What could be more beautiful than an evening gown of gold lace overlaid on navy silk satin? This 1920s dress evokes classical-revival style in the lace motifs, while bringing to mind the swirling festivities of a New Year’s Eve party. The contrasting layers of satin and lace, joined at the shoulder straps, combine in a dress made for dancing. To learn how to create this look, read on.

Study this elegant evening gown and discover that three different laces were used to achieve the stunning effect. The perfect combination of form and function shows how to achieve spectacular results with a bit of ingenuity.

The delicate gold lace overlay etches a pattern of neoclassical architectural arches across the columnar silhouette. This lace is a border pattern, mirrored on the bust and hem edges, but it appears that the side seams are the lace’s finished edge and the width is limited to three arches. To keep the lace design strong and yet comfortable for dancing or for sitting in opera seats, lace godets are buttoned  at the knees and below to the open side seams.

The border lace didn’t translate well into the godet configuration, so a second lace was introduced. It is a scalloped row of roses providing all the space a steppin’-out lady would need.

The third lace is a fan-shaped insert that keeps the cleavage modest. Navy shoulder straps carry the weight of the dress’s double layers.

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Judith Neukam is senior technical editor at Threads.