Vintage Alaia Belt

Master Couturier, King of Cling: legendary fashion designer Azzedine Alaïa (1935–2017) is known by many names, each referring to his unparalleled ability to mold fabric onto the female form in unexpected and radical ways. The Tunisian-born designer spent his entire life in relentless pursuit of a wholly distinctive and most-flattering fit.

“For me, fashion is the body,” said Alaïa. “I make clothes; women make fashion.”

Alaïa is credited with inventing the supermodel through his exclusive fashion shows, the body-con dress — which, quite literally, hugs the body and emphasizes and embraces every curve — and pioneering what industry professionals have taken to calling “slow fashion.” The designer openly rejected empty, of-the-moment fads as well as the structure of biannual seasons and instead took his time, unhurried by press and releasing collections at his own pace. Most importantly, Alaïa was a visionary when it came to traditional notions of femininity and sexuality. At a time when loose, soft silhouettes were the norm, Alaïa’s sexy, waist-cinching hourglass and body-con outfits were shocking.

Alaïa’s “body-conscious clothes,” wrote fashion critic Suzy Menkes, “seemed a deliberate challenge — throwing down a sexist gauntlet in a feminist world.”

While powerful women such as Madonna, Michelle Obama, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington wear Alaïa’s creations today, his origins were remarkably humble.

Born to a farming family, Alaïa always had a creative streak. As a young boy, he would flip through women’s fashion magazines and quickly became interested in the design of women's clothing. He went on to study sculpture at the School of Fine Arts in Tunis and later worked as a tailor for a dressmaker before he found work creating garments based on Parisian haute couture designs. The combination of his classical training in sculpture and practical experience as a tailor convinced Alaïa that fashion was his calling. In 1957, he moved to Paris and worked for Christian Dior for less than a week before being fired. From there, Alaïa secured a job with Guy Laroche and opened his own maison in the 1970s.

At his core, Alaïa was a couturier who cut and sewed his samples himself. He also experimented with zips, seams, unexpected materials, textures, animal prints and floral patterns like an artist. Today, Alaïa’s clothes look untouched by the passage of time and the various trends that have materialized since their debut; they are as fresh, stylish and stunning as ever. His garments are pop-culture icons in their own right: Cher Horowitz, played by Alicia Silverstone in 1995’s Clueless, exasperated with a perpetrator holding her at gunpoint, declares, “But this is an Alaïa!”

Vintage Alaïa evening dresses, skirts and other attire continue to influence contemporary designers such as Nicolas Ghesquière and Hervé Léger. Not only are his clothes timeless in their glamour, but they also represent the groundbreaking vision of an artist, one who was known to proclaim, “I am not a designer. I am a couturier.”

Find a collection of Azzedine Alaïa day dresses, suits, jackets and more on 1stDibs.

Belts are far more than practical. Vintage and designer belts can prove pivotal to your ensemble, elevating even the most basic outfit with a modest dose of flair or, alternatively, outright flamboyance.

On 1stDibs, an extensive collection of modern and vintage belts can be found in a variety of styles and materials, including everything from iconic Gucci logo belts, which, emblazoned with the legendary Italian brand’s “GG” insignia, are ubiquitous among fashion lovers today, to stylish Hermès belts, which are part of a wide range of covetable leather fashion accessories from the family-owned luxury goods company. The interchangeable gold-plated belt buckle, now available in innumerable variations, is revered by Hermès enthusiasts. The world’s legion of collectors hunting down rare Kelly bags likely know this belt buckle and its history, which extends all the way back to 1967. It was crafted by Hungarian-born French fashion designer Catherine de Károlyi, who worked for Robert Piguet and Christian Dior before landing at Hermès, where she also designed the house’s first women’s ready-to-wear collection.

More akin to fine jewelry than to a practical fashion accessory, a vintage chain belt by Chanel can add understated charm to a blazer, cocktail dress or most any other garment, while a wide Louis Vuitton belt, on the other hand, made in the celebrated brand’s signature bold Damier Azur canvas, will bring pizzazz and panache to your formal wear.

Whether you’re looking to accessorize with simplicity or potentially stop traffic, find a variety of vintage and designer belts on 1stDibs.