The Little Black Dress

 SIMPLE,  TIMELESS,  ELEGANT

You hear it all the time and I know its annoying, but its true!  Simply put every woman should own a little black dress. I consider it to be no coincidence that the first three letters in the word wardrobe begin with w,a and r.  Truth be told its a battle out there, and the way I see it is if you can increase your chances of success by ensuring that you are in possession of some of the most basic of closet weapons, than why not do so?

Many have tried to reinvent the wheel in this area.  The 80's saw designers trying to push little red dresses on us and then somewhere along the way gray blue, gold and silver became popular color options for this wardrobe staple.  However I am going to have to ask you to read my next sentence carefully.  Nothing replaces the timeless romance and elegance of a woman in a black dress fitted to her body type and rooted in her own personal style. 

First introduced by Chanel in the twenties the little black dress was originally labeled "Chanel's Ford", thereby referencing this creation as her masterpiece.  Chanel intended that this dress, along with all of her designs,  infuse comfort into elegance.  But I'm sure I'm not telling you anything that you don't already know.  And that is the area that I enjoy focusing on,  the things that you don't know.  So let's get down to it.  What women don't seem to know or rather don't understand is that the LBD was always meant to be simple.  It requires simplicity because it has to pull double duty by exercising versatility.  The proper LBD should allow itself to be worn during the day, and than out again at night with only a few simple changes.  Whether those changes be hair, make up, jewelery, shoes or purse, the feel of the ensemble should convert from business to evening elegance.  And if the dress is fabulous enough it just might make that leap for you all on it's own. Lanvin has done an amazing job of keeping the classic day to evening feel in their modern version of the LBD.  At times even managing to add embellishments that add beauty to the design without taking away from the intended timeless simplicity.

What has happened nowadays is that women have unlearned the art of accessorizing.  Therefore they do not understand how to make what is simple, elegant.  In their laziness they purchase dresses that do all the work for them, whether overly fringed and beaded, draped in huge bows, or slung from see through mesh tops.  All quite lovely in their own way, these do not really fit the definition of a little black dress.  These my friends, are cocktail dresses. 

In this day and age I find that the artistry required to take a dress from day to evening is a dying talent.  But for those of you who are bold enough to attempt to regain mastery of your wardrobe in this area, I have enclosed a photo list of some lovely dresses that can easily pull double duty for the creatively inclined.