Woman in a burgundy draped satin and mesh dress with black leather trim standing in a parlour with pink velvet armchairs

Satin and slip · Spring · Autumn

Burgundy draped satin and mesh dress with leather trim

A burgundy dress mixing draped satin, open mesh and black leather binding, with a folded ruffle off one shoulder and a hem of uneven panels.

A sleeveless dress in burgundy built from three fabrics that do not usually meet: fluid satin draped diagonally across the body, a fine burgundy mesh used for the shoulder yoke, the midriff and the long panels of the skirt, and black leather binding that edges every panel so the construction shows. A stiff satin ruffle folds up and away from the left shoulder like a collar that changed its mind. The skirt is short underneath and long on top, satin and mesh panels falling to the calf at different lengths.

It is a dinner dress for the kind of room with velvet chairs and lamps that have never been dusted. Spring and early autumn, when arms can be out. A pointed heel, or a flat sandal if the night is long; no jacket, the leather trim is the structure. The mesh does the lightness, the satin does the shine, the leather keeps both of them in line.

Three fabrics, one colour. I am not a patient woman but I am a consistent one.