Patrick Kelly F/W '86/'87 RARE Pink Jersey Gown with Colorful Buttons
An incredibly rare piece from the great American fashion designer, Patrick Kelly. This piece beautifully exemplifies the unique ethos behind the late designer. Patrick blended French Haute Couture sensibilities with influences of his grandmother and the black southern women he grew up seeing at church. Patrick's grandmother used colorful mismatched buttons when repairing his clothes as a child, inspiring him to adorn his super-sexy body conscious jersey dresses with vibrantly colored buttons. In 1987, Patrick told People Magazine “The black Baptist church on Sunday, the ladies are just as fierce as the ladies at Yves Saint Laurent haute couture shows.”
Pieces from this Fall Winter 1986/1987 collection are works of wearable art, as shown in the 10th photo on display at the "Runway of Love" exhibit at the de Young museum in San Francisco.
The gown is in great vintage condition, but has a few imperfections to note. The 5th photo shows a few light spots of discoloration on the back of the left sleeve near the wrist. The 6th and 7th photos show red buttons missing from both sleeves. The 8th photo shows a white button missing from the upper left sleeve. There's a total of 3 buttons missing, but the placement is not very noticeable. These slight imperfections hardly detract from the fabulousness of this collectible gown. We will also update this post if we find any authentic replacement buttons.
Light shoulder pads create a slight mutton sleeve silhouette to the upper arm. Sexy low-cut back. French cut style scoop neck. This beautiful, bubblegum pink knit jersey has a bit of stretch to her. Great vintage condition overall.
1986 Interview with Patrick Kelly on Good Morning America
Shoulders: 20"
Chest: 29"-38"
Waist: 23-32"
Hips: 30-40"
Length: 60"