Charm & Diligence.

Although not a Jane Austen novel, there is a dramatic connection between these two words as they pertain to emotion. In short, the memorable takes time. Some examples—The Taj Mahal, your delicious Baumkuchen, Pride and Prejudice (the book andthe movie), this dress.

We diligently dug to find this swirling floral bouquet of color and placed it from the sweep to the waist, lengthening the female form and softly dazzling the observer.

The blue hues of the skirt and bodice—dusty on top and a few shades lighter below— required countless hours of staring at old postcards, archival fabrics, and foreign films.

The skirt, with its elegant straight line, pleats, and sensible angled pockets, has caused innumerable pin pricks and blurted obscenities.

As for the alluring embroidered waistband, the center piece that ties it all together? That was easy. We started with that.

Now I’ve said too much…

Charm & Diligence Dress (No. 5763). Pure silk crepe de chine. Flawless self-fabric binding to clean-finish scoop neckline and armholes. Classic straight skirt with pleats below front waist. Shaping darts help the dress hug your body delicately and in all the right ways. Angled side pockets. Knee length. Invisible zipper at wearer’s left.Imported.