Thinking of a way to exude modern elegance with a touch of glamour? This fluid satin maxi is one of the most versatile wardrobe pieces for an instant show-stopping allure that will have everyone asking ‘who’s that girl?’.
The Origin of the Slip Dress
This perfect garment used to be cut using straight panels of cloth, before Madeline Vionnet, a French couturier trained in London, revolutionized dressmaking and garment design by using the bias cut for her pieces.
1920s Paris was rocked by the new look when Vionnet’s bias cut satin dresses made of figure-hugging panels stretched and curved sinuously over the female form. Where clothes had been formal, tailored and fairly restrictive, Vionnet, along with her contemporary Coco Chanel, were pioneering a new look, one that freedwomen from corsets, padding and bustles. Clothes cut on the bias hung beautifully on the body, as well as moving with it – the cut meant that any fabric suddenly had much more give and stretch to it.The arrival of the midi dress added to this trend of a slightly newer and more liberated garment for women.
The freedom of wearing a silk slip cut on the bias has to be experienced to be believed, but the effect at a party can easily be imagined. Just add champagne.
From Night to Day
The bias cut slip dress was naturally an obvious choice for sleepwear and lingerie, which requires some give and stretch for comfortable sleep or to go beneath other clothing as a petticoat. Until the 1930s the majority of fashions were still quite demure, despite the famous “roaring twenties” scene. However during the 1930s designers started using the bias cut for many different styles, from tea party dresses in pretty printed silk crepe with fluttering bias-cut sleeves, to satin gowns with cowl necklines, intricate seaming, lace embroidery and dramatic trains for evening wear.
1990s and The Moss Effect
Say ‘slip dress’ and most people think of Kate Moss in her prime - days of lazy sunshine and rocking nights that turned to dawns under the gaze of an awed fashion world… ever glamorous, sexy and chic in her parade of satin dresses- spaghetti straps, backless, transparent, demure, midi dress... Kate had them all.
The Slip Dress Today
Today the perfect slip dress is something every woman should make a part of her wardrobe. There is a reason designers love putting this piece in their store- it suits everyone and will make each woman feel like a queen. A chic and easy go-to style staple, the midi slip dress in particular is timelessly elegant. Worn with sandals, trainers or skyscraper heels, the ideal slip dress will take you from a picnic in the park to cocktails overlooking the city with merely a shoes and accessories change.
Stars Love Slip Dresses
Don’t believe us? See for your self the long line up of stars who look radiant in satin slip dresses- from Sienna Miller to Rosie Huntington-Whitely and Selena Gomez, Kate Moss is not alone in her effortless grace and style.
What's more - these dresses slip off like a dream at the end of the day (or night!), and won't smudge your make-up or ruin your hair.
You Wore the Dress Best!
We love seeing photos of you in your Rose Fulbright clothing, we want to see every occasion and all your favourite accessories- keep them coming! Meanwhile here are a few of our favourites:
Find Your Ideal Slip Dresses
If you're shopping for satin dresses in maxi or mini styles to feel in fashion this summer, look no further than the dedicated section in our shop. Search for a range of styles from slip dresses in silk satin all made by hand in the United Kingdom. All you need to add is the perfect pair of shoes and you're ready to party all summer.
