The Lavender Dress

          The lavender dress by Elie Saab at the Undressed: A Brief History in Underwear in the Victoria and Albert Museum really caught my eye. The dress was worn by Mila Kunis, and debut at the 2011 Oscars.  It is one thing to see a dress on a movie star on television at the Oscars amongst hundreds of other beautifully dressed stars, but it’s another thing to have the opportunity to be up close and personal with a dress that is presented on a mannequin.  At the exhibit, I was able to focus on all the tiniest of details of the dress. The lavender pastel color was breath taking. With its layers of lace and chiffon, it was a very romantic dress. As it hugged and molded the body closely, while still having a flowing long train that seemed to match the style perfectly. The dress looked stunning with the use of all the tiered chiffon and lace, I could understand why it was included in an underwear exhibit.

        The designer, Elie Saab, is one of the youngest and most prolific designers. He was the first Lebanese designers to dress an Oscar winner, with Halle Berry in 2002. Even as a young boy, he loved fashion. By the age of eight he was cutting patterns out of newspaper, and dressing his sister in his designs. After moving to Paris and studying design, he moved back to Beirut to start his own fashion label. Originally dressing the women in his neighborhood, his fame grew and grew until he began dressing some of the most famous women in society.  In 1999, he designed the dress that Queen Rania of Jordon wore for her enthronement. It was covered in emeralds and diamonds and was supposedly worth $2.4 million.

        He is known for his distinctive way of blending of eastern and western styles with all types of fabrics; taffeta, satin, organza. With 100 stores all over the world; Hong Kong, Beirut, Dubai, Doha, Paris, London, Geneva, Moscow, New York, and Mexico, he is truly an international designer. The flowing lavender dress in the exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum was the perfect choice to celebrate his unique style. It showed off his amazing talents and keen eye for detail and beauty.      

http://www.eliesaab.com