Vintage ILGWU Black Velvet And Pink Jeweled Dinner Jacket, Size 4

I believe this is no older than 1974, due to the particular details of the union label. (Get to know your ILGWU labels, darlings!) But the velvet, the cut, and the lack of a closure read dinner jacket to me, which was a phenomenon specific to decades earlier. This is truly breathtaking--distributed through La Petite in Caldwell, N.J., the craftsmanship is typically meticulous, and the sparkle patterned to fit together from lapel to lapel, reminiscent of a spray of fireworks. This coat is a vintage 4, and the lining is perfectly intact, but with vintage velvet and satin, stretch is out of the question. Starting at the shoulders--lightly padded, but definitively ruched--from seam to seam, it measures 14 inches. The jacket has no closure, which offers some forgiveness, but from pit to pit, I measured just a tiny bit over 17 inches. The length, another clue that this is a garment not on trend for 1974, is 22 and a half inches. Sleeve measures 21 from actual shoulder (probably a quarter inch of gathering to create that puckered fantasia) to the bottom of the cuff. This is a piece that appeals to a certain taste, very particular, but Sissy Spaceship loves the ILGWU and any appliqué that resembles rock candy!