Cocktail Dress
early 1950s (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Norman Hartnell was best known as the couturier to the British royal family. Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s he designed a wide range of clothes that Princess Margaret wore for her official duties. This evening dress is made in a heavy black ribbed silk called grosgrain. It shows the Princess's taste for uncluttered simple lines with the minimum of decoration. Here just the shoulder straps are embroidered with silvered beads and diamantés. The skirt is the most important feature. It is constructed in ten panels and finished with bold scallops at the hem. The heavy weight and density of the fabric holds the flared shape of the skirt and its wave-like folds.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silk and wool faille lined with horsehair, embroidered with sequins and diamanté |
| Brief description | Cocktail dress of thick black silk and wool faille lined with horsehair, designed by N. Hartnell, London, early 1950s |
| Physical description | Cocktail dress of thick black silk and wool faille lined with horsehair. The bodice is tight and moulded to a heart-shaped décolleté, and with shoulder straps embroidered with sequins and diamanté. The skirt falls in petal-shaped panels from the waist and creates a scalloped hem. The dress has no lining. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Haute couture |
| Gallery label |
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| Credit line | Given by HRH Princess Margaret |
| Object history | Registered File number 1985/2045. |
| Summary | Norman Hartnell was best known as the couturier to the British royal family. Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s he designed a wide range of clothes that Princess Margaret wore for her official duties. This evening dress is made in a heavy black ribbed silk called grosgrain. It shows the Princess's taste for uncluttered simple lines with the minimum of decoration. Here just the shoulder straps are embroidered with silvered beads and diamantés. The skirt is the most important feature. It is constructed in ten panels and finished with bold scallops at the hem. The heavy weight and density of the fabric holds the flared shape of the skirt and its wave-like folds. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.238-1986 |
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| Record created | February 24, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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