The slip dress, then and now

Few garments say “the nineties” as clearly as the slip dress. It is a woman’s dress that closely resembles an underslip or petticoat: traditionally cut on the bias, hung from spaghetti straps, and made to look like lingerie while being meant to be seen. Lace trims and sheer panels were part of the point, offering a glimpse of the body underneath.

Underwear as outerwear

According to the Wikipedia article on the garment, slip dresses first became widely worn in the last decade of the twentieth century, as part of the broader underwear-as-outerwear trend. They fitted the minimalism of the period perfectly: a single bias-cut layer, no structure, little decoration, and fabric doing all the work.

The fabrics most often used were layered chiffon, polyester satins and charmeuse, frequently edged in lace. Cutting on the bias, diagonally across the grain of the cloth, lets the fabric drape and cling, which is why a plain slip can look fluid rather than flat.

The names behind the look

Several designers are closely associated with the 1990s slip. Wikipedia names Calvin Klein and Narciso Rodriguez, and notes that John Galliano’s debut design for Dior was a lace-trimmed slip dress, worn by Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1996, a choice the article describes as controversial at the time.

On the wearer side, Kate Moss drew attention in a sheer slip in 1993 and became one of the faces most associated with the style. Courtney Love’s fondness for slips gave them credibility in the grunge scene, where a delicate dress could be worn with heavy boots and a battered cardigan.

A single layer of bias-cut silk did the work that a decade earlier had needed shoulder pads, sequins and structure.

The wedding that changed bridal

The most influential slip of the decade may have been a wedding gown. On 21 September 1996, Carolyn Bessette married John F. Kennedy Jr. in a pearl-white silk crêpe slip-style gown with a cowl neckline, designed by Narciso Rodriguez while he was working with Cerruti. As the Wikipedia article on the dress records, i-D magazine later said it broke from the large princess-style gowns of the era and “solidified an emerging trend: the understated slip-style wedding dress”, while Vogue noted that it made a simple white silk slip an acceptable and desirable bridal choice in place of tulle and embellishment.

How it was worn

The 1990s way of wearing a slip is distinctive, and worth knowing if you want the throwback rather than a modern reinterpretation. Sources describe it as:

• usually above the knee, although longer versions existed;
• layered over a capped-sleeve tee, often white, or a capped-sleeve bodysuit;
• worn with opaque tights, leggings or even cycling shorts showing below the hem.

The revival

The slip returned in the late 2010s and 2020s as part of a wider revival of 1990s fashion. Wikipedia notes that the spring 2016 collections of Yves Saint Laurent and Burberry featured the garment, that slip dresses have been a red-carpet staple since, and that Versace’s spring 2021 ready-to-wear collection included beach-themed versions.

The revival was visible beyond the catwalk too. A 2016 Finish Line blog post on 1990s style placed a “then” photograph of Gwyneth Paltrow in a slip beside “now” pictures of Kendall Jenner and Rihanna, a neat illustration of how quickly the look had come back into circulation.

Wearing one now

The garment itself has hardly changed, which is part of its appeal. The broad lessons from its history are simple: a bias cut flatters through drape rather than structure; layering under or over a slip changes its mood from evening to daytime; and contrast, whether a chunky boot, a plain tee or a tailored coat, is what stops it looking like nightwear. The rest is a matter of taste.