‘Semi-fit’ day dress, wool

Balenciaga did not believe in change for change's sake. He worked methodically from season to season on specific ideas to refine and perfect them. Throughout the 1950s he worked on the lean line known popularly as the 'sack'. This dress is one variation on this theme. It has a slim, semi-fitted outline with a round neck, elbow-length sleeves and a belt. This dress is made in plain weave wool. The back is draped and shaped like a cocoon. The EISA label identifies it as the product of one of Balenciaga's Spanish outlets in Barcelona, San Sebastian or Madrid. Spanish clothes were less expensive than their Paris equivalents. They were made in less costly Spanish fabrics and business overheads in Spain were lower than in France.