Sack dress
Cristóbal Balenciaga · 1957–1958
Sack dress
Releasing the waist changed the entire outline of a dress. Balenciaga’s sack made room between cloth and body, offering a consequential alternative to the fitted hourglass.
Unfitted waistShape suspended from shouldersSimple outer line
About Sack dress
The sack dress, also called the chemise, became a much-discussed new silhouette in the late 1950s. Balenciaga’s 1957 version hung from the shoulders and allowed space around the body, removing the tightly fitted waist associated with the New Look. Its apparent simplicity depended on careful cutting. Some clients and journalists initially resisted the shape, but it gradually entered mainstream fashion. It helped establish the looser lines that became familiar in the 1960s, making it an influential turning point rather than a description of all 1950s dresses.
Explore the designers
- Cristóbal BalenciagaView garment · 1957–1958
Sculpting the space around the body