Publish by Gazette Drouot International

Estimated between €3,000 and €4,000, this long princess line dress in blue gazar and circles of midnight blue velvet goes up for sale Thursday, May 19th, in Room 14 at Drouot, with the auction house Tessier & Sarrou et Associés (Mr. Grassat).

Who is the creator of this dress that hails from a Fall-Winter collection of 1968? The answer is French fashion designer Pierre Balmain (1914-1982). From its inception in 1945, the eponymous fashion house blazed a trail in the opposite direction, away from the practical fashion of the time by adopting a feminine and sophisticated style, where embroidery, curved waists and imposing skirts were in the spotlight. Balmain quickly became the darling of Hollywood and European celebrities from Marlene Dietrich to Katharine Hepburn and Brigitte Bardot. From social events to sports competitions, nothing seemed to stop Balmain, whose first dress, at Lucien Lelong, was called Petit Profit…