Behind the Dress | Odile

Ivory and nude strapless pleated A-line gown with sweetheart neckline and hand-placed ruched technique bodice accented by mermaid Chantilly lace underlay skirt.

This is a fascinating dress, and it really stands out in this collection. Odile is many women at once — she’s playful, she’s carefree, she’s just a little bit ravishing, with that shirred corset bodice. Above all, she’s sensual. In that full A-line skirt, you have all the movement, lightness and rapture you could hope for in a modern gown.

The skirt is French tulle in accordion pleats, without any structure or crinoline to hold it in place, so it’s just tailored around the body and then free to move, to float, to swirl. The airiness and lightness here is almost off-handedly gorgeous — it lets our bride float above it all, in a cloud of softness.

In the bodice, you can sense the push and pull between sweetness and sensuality. There’s a faint echo of the French boudoir here: like the old tune “La Vie en Rose,” it’s sublimely sweet and girly, with a knowing hint of bohemian sophistication. Over a beautiful sweetheart corset shape, you have these achingly soft materials, nude tulle and Chantilly lace, and shirring in French tulle over this. These individual segments of shirring pass back and forth across the bodice, for the swirling effect you see. Each little ruffled seam builds up into a gorgeous, almost architectural construction, with detail on top of feather-soft detail. Finally, there’s the window-pane cutout on the back of the bodice, which gives you just the softest touch of sensuality.

Put it all together, and there’s enough to bring any blushing bride to her knees. Odile is a fairy confection, crying out for a garden ceremony full of bohemian pleasures.