James, Charles, 1906-1978 (designer); Marshall Field & Company (distributor)
1954
Charles James originally designed the Butterfly ball gown for Mrs. William Randolph Hearst Jr., for the price of $1,250. The sculptural design lives up to a comment once made by Spanish couturier Cristbal Balenciaga, "Charles James is not only the...
Court presentation dress worn by donor Mrs. Charles S. Dewey when presented at the Court of St. James in 1927 while her husband was Assistant Secretary of the United States Treasury Department. This kind of dress, with its dropped waistline and...
Designed initially in black silk chiffon and tulle, this gown became James's most executed custom order. Vogue featured the garment in 1951. James's wife, Nancy, wore it in the mid 1950s and he created at least one version with a cocktail-length...
James launched this mermaid-like gown early in his career and created several versions of it over a period of twenty years. The name of the dress, La Sirène, refers to sea creatures in Greek mythology who used their enchanting voices to lure...
Purchased by the donor's great grandmother, Mrs. Augustus Newland Eddy (née Abby Louise Spencer), when she was in Paris with her father in 1878. According to the donor's grandmother, Mrs. Eddy wore this dress for a portrait painted by G.P.A....
This dress is called Infanta, or sometimes Williamsburg, referring to skirts worn at two different times in history. Infanta was a title used by royal women in the seventeenth century Spanish court, whose wide skirts are captured in paintings by...
James, Charles, 1906-1978 (designer); Samuel Winston Inc. (manufacturer)
1951
This dress was initially designed as a ready-to-wear dress for production by Samuel Winston. The precisely placed seams allowed the garment to be tailored to the exact measurements of its wearer. Only one other version is known to still exist: ...
James, Charles, 1906-1978 (designer); Charles James Manufacturers Company (manufacturer)
1955
This dress was made by one of James's numerous business enterprises, Charles James Manufacturers Company, which lasted from 1955 to 1958. Lord and Taylor used the garment in advertisements in the New York Times in 1956, and Harper's Bazaar...
This Renaissance-style dress was worn by the donor, née Janet Lawrence, on the occasion of her marriage to Robert McCormick Adams on May 3, 1924 at St. James Episcopal Church in Chicago, followed by a reception at the home of the bride' s parents...
