Purchased at Bergdorf Goodman in NYC, for a pageant that I am no longer doing. This gown is amazing! From the Fall 2012 collection. The V-neck bodice is so streamlined and sculpted—an effect achieved by a soft lingerie corset underneath. The sleekness gives way to the real show-stopper: a haunting, convoluted tier of scalloped organza, which winds its way from hip to calf, like a witch’s candle. It’s otherworldly. Particularly in black, which I did for my runway show, the look is spellbinding, and a bit unreal.
The back view is also lovely. There’s a sleek, smooth line, and lots of light and tone, balancing the chaos in the skirt. And then there’s the washed organza train, with so many beautiful tonalities and surprising asymmetries. The entire piece wavers between elegant and excessive, and there’s absolutely something supernatural in all of that grandeur, and all of that surprising sensuousness. I think it’s all tapping into something deep and uncontrollable. In the delicate balance between skirt and bodice, there are wild, mysterious forces, constantly appearing and disappearing.