials.
The Real Real site has that dress on sale on their website sizes small and large.
The DUNCAN website has answered your question! “DUNCAN is built and designed for the female who is multi-faceted, dynamic and complex in all areas of her life. She wears DUNCAN as a symbol of armor for the goth girl gone corporate who prefers her garments with a hint of after-dark glamour.” A symbol of armor! I’m trying to educate my totally uncool self so I can “understand” you cool girls! Cannot wait for your follow up post on this dress!
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