Another WOW find, with some mysterious features. The fabric, styling, and tailoring all point to a true vintage heritage, BUT it looked a little too good to be true. This dress is in near mint condition and the long metal zip is on the right side (!?) – not the usual placement during the 1960’s time period. Also, the finishing reflected a commercial product but I didn’t see a label (found it later!). Almost made me wonder if this could be a well-done repro or custom-tailored retro garment but still, that didn’t seem right.

When I tried the dress on, the label appeared (it is vintage) tucked low inside the front bodice. This, of course, made the research much easier, though I’ve been able to find very little information about the company. Here is what I do know:

GLASS Original New York made dresses in the 1960’s and, maybe, into the 1970’s though I’ve seen a picture of only one other example and it looked more ’60’s to me than ’70’s. The tailoring was evidently exceptional, which is consistent with this frock. Construction includes wide hem allowances, very secure stitching, beautifully-done detailing and styling and excellent quality fabric and notions. The only thing I would add to enhance the fit on me personally would be little strap holders inside the neckline on each side. For someone with broader shoulders than mine (more average), that wouldn’t be needed so the fit and tailoring is still quite correct for the general market since the dress is just a tad too large for me.

Interesting feature: The side zip enhances the hourglass fit of the dress and is sewn in with a covering overlap that faces from back to front, rather than front to back (which I would expect). As I looked more closely, I can see why the the designers probably did it this way – the zip is more hidden than it would be if the flap closed in the other direction! That’s a big surprise and demonstrates the very careful and knowledgeable tailoring involved. This choice no doubt had to do with how the cut and the weight of the fabric affected the way the dress would hang. Most clothing companies don’t take this amount of care.

A below-the-knee hemline and sexy fit place this piece squarely in the Kennedy era late 1950’s – early 1960’s. I’m so thrilled to have found it and learned something about this dressmaker. I’m also sure that the fun isn’t over so, stay tuned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

MORGANA MARTIN, THE MAGICVINTAGESPY

BLOG: MAGICVINTAGESPY.COM