Kelly Chase Couture 26-649 is a floor-length one-shoulder evening gown cut from a fluid dark purple stretch satin that catches light without a single sequin. One strap crosses the collarbone on a soft diagonal and leaves the opposite shoulder bare, and from that strap a vine of dimensional hand-worked flowers spills across the bust, down the rib cage and onto the hip: layered petals lifted off the satin, edged in metallic thread and centered with dense beadwork, then stopped short so the clean fabric carries the rest of the gown. The bodice is seamed and lightly boned to hold its own shape, the back runs straight across below the shoulder blades and closes fully over a concealed center zipper, and the skirt stays close through hip and thigh before releasing below the knee into a fluted mermaid sweep. There is no slit, no cutout and no open back. It is made to order in two colorways, Eggplant in stretch satin and Purple in Tesla, in sizes 0 through 28, so the same silhouette is available in plus sizes and extended evening sizes with nothing redrawn. It works as a black-tie evening gown for the mother of the bride or groom, a wedding guest or guest-of dress, a gala or military ball gown, a bar or bat mitzvah mother dress, a debutante escort gown or a grandmother of the bride dress. Style it with a drop earring and a bare neckline, because the applique is the necklace, and a closed-toe heel in a metallic that answers the thread in the petals. The rest of the line sits in Kelly Chase Couture at Jan's.
A gown built this way is decided in a mirror, not on a screen. The flowering vine is placed on the pattern rather than on your body, so the petals have to break over your own rib cage and hip instead of twisting off the seam; a single strap has to sit level on the shoulder and stay there when you raise a glass; and a fluted hem has to be set to your stride and finished to the exact heel you plan to wear. That is what a fitting room is for. Jan's Boutique is at 406 Marlton Pike E, Cherry Hill, NJ 08034, roughly fifteen minutes from Center City Philadelphia over the Ben Franklin Bridge and an easy drive from Princeton, Wilmington, Bucks County, the Main Line and the Jersey Shore. Inside are 13,000 square feet, 50 dressing rooms and more than 15,000 dresses in stock, with on-site alterations handled by fitters who work on couture construction every day, and Jan's Boutique charges no sales tax on clothing, so the number on the tag is the number you pay. Kelly Chase Couture is cut to order on roughly a 14-week schedule with rush production available, which makes an early appointment the difference between wearing this gown and admiring it. Read what to expect on your visit, learn more about the store, then call 856-428-8181 or book an appointment to see style 26-649 in Eggplant or Purple in person.
