20 Most Iconic Dresses of Christian Dior

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Maison Dior will always hold a special place in French fashion. Born in a seaside town in Normandy, Christian Dior was in his 40s by the time he made fashion history. The world famous atelier, who ushered in the nipped waist, full skirted ensembles that re-defined postwar fashion in the 1940s, left behind a legacy of ultra-feminine hourglass gowns and sleek tailored suits after his passing in 1957.

•1947
THE NEW LOOK
Dior was credited for reviving Haute Couture in Paris, then a dwindling fashion capital in the aftermath of World War II. In a sharp contrast to the austere ensembles in the postwar period, Dior created dresses, dubbed "The New Look" with a small, nipped-in waist and a full skirt falling below mid-calf length, emphasizing an hourglass shape. As epitomized by the "Bar" suit from his debut collection in 1947, Dior successfully changed the landscape of French fashion, leading other designers to emulate this look.

•FALL 1947
For his sophomore collection, Dior added a hat, replicated the previous season's hipline, made the shoulders more sharp, and pulled in the waist with a longer skirt, giving the "New Look" shape an even fuller twist.

•THE ZIG-ZAG
For Spring 1948, Dior created a sweetheart neckline and an optical illusion skirt manipulated into a dramatic zig-zag formation.

•FALL 1948
Just when it seemed his gowns couldn't get more voluminous, Monsieur Dior added a wide flaring silhouette and draped fabric resembling a lamp shade, with his trademark cinch at the waist.

•1949
Dior's collection for 1949 had the designer experimenting with separates and necklines, featuring a look that included a camisole top, a large bow at the waist, and scissor paneling for the satin skirt.

•SPRING 1950
Dior began playing with different prints and patterns for his Spring 1950 collection, including this gown draped with vertical lines and flowers accentuated at the waist.

•FALL 1950
In addition to his hourglass gowns, Dior became well-known for his chic tailoring and suiting. For his Fall 1950 presentation, Dior unveiled tunic coats that included wrapped fabric, jutting out hemlines, and buttons above the waist. The overall silhouette had a slanted shape.

•FALL 1951
Dior's new line of evening dresses for Fall 1951 included a waistcoat with a box jacket, a vest that crossed at the waist, and a straight-line skirt that hit just below the knees.

•SPRING 1952
Entering the 1950s, blouses paired with long skirts and flat shoes quickly became the most popular fashion trend. The waist is what catches the eve right away for Dior's Spring 1952 collection.

•FALL 1952
French supermodel Bettina Graziani donned this sharply constructed, body-hugging dress and jacket from Dior's Fall 1952 collection.

•SPRING 1953
This slightly off-the-shoulder cream gown for Dior's Spring 1953 cemented the woman's waist as the center of focus for the designer. The dress curves in at the waist and flares out into an hourglass shape. Dubbed the "Tulip" dress, the design also featured a form-fitting V-shaped neckline.

•FALL 1953
While receiving criticism towards for the beginning of his career for using exorbitant amounts of fabric, Dior made the hemlines dramatically shorter, hitting below the knee for his Fall 1953 collection.

•SPRING 1954
Giving a roomier, more relaxed feel for his Spring 1954 line, Dior rendered his iconic collared jackets in a shorter fit.

•THE H-LINE
Along with the "New Look" and a smattering of other silhouettes, Dior also introduced the H-Line dress for his Fall 1954 collection. With the fabric sheathed at the chest and a crisp neckline (in the shape of an H), Dior's designs were praised for ushering in a different type of femininity at the time.

•THE A-LINE
Perhaps his second-most memorable collection. Dior's A-Line skirts and jackets for Spring 1955 gave the models slender shoulders, flaring out gradually from the waist to create an A shape.

•THE Y-LINE
For Fall 1955, Dior kept all of the bulky material at the top, with a slim silhouette from the waist down. The effect was a jacket and dress combination that created a Y-shape.

•​SPRING 1956
A waistline that flared in ever-so-subtly was Dior's newest creation for Spring 1956. For the collection, Dior unveiled numerous jacket and dress ensembles for which the Maison is well-known.

•FALL 1956​
Signaling a return to his roots, Dior made hemlines noticeably longer for his Fall 1956 collection.

•SPRING 1957
For his penultimate collection in Paris, Dior unveiled a number of breathtaking ball gowns in materials of silk and layered taffeta.

•FALL 1957
For his final collection before Dior passed away on October 24, 1957, the designer began utilizing softer, less fitted silhouettes in his suits. The fabric followed the contours of the body, rather than accentuated the small waists of the models.