Victoria Beckham in Roland Mouret's Pink Moon Dress

Posted by The Bargain Hunter on Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 10:11 AM

Germaine Greer
Monday May 19, 2008
The Guardian

I have said very mean things about Victoria Beckham in my time, such as that she could neither dance nor sing and should give up her disastrous efforts at a solo career while she and David had some money left. I take none of them back. What I have lately come to realise is that what Victoria understands is clothes. She knows what to wear and she knows how to wear it. The revelation came in the form of an unforgettable pink dress

The Moon dress by Roland Mouret that Victoria wore when she attended the press conference that welcomed her husband to LA Galaxy last summer is a work of genius. Mouret's designs usually begin with draping a model in fabric, in this case, 96% cotton and 4% elastane. By making two double-sided folds from nipple to neckline he constructed a bodice with oblique side-seams joining extended cap-sleeves that stand proud of the shoulders, each stiffened by another small origami fold. The front panel is divided by an inch-wide half-belt that holds one edge of a folded tab into which two more folds are set. The straight skirt ends at mid-knee. Some sources claim that the back zipper extends from nape to hem, which would mean that you can walk into the dress like a cupboard, but this impression appears mistaken. Victoria's dress that day had a kickpleat at the back

As Victoria would tell you herself, it is the extra half-inch that counts, but nearly all the women who have worn the real dress have given into the temptation to wear it a size too small. Not Victoria. As she prowled along the hot green turf of the playing field, the perfect background colour for the cold pink of the dress, the half-belt sat flat on her natural waist and the skirt moved easily. Off the peg, the Moon dress would set you back about £1,000. By teaming it with a matching pink ostrich-skin Birkin bag by Hermès and hoisting herself five inches higher on stupendous Balenciaga heels, with no added tat, no bling, no gloves, no hat, Victoria did that clever, innovative dress proud

full transcript: http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/fashion/story/0,,2280907,00.html

Tags: