All you need to know about your little black dress

Karl Lagerfeld once said, “One is never overdressed or underdressed with a Little Black Dress”. It couldn’t be truer. And for this very reason though it can be the most banal outfit in a woman’s closest, the elegant Little Black Dress (LBD) with its chameleon-like property is a staple in every woman’s wardrobe. It’s the answer to her prayer in any situation. 

As the ubiquitous LBD turns 90 this year, New York-based designer Prabal Gurung says, “The LBD is a classic. We value the way it can be both timeless and modern, and can play around with textures and styles each season, while staying true to our women.” A persistently revisited icon, the little black dress has its own entry in the dictionary. 

Prabal Gurung

The perfect day-to-night outfit, the LBD brings ease and confidence. Though deceptively simple from the wearer’s viewpoint, there’s nothing more flattering than an LBD that enhances a woman’s features and expunges imperfections.  

In the beginning 

While for centuries, black was associated with mourning, French fashion designer Coco Chanel changed the game by using the colour in fashion. Making its debut in Vogue, in October 1926, Chanel’s Little Black Dress was a stark contrast to the more elaborate dresses at that time. A calf-length, curve-less black dress, sans embellishment (barring a few diagonal lines), the LBD was named a ‘Ford Model T’, referring to its ‘simplicity and potential for an enormous and long-lasting success’. 

The shape-shifting LBD gained popularity through the Great Depression due to its affordability and elegance. During World War II—as minimalism and practicality prevailed—it became simple, boxy and functional with a military feel to the squared shoulders. Hollywood boosted it when Technicolor films became common and filmmakers relied on black dresses as other colours looked distorted on screen. 
The rise of Dior's 'New Look' (a small, nipped-in waist and a full skirt falling below mid-calf length, which emphasised the bust and hips) in the 1950s, made the little black a uniform and symbol of the dangerous woman. Femme fatales were often portrayed in black, revealing dresses in contrast to the more conservative dresses of housewives. The 1960s saw the LBD pushing the envelope, and minis were born. However, it would be a crime not to mention Audrey Hepburn's dress by Hubert de Givenchy in the 1961 Breakfast at Tiffany's, which gave the LBD its iconic status in pop culture.

The evolution

Since then, the LBD has evolved many times and given us many a memorable look—Princess Diana's 'Revenge Dress' by Christina Stambolian, worn on the eve Prince Charles confessed to his adultery with Camilla; Elizabeth Hurley’s notorious Gianni Versace or 'The Dress' held together by gold oversized safety pins at the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral; Michelle Obama’s Azzedina Alaïa full-skirted LBD at the opening of the NATO Summit in Baden Baden and most recently, Julia Roberts’ Giorgio Armani Prive LBD at Cannes 2016. 

Emilio Pucci
 

While its silhouette has changed over the years, the LBD remains supremely chic. From Coco Chanel to Alber Elbaz, Louis Vuitton to Pucci and Balmain to Mary Katrantzou, every designer has created a distinct version of the LBD. Almost a century and numerous reinventions later, one can pick from lady-like silhouettes, lace, leather, sequinned, bodycon, draped, shift, sheath, chiffon, silk—the options are endless. 

Cecelia Morelli Parikh, Founder, Le Mill, says, “The LBD has taken on multiple avatars in the last few years. Initially understood as a black shift dress, it can now mean anything from a printed, ruffled Alexander McQueen dress to a full-sleeved midi by Alexander Wang. It’s no longer boring, as you can really do a lot with black.” Prabal's 2016 Pre-Fall LBDs have taken a few forms, “We did a play on the LBD with our signature tie-neck blouse paired with a textural velveteen skirt. We also offered a leather dress with braided detail, an embellished version with our classic fit and flare silhouette, and a layered version paired with a knit tunic on top for a modern look. Our inspiration is always an intelligent, assured and graceful woman who has an edge to her”. 

Le Mill

In André Leon Talley’s book The Little Black Dress, Miuccia Prada expresses the reality of timeless yet contemporary fashion. She says, “To me, designing a little black dress is trying to express in a simple, banal object, a great complexity about women, aesthetics and current times”.