The Little Black Dress

What's more timeless than the "little black dress"? It's one thing that never goes out of style.

A little black dress is an evening or cocktail dress, cut simply and often with a short skirt, originally made popular in the 1920s by my favorite fashion designer, Coco Chanel. Intended by Chanel to be long-lasting, versatile, affordable, accessible to the widest market possible and in a neutral color. Every woman should own a simple, elegant black dress that can be dressed up or down depending on the occasion: for example, worn with a jacket and pumps for daytime business wear or with more ornate jewelry and accessories for evening. Because it is meant to be a staple of the wardrobe for a number of years, the style of the little black dress ideally should be as simple as possible: a short black dress that is too clearly part of a trend would not qualify because it would soon appear dated.

Famous little black dresses:

Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfats at Tiffany's epitomized the Chanel ideal for wearing little black dresses, accessorized with pearls, as was frequently seen throughout the early 1960s.

Betty Boop a cartoon character based in part on the 1920s' "It Girl" Clara Bow, was drawn wearing a little black dress in her early films, though with Technicolor, Betty's dress became red.

Wallis Warfield, Duchess of Windsor, was known to own several little black dresses and said much in praise of the garments. One quote of the Duchess: “When a little black dress is right, there is nothing else to wear in its place.”

Edith Piaf, the French folk icon, performed in a black sheath dress throughout her career: for this habit she was nicknamed “little black sparrow.” It was thought that the dress helped audiences focus more on Piaf's singing and less on her appearance.

So, now that you've read this post, look out for my next post, where you can find little black dresses to make you well-known for. *wink*