While Hill House’s nap dress was the dress of Summer 2020, Summer 2021 has a new dress that’s in the spotlight. The dress of Summer 2021 comes from Indie designer Taylor Dorry, whose upcycled designs are taking social media by storm.
Unlike the nap dress which is free and flowy, Dorry’s designs are babydoll dresses that are all one-of-a-kind. The dresses, which give off total modern-day princess vibes, are handcrafted from reclaimed upholstery fabrics.
The Hollywood, Florida resident’s creations almost didn’t happen. For many years her attention was on political science, not fashion, but she enjoyed collecting vintage pieces. She ended up relocating to Miami and working as a stylist’s assistant and starting a side hustle. She then enrolled in a fashion design course.
“I was hooked on how special those clothes can make you feel and went from sourcing items for fashion shoots to selling. The pieces that I loved the most made me feel nostalgic in a way that took me back to when I was a little girl trying on my mom’s clothes,” she told Vogue.
In May 2020, she opened up her virtual shop and launched her collection. The designer makes everything herself and she spends lots of time at thrift stores and estate sales looking for the perfect fabrics. Her dresses use lots of fabric—the Sophia babydoll uses almost five yards of vintage fabric and the bell-shaped Lola dress uses 18 feet of fabric within the ruffle hem.
Dorry is set to launch her first capsule collection later this year which will feature one-off upcycled pieces and a line of sustainable and organic clothing. We can’t wait to see what the collection has in store!
