Ballerina Sparkles and Mille Feuilles

A 3-year-old girl has been dreaming of ballerinas lately. There are instances of awkward pliés and grand jetés, as well as certain en pointe walking on the living room floor.

And naturally, this mama conjures up ballet reveries of her own when she herself was in Madame Renata's class some thirty years ago. And in the world of natural consequences, a starry-eyed mom enrolls her child in beginner ballet lessons, in the hopes that her little angel will appreciate the beauty of movement and grace. Just as she does.

The little girl is dazzled by the delicate gossamer layers of a ballerina's tutu that imitates the silky folds of gentle flowers in bloom.

Meanwhile this mother, although too late to be a ballerina, longs to dress in the elegantly lithe style of the dancing nymphs. She browses Repetto Paris' collection of flats inspired by the company's longstanding tradition of crafting dance shoes.

Two dreamer girls twirl to Mozart's symphony across the floor. The young one, spinning in the joy of the moment; the mother, swooning over an elusive chimera. Perhaps, in a fleet of the mind: a night at the Opéra Garnier, donning an ethereal couture made of mille feuilles, or thousand layers?

"Oyster Dress" by Alexander McQueen for the House of Alexander McQueen, spring/summer 2003

Ball gown by Olivier Theyskens for the House of Ricci, fall/winter 2007-2008

"Eugenie" by Christian Dior for the House of Dior, fall/winter 1948-1949

"Venus" by Christian Dior for the House of Dior, fall/winter 1949-1950

"Chambord" by Christian Dior for the House of Dior, fall/winter 1954-1955

A girl can dream, can she not?

*Gowns via {here}