Asymmetric Sequin Gown with Side Seam Slit

Two of the four shades on this gown are opals, and an opal sequin is not one color. The Asymmetric Sequin Gown with Side Seam Slit comes in an opal blue and an opal blush whose finish shifts as you move, so the shade you see across a room is not the shade you see standing next to it.

An Opal Finish Shifts

An iridescent coating splits light rather than simply reflecting a color, which is why the surface reads blue from one angle and pink or green from another. On a fitted gown covered in thousands of small discs, that shift happens continuously as the body moves.

Emerald and royal do not do this. They are solid shades that hold one color from every direction, so the choice between the four colorways is really a choice between a gown that changes and a gown that does not.

Sequins on a Side Seam Slit

The slit is cut into the side seam rather than added as an opening in the panel, which keeps the line of the skirt unbroken until it opens. On a fitted sequin skirt that matters, because sequin cloth has no give at all and a seam is the only place it can be released.

The neckline is asymmetric over one shoulder, so the top of the gown is a diagonal and the bottom is a vertical break. The two lines pull against each other, which is the whole composition.

Prom and Photographed Nights

Prom, an awards evening, a New Year party and any occasion shot under a flash suit sequins, which were designed for exactly that lighting.

Pick the shade for the light it will be seen in. An opal finish is at its most dramatic under moving or colored lighting and at its quietest in flat daylight. Emerald and royal behave the same way everywhere, which makes them the safer choice when the venue is unknown.

Two Bands Four Colors

All four colorways are cut in both bands.

Every figure above is in inches and is taken on the body rather than on the finished garment, so measure the fullest part of the bust, the narrowest part of the waist an inch or two above the navel, and the fullest part of the hips.

A dense field of sequins stops the base fabric moving, so nothing in this gown gives anywhere. Read all three figures rather than choosing on one, take the larger band where two look possible, and plan to have it brought in. A sequin seam can be taken in and it cannot be let out.

Shades, Slits and Storage

Does an opal shade photograph the way it looks? Not exactly, and that is the nature of the finish. A camera records one angle at one instant, so a photograph freezes one of the colors an opal sequin can show rather than the movement between them.

Can the slit be raised? Yes. It sits in the side seam, so a seamstress can close it to a lower point in minutes, and the sequins along the new stitch line should be checked afterward.

Do sequins catch on things? They are stitched facing one direction, so drawn against the grain they can snag on hosiery or upholstery. Dress last, sit down slowly, and smooth the skirt downward.

How should a sequin gown be stored? Hanging, on a padded hanger, with nothing pressed against it. Folded under weight the sequins crush flat along the fold lines and do not lift back out.