Runway

The History of Sequins: From the Supremes to Dior Pre-Fall

Sequins—from glitz to glimmer.
By Laird Borrelli-Persson

Raf Simons gave new life to sequins at Dior’s pre-fall show in Tokyo today by giving them a makeunder. Shown in understated knitwear patterns, or popped over silvery separates, they added a futuristic glimmer and just the right touch of star power, proving once and for all that sequins aren’t just for glitz-loving show-girls or Space Age señoritas. Here, we follow the comet trail of sequins in fashion.

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    Photo: RB/Redferns/Getty
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    The Supremes, 1960

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    Photographed by Irving Penn, Vogue, October 15, 1964
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    Sequined Space-Age ensemble by André Courrèges

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    Photo: Everett Collection
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    Twiggy in The Boy Friend, 1971

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    Photo: Sal Traina/© Condé Nast Archive/Corbis
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    Norman Norell with a model in his sequined dress, 1972

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    Photo: Bill Cunningham, Vogue, March 01, 1974
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    A sequined look from Halston

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    Photographed by Taylor Jewell
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    Christian Dior pre-fall 2015

Christian Lacroix is Laird Borrelli-Persson’s fashion raison d’etre; the way he combined romance and historicism set her on the path she is following today. Borrelli-Persson studied literature at Boston College, spending her junior year abroad at Oxford, where she added some art history. After graduation she moved to New York to intern ... Read More
TopicsChristian DiorPre-Fall 2015