For the lead up to the spring 1974 collection the Daily Express said "It's Valentine's Day.... Tonight the Roman fashion designer, whom Jackie Onassis calls from New York to say -make me a dress for dinner a week on Thursday anything you like- will put on a gala show of 200 of his creations in London." 1974 was also the year he opened his first British RTW shop in London so this was a pivotal year for Valentino. Women's Wear daily reported that Mr. Valentino told them that the theme of the show was 'feminine, relaxed, simple and sexy.' and that is exactly what it was.' I was also happy to find that the twin of this set was used for the ad campaign that year and a dress in the same print and similar overall cut was shot for Italian Vogue. I love having these reference photos for you because it shows you just how elegant and gorgeous this set is on the body. 

There are Valentino prints and then there are the really iconic Valentino prints. This is one of those iconic house prints and it is instantly recognizable as being his. It is so iconic that Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli. touched upon it for their 2015 collection for the label. And have such a well documented set from this time period is just heaven for the vintage collector.. The set is heavenly. Both are a soft pink but in slightly different shades so that they have some contrast against each other. The are both covered in a perfect little shell print and the size varies. The ones on the skirt are a touch smaller and more defined and clear and then the ones on the top are bigger and softer. The silk of the top is feather light in weight and just floats beautifully over the body once on. The neckline is high and has a small neat collar. There are long ties attached to neck that are quite long. This allows you to style it in a bow at the front or to wrap it around the neck and wear it at the back with the tails trailing, or you can really wrap them to create a taller higher collar. It is lined in a single layer of pink silk chiffon but still has a sense of transparency to it. Each sleeve is cut full and billows out above its elastic cuff. The waist has elastic as well so that when on it blouses up a bit through the body.  You could remove this for a sleeker look and have it lie straight as it is just tacked in. The skirt falls to the floor under that and widens out beautifully as it nears the hem. The skirt is made from a silk twill and is gorgeous. I love that it is two pieces so you can mix and match with other things you already own. It makes the set extremely versatile. It a just gorgeous and even better in person. It appears to have been worn very little if at all. Excellent condition with a minor note below.

The top has a single layer of silk chiffon through the body and the sleeves are unlined. It closes with a handset zipper at the back and has elastic on each cuff. The skirt closes with a zipper. There is a touch of fading across the top of the shoulders on the top and a couple tiny areas where the silk is thinning on the sleeve. It's stable and strong still. I see some very small marks on the skirt. All minor. Please see the photos after the label shot. Pockets on the skirt

Note the top is slim cut through the upper bodice and shoulders

Top
Sleeves: 25"
Inset shoulders: 14"
Bust: 17.5" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 15" flat across from side seam to side seam
Bottom edge: 12-15" flat across from side seam to side seam
Length: 24" from neck to hem

Skirt
Waist: 13" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: open
Length: 43" waist to hem

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-SML

Item# DD4441

Reference Photos: (1) Spring 1974 Valentino Ad photographed by Gianpaolo Barbieri.  /  (2) Model in Valentino for Vogue Italia, July 1974.

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