Skip to main content

Puffball skirts | Bubble skirts

Miu Miu Skirt  Puffball skirt | Bubble skirt
Faille full mini-skirt. Adjustable elasticized waist. 59% Polyester 41% Acetate.



 Puffball skirt | Bubble skirts

Nabil El Nayal Futuristic Puffball Skirt
Ethereal silhouettes meet an architectural elegance in Nabil El-Nayal’s exquisite graduate collection. Its use of sheer, fluid fabrics and unconventional details evokes a dream-like sensibility that is effortlessly suited to the season. This item is created once it has been ordered. To organise an optional fitting appointment, or for any other queries, please email Harrodslaunches@harrods.com once your order has been placed. Each Harrods Launches piece may take up to eight weeks to design.
4.555 RON Sold out - harrods.com




 
Bubble mini skirt. I just saw this on catwalkqueen.tv. This skirt is so adorable!

 MARIOS SCHWAB - SPECIAL ORDER ORGANZA BUBBLE SKIRT
Thin waistband. Silk shell with puffy Organza overlay. Front and back darts. Back zip closure. Tapered at hem. Skirt is available for special order and will arrive at later date from order placement.
 4.915 RON Sold out - luisaviaroma.com
Petal Puffball Skirt by Rare Opulence** , 100% Polyester.
575 RON Sold out - topshop.com

 Elegant Puffball Skirt with sexy gray color, by River Island [ via Glamour.com UK ]

 Stripe & Bow Bubble Skirt - Teen Clothing by Wet Seal
32 RON ($9.99) - wetseal.com

Rare Opulence Exclusive For ASOS Sequin Puffball Skirt
£175.00, NOW £38.00 at : asos

You may, of course, find this delightfully quirky and fun, in which case you’re going to want to know that it costs £100 and is available at ASOS.

Emanuel Ungaro Lamé jacquard elegant puffball skirt with luxury silver color style. Emanuel Ungaro skirt has a high waist, pleating throughout, side slit pockets, a concealed zip fastening at side and is fully lined in black satin.  Original price €1,860  Now €558  70% off. via: http://www.theoutnet.com/

Elegant Puffball Skirt with cute and pretty design with blue color

Bubble skirt by Alexander McQueen, 2005. Image from Style.com

 Eileen Kirby - Layered Tulle Puff Bubble Skirt

 Carven Crepe Wool Puffball Skirt. Mandarin crepe wool puffball skirt with voluminous pleats by Carven . Two hip pockets. Concealed hook and eye back closure with a zip fastening. Fully lined. Fitted in the waist. Hemline finishes at mid to upper thigh.
685 RON Sold out - brownsfashion.com

Cream draped skirt, £38 via: www.rarefashion.co.uk

Most people think of bubble skirts as a particularly 1980s trend; but they date back to the 1950s, when designers were experimenting with fabrics and silhouettes. This pattern is described as "harem draping", which makes sense if you think of the gathered ankles of harem pants. 



So, why haven't we seen bubble skirts on the streets until now? The key is the fabric used in a bubble skirt. You only get the true puffball look with stiff yet light materials like taffeta and raw silk - incidentally, the same fabrics popular in 1980s formal wear. And those were the fabrics used by Alexander McQueen, Marc Jacobs and Christian Lacroix in recent runway collections. There are dressy bubble skirts available this season at relatively upscale stores like Review, Cue and Bettina Liano.

But the skirts that have made the trickle-down to high-street stores like Sportsgirl, Jay Jays, Valley Girl, Pilgrim and General Pants are very different. Made from cotton jersey, they're slinky and comfortable, heavily gathered from a basque waistband, without the pintucking you see on the more 'formal' versions. 

I've seen people on the street wearing these in two lengths: mini-skirt length and just below the knee. The mini version is cute and perky (and has been favoured by 'young' designers like One Teaspoon), but the longer version has a sculptural quality to it, and it moves fluidly and gracefully as the wearer walks.