#6914 $650
Victor Costa halter sun dress, 1980s
Victor Costa, king of the fashion copycats, is known for masterful adaptations of Paris couture. Women who do not want to spend over $30,000 for couture are thrilled to get the look without the hefty price.
Costa has gained respect as a designer with a finely tuned sense of trends. Deciding which designs to adapt to the mass market is itself an art, as I learned when I worked as a print designer on 7th Avenue.
The dress is fashioned from cheerful red-and-white striped cotton. Costa ingeniously arranges the stripes to form a diamond pattern at the front and back waist. The bodice is lined with white cotton/synthetic and is boned for support. The skirt has a built-in crinoline petticoat—see picture below. The dress closes on the side with a nylon coil zipper.
Costa uses the diagonal motif with mesmerizing mastery, drawing the eye in to focus on its slightly concave (="female") shaping. The aesthetic tension is increased by the 45-degree rotation of the diamond. We do not need Dr. Freud to explain the subliminal excitement of the brilliant design.
The condition is excellent. It is clean and ready to wear.
The size is marked 12.
It measures: 38"-40" bust, 30" waist, full over hip, and 36" skirt length.
