Fortuny: #MalenasFinds - Malena's Vintage Boutique

27 Mar Fortuny: #MalenasFinds

Posted at 10:42h in Designer, Finds by Malena Martinez 0 Comments

The hottest Malena’s Find

Treasures of all sorts and eras have filtered through my shop for almost two decades, and I can honestly say this Fortuny delphos dress is the most rare and special antique clothing item I have ever had. Seeing one in real life mostly only happens in a museum or high end vintage show like Manhattan Vintage Show or Current Affair.

Why so rare?

Mariano Fortuny was a prominent dressmaker who had a couture house from 1906-1946. He mysteriously developed methods of pleating and printing that till this day no one has been able to replicate. His iconic micro pleat known as “Fortuny pleats” and Delphos gowns are what dreams are made of. Some of the wealthiest of socialites and aristocrats owned his gowns including Clarisse Coudert who married Condé Nast wearing one.

The solid color silk they are typically made of are delicately pleated from head to toe. They are tied at the waist with a flat gold printed motif belt. Glass beads trim the armholes and are hand sewn along the side seams all the way to the hem. A handwritten fabric label is sewn into the interior of the side seam of the one I found, but in my research I saw some with a circular label. The majority I have seen are warm tones like cream, beige, ochre, and orange.

Many have tried to duplicate Fortuny’s process and failed.

I had the pleasure of seeing one while I was attending Pratt Institute during a class in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Twisted in a delicate circular shape and stored in a drawer of their climate controlled storage. The second one I had seen was consigned from a veteran dealer. I sold it on ebay about 6 years ago. It was the more common warm golden hue, did not have the belt, had damage issues and still sold for $4,500.

How did I get mine?

Most of my merchandise comes from lovely people who set up appointments and bring pieces into the store to sell. On the occasional day off I head to auction houses hoping for the occasional treasure. A few fellow dealers had mentioned to me that a local auction house that normally handles housewares was featuring some designer vintage clothing on that day. I scooted on down to the preview for a quick peak. I quickly took photos of things for my husband to come back on auction day and bid on.

Initially I had no intention of pawing through the racks, at first glance I spotted newer ladies clothing from the 1990s and 2000s of the suiting variety which is not of interest to my business. With nowhere to be I flipped through the hangers and there she was. An excellent condition Fortuny Delphos gown on a wire hanger in a room that resembled a large well-lit garage. I immediately texted my husband a photo, without a caption, and he replied…

FORTUNY?!

Booked with clients in the store the next day, there was no way I could make it. I placed an absentee bid of $400 in the event Josh couldn’t make it to the auction either. Absentee bidding works differently at every auction house. This one attaches a sticker to the item with your bidder number that corresponds to notations in a book. When the item comes up for sale the auctioneer’s staff will consult the book and the opening bid is half of the absentee bid. This method alerts the present buyers to what you are intending to pay.

I asked the staff to please make sure the sticker on the hanger of the dress was not lost, I feared it would be torn off in the hustle of the next-day’s auction I could not attend. Losing a Fortuny this way would be devastating!

Josh’s Fortuny and Auction Crash Course

That night Josh got a crash course in auction etiquette, how much to bid on each item, flaws to look for, and how to wrap up the Fortuny. We researched retail price points and determined we would raise our max bid to $1500. Neither one of us slept that night. I felt confident we would win it, but didn’t want to get my hopes up. Josh was nervous all night he would mess up the auction, miss a cue, or spend too much money. He arrived at the auction early, inspected the items I had told him to and removed my absentee bid. Other items of note were by designers such as Gucci, Hanae Mori, Lanvin, and Prada who paled in the glow of the Fortuny.

A few hours after the auction start, which seemed like an eternity, he called me. My stomach was in my throat, and he casually said…”We got it!” I feared the number. How much did we just spend on this almost priceless masterpiece?!

$162.

That’s right, with the buyer’s premium it came to $162 American dollars. He had missed bidding on the next two items since he was so carefully twisting the gown and swirling her in the box. I was not at all bothered by missing those items, at this point I can’t even remember what they were. “But wait,” Josh said, “there’s more.” More?! Attached to the belt was the sweetest of antique solid gold crescent moon pin with turquoise stones. The pin alone is worth more than the $162 I spent! I have decided to keep the pin as a memento of the whole experience.

The pin that fastened the belt of the Fortuny.

The makers mark on the back of the pin.

The Specs

As you can see from the photos below my Fortuny is a rare French provincial or Robin’s Egg blue. All of the murano glass beads are intact, and the belt is still with it. The gown is in near perfect condition, the pleats unharmed, with just one hole that measures ½ inch and hides under the arm. I only wish there was a way to know who owned it and where they wore it, but the history of this special gown remains a mystery due to the confidentiality agreement with an auction.

Nearly everyone has asked me if I have tried it on. At this point I just can’t bring myself to do it. The opportunity may never again arise in my lifetime, each day there are less and less pieces like this out there, but am I really worthy to slip that silky pleated magical gown over my head? The struggle is real!!

While I’ve debated keeping it in my living room behind a glass box surrounded by lasers, I think it’s final home is elsewhere. If you are interested in purchasing this museum worthy antique, it is listed on my Etsy and eBay sites along with many other rare antique treasures.