Audrey Hepburn. Princess Diana. Kate Moss. What famous woman style icon isn’t known for her little black dress. For Hepburn, it was her Hubert de Givenchy in 1961, for Princess Diana it was Christina Stambolia in 1994, also known as “The Revenge Dress,” and Kate Moss is always wearing a show-stopping LBDs. So, where’s its power come from?

The LBD possesses what so many women want to achieve with their style: effortless elegance. If effortless elegance seems like a paradox, it’s because it is, and, like many evergreen fashion trends, it relies on tension. The Paste website says that the LBD doesn’t give the woman who wears it anything to hide behind—the dress insists that its wearer shine. Coco Chanel said that “Scheherazade is easy. A Little Black Dress is difficult”. Chanel, of course, is credited for having originated the LBD. But in 1940, when the Germans occupied much of France, including Paris, Coco Chanel did something that you might find surprising.

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