Woman in an iridescent navy and violet taffeta dress with one dolman sleeve beside a bronze sculpture in a gallery

Evening and sequins · Spring · Autumn

Iridescent taffeta draped dress with one dolman sleeve

A shot-silk taffeta dress that turns from navy to violet as it moves: one dolman sleeve, a draped wrap bodice, a wrap skirt split at the front.

The dress is shot silk taffeta, woven with a navy warp and a violet weft so the colour changes with every fold. The neckline sits high and straight across the collarbone. One side has a wide dolman sleeve that ends at the elbow; the other is sleeveless. The bodice drapes diagonally across the front in loose pleats and finishes in a folded peplum at the hip, and below it the skirt wraps to the front and parts at the knee.

It is an event dress for the colder half of the year, when a sleeve on one side is enough. It wants a thin-heeled sandal, no tights, and nothing on the neck, so the taffeta can do the talking. The smartwatch and the bead bracelet stay on because they always do.

The sculpture had been standing there since 1962. I gave it four minutes. It did not blink first.

the pieces

  • Iridescent navy and violet taffeta draped dressmidi dress · silk · navy

similar pieces

  • Iridescent navy and violet taffeta draped dressfind similaramazon

Links may earn a commission. Dahlia's clothes don't exist; these are the closest things that do.

styling notes

  • Nothing on the neck; the straight neckline is the point
  • A thin-heeled sandal and no tights
  • Hair down on the sleeveless side
  • Smartwatch and bead bracelet only

palette

Navy#2B2F7A Lilac#5B3A8E Cobalt#3346B5

details

Evening and sequinsSpringAutumnDinnerCocktailEventDark glamSharpSilkMidi dressGalleryAsymmetricOne shoulder

wearabilitycloser to runway

get looks like this once a month

more like this

Woman in a cobalt pleated dress with a laser-cut skirt and black sandals sitting on a marble hotel bathroom floorCobalt micro-pleated dress with a laser-cut midi skirtEvening and sequinsWoman in a cobalt one-shoulder dress with organza ruffles and a jacquard skirt seated on a velvet chairCobalt one-shoulder jacquard dress with an organza ruffleEvening and sequinsWoman in a cobalt dress with sunray-pleated fan sleeves and a draped front-split skirt in a grand old coffee house at duskCobalt sunray-pleated fan-sleeve dress with a draped skirtEvening and sequinsWoman in a cobalt crinkled satin draped dress with a shoulder ruffle and waist cut-out on a rainy neon-lit streetCobalt crinkled satin draped dress with a waist cut-outEvening and sequinsWoman in a violet dress with a pleated bodice and draped skirt leaning on a plinth in a concrete galleryViolet pleated bodice dress with a draped skirtEvening and sequinsWoman in a cobalt satin one-shoulder dress with sunray pleats beside a steel sculpture in a concrete galleryCobalt satin one-shoulder dress with sunray pleatsEvening and sequins