Karl Lagerfeld for Chloé SS84: An Homage to Dressmaking

A Fond Farewell

Karl Lagerfeld’s Spring/Summer 1984 Prêt-à-Porter (ready-to-wear) collection for Chloé, while received with acclaim, also marked the end of a 19-year collaboration between the designer and the house.

Lagerfeld was credited with having a keen understanding of the label’s market, creating a diverse range of looks capitalizing on variety. Claiming “Lagerfeld furthered Chloé’s VIP reputation by going to the extent of personally financing its lavish, witty runway accessories,” this final collection exemplifies his ability to execute pieces both sophisticated and whimsical. [1][2]

Reasons given for his departure varied depending on the party interviewed; the designer described an “atmosphere [that] was no longer creative,” disputed by label owners Gaby Aghion and Jacques Lenoir as a reluctance to shoulder high French taxes.

Memorable despite politics, Lagerfeld’s collection was an homage to dressmaking, lauded by the press for its “amusing” display of accessories like thread spool bracelets, jeweled pincushions, thimbles combined with pearls, and prominent scissors, embellishing everything from belts to umbrella handles. [3]

Defying Conventions

Karl Lagerfeld once defied convention by pairing delicate silk dresses with sneakers; he achieved the same irreverence towards banality by styling models sporting evening looks with sunglasses here. One reporter surmised this combination was conjured up “as if to shut out the glare” of the glittering gown. [10]

The French Connection

The clothing was described as being “quintessentially French--interestingly designed, beautifully made fashions principally intended to flatter the female figure.” [11] The long, lean silhouettes shown were in keeping with collections shown by contemporaries like Sonia Rykiel and Nino Cerruti--particularly notable was the return of the chemise, with a “straight-up-and-down, hip-centered fit.” [12]

The designer favored long, lean silhouettes tapering from broad tops this season. A prevalent over apron emphasizing the hips is seen on several looks, including this yellow and black dress with a “double skirt that wraps--the top ‘apron’ layer at mid thigh.” [13]

Mixing it Up

This look is an amalgamation of several styles within the collection, including nods to menswear dressing and earrings borrowed from the dressmaking theme, executed in a black and white palette suggesting a tuxedo inspiration.

New Proportions

The juxtaposition between long, short, slim, and wide is again seen in this navy and white sweater look comprised of a cropped, navy over-layer paired with a navy and white long-sleeved polo sweater. Combined with a long, narrow skirt, this new proportion was noted by Vogue writer Mary Russell as a “feeling in the air for longer skirts for the day, though most admit for more fashion-forward women.” [15]

Can't Please Everybody

A look embodying the dressmaker theme from this season was panned by fashion critic Bernadine Morris in a 1983 New York Times article. Morris writes “a couple dresses have hangers holding jeweled dresses on the front or back. That may be taking things too far.” [17]
This whimsical evening look is accessorized with a golden-scissor-adorned visor-hat and bejeweled spool thread earrings.