V&A
Dusty Rose Silk Crepe Pussy Bow Dress
1970s · 1970s · British
Designer
Gina Fratini
Production
ready-to-wear
Material
silk crepe
Culture
British
Movement
Romantic Revival · Hippie / Counterculture
Influences
1940s pussy bow blouse · romantic revival
A loose-fitting dress in dusty rose silk crepe featuring a distinctive pussy bow tie at the neckline. The garment has a relaxed, flowing silhouette that falls to approximately knee length. Three-quarter sleeves are gathered at the shoulders and cuffed at the wrists, creating subtle volume. The neckline is finished with a soft collar from which extends a long tie that forms the characteristic bow. The dress appears to be cut on the bias or with minimal shaping, allowing the lightweight silk crepe to drape naturally. This style exemplifies early 1970s fashion's move toward softer, more romantic silhouettes while maintaining the decade's preference for fluid, unstructured garments.
dressloose fitv-neckabove-the-knee
Connected To
Movement·Romantic Revival
SHARED130 years · cross-culture · cross-category
That Victorian cameo's carved Ariel—all windswept hair and ethereal grace—finds its echo in the silk dress's pussy bow ties, which flutter with the same romantic yearning for movement and softness. Both pieces traffic in a particularly English strain of romanticism that prizes the delicate over the bold: the cameo's shell-pink ground mirrors the dress's dusty rose exactly, as if one were the color memory of the other.
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