Turquoise blue dress with nude bodice and blue details designed by Peter Davy
date: label: Date
content: 1985-1990
name: label: Designed by
content: Peter Davy, Saint Vincentian, 1944 - 1990
label: Subject of
content: Black Fashion Museum, American, 1979 - 2007
notes: label: Description
content: A turquoise blue dress with a nude bodice embellished in turquoise blue and silver, and a full ruffled skirt. The bodice of the dress is made from a brown sheer chiffon fabric and shaped with a high rounded front neckline and open back, and full-length fitted sleeves. Turquoise blue machine lace flowers are cut and placed strategically at the shoulders, cuffs, and breasts in groups of four (4). Each flower is hand decorated with seven (7) small clear rhinestones attached at the center, and large flat iridescent white beads sewn around the lace flower petals. In the middle of the four (4) flowers at each breast are a cluster of iridescent clear sequins in varying sizes with a silver seed bead sewn at the center of each sequin. This same design element is used below the topmost of the four (4) flowers on each shoulder. Long strands of silver bugle and seed bead fringe are sewn within the flower clusters of each shoulder and left loose to dangle down the arms. A line of small iridescent clear sequins each with a silver seed bead in the middle is sewn around the entire neckline. The stiff, wide waistband sits high on the waist and is made from turquoise blue satin overlaid in turquoise blue net lace with an all-over pattern of blue woven dots. The full, floor-length skirt is made from the same materials as the waistband, with the heavy weight satin overlaid in the net lace. The net lace overlay is trimmed with a wide ruffled hem. The dress closes at the center back with a metal and plastic zipper that begins at the waistband and extends into the skirt.
label: Description
content: Thick shoulder pads are sewn inside a double layer of the brown chiffon and attached to each interior shoulder. Small pieces of brown floral lace are cut and hand sewn at the interior of each breast to cover the wearer's nipples. Hanger loops made from the brown chiffon are sewn at each interior side shoulder. The skirt is not lined beyond the under layer of turquoise blue satin. A white fabric label with black printed text is sewn at the interior proper left back waistband that reads, "An Original / by / Peter Davy" with three (3) black diamonds down the proper left side of the label.
place: label: Place made
content: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Clothing and dress
label: Topic
content: Design
label: Topic
content: Fashion
label: Topic
content: Fashion design
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Collection title
content: Black Fashion Museum Collection
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Fashion and Historical
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2007.3.79
objectType: label: Type
content: dresses
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: synthetic satin, synthetic lace, synthetic chiffon, sequins, rhinestones, and beads, with metal and plastic zipper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (flat): 58 1/2 × 49 × 6 in. (148.6 × 124.5 × 15.2 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (on form): 56 3/4 × 29 × 26 in. (144.1 × 73.7 × 66 cm)