Story

The Leonor — a dramatic, romantic, feminine maxi dress — is the piece I designed our entire FW17 collection around. With long sleeves, a voluminous paneled skirt that splits right at the knees, and eleven loop buttons dotting the front, the Leonor is the first maxi dress I've ever designed and perhaps the fanciest dress I've designed, too.

I named this dress after Leonor Fini, a Paris-based surrealist artist and one of my favorite female painters of the 20th century. Her bohemian spirit and resilience in the face of a male-dominated art world inspired in part the dress's dramatic lines and feminine silhouette. I designed the length to be worn with flats (I love pairing it with a flat, rugged lace-up boot), although heels work great too as long as you're willing to show a little ankle. The waist tie can be worn in the front or back or removed so that you can style it with your own belt.

Design Details

• Main: 100% organic cotton handwoven voile from India
• Lining: 100% Tencel from India
• Designed, cut, and sewn in Arkansas, USA
• Maxi dress with fitted bodice and waist
• Paneled, voluminous A-line skirt
• Full button front closure
• Removable waist tie that can be tied in the front or back
• Hidden in-seam side pockets
• Fully lined (the lining stops on the skirt where the buttons do)
• Measures 52" long from shoulder
• Hand wash cold, line dry, warm iron as needed (learn more about garment care here)

Materials

This dress is made of organic cotton voile handwoven in India. It is slightly stiff and slightly sheer, and there is a lovely jacquard Swiss Dot print woven into the fabric that gives it a bit of texture.

The fabric was dyed in our studio using eco-friendly fiber-reactive dyes to get this vibrant shade of saffron yellow. The shade pairs well with blue denim and darker jewel tones — I especially like it paired with both our Evergreen Corduroy and Eggplant Denim fabrics.

The dress is lined with a plain-weave 100% Tencel fabric from in a fair-labor mill in India. It was dyed in-studio with eco-friendly fiber-reactive dyes to be a bright saffron yellow (the same color as our Saffron Dot fabric). You won't be able to see the yellow lining from the outside, but it creates a fun surprise in the inside!

In addition to the fabric, this dress uses cotton thread, 13 vintage mother-of-pearl buttons, and organic cotton labels.

Fit

Take a look at our Size Guide to find your size.

The Leonor is fitted in the bust and waist, so use both of those measurements when determining your size. The style runs true to size, but if either measurement falls in between sizes, I recommend sizing up to avoid any gaping in the front.

Sarah is wearing a size 4 and is 5'9" with a 33" bust, 24" waist, and 35" hip.