A strapless gown in a soft sage green, with a straight bodice pleated horizontally and knotted at the center front so every gather pulls toward one point. Attached at the neckline is a scarf panel cut from the same fabric, tied at the throat and left to trail behind the shoulder. The bodice holds itself, so nothing needs adjusting once the dress is on. It is the scarf that people notice first.

From the waist seam the skirt falls in soft pleats that keep moving after you have stopped, full enough to read as formal without adding bulk across the hip. The fabric is fine and light, which is what lets that much of it hang rather than stand away from the body. It suits a wedding or a black-tie evening, where a dress is expected to carry the whole look on its own.

• Bodice: strapless with horizontal pleating and a knotted center
• Neckline: attached scarf panel that ties at the neck
• Waist: seamed waist with a gathered skirt
• Skirt: soft pleats falling to a floor length hem
• Fit: fitted bodice with a full skirt