A floor-sweeping halter column of fine-pleated crepe — cut in Rome for the longest, most luminous evenings.
Free express delivery worldwide · import duties included
The Tullia is a maxi pleated column evening gown in crepe from the Faustina collection — a dress conceived in Rome for evening, dinners and the after-dark hours. The pleated column evening in crepe is cut from structured crepe that holds a clean line, fully lined so it reads opaque in daylight and flash alike.
Like every Hugo Caesar Tassi piece, the Tullia is finished by hand: a concealed closure, real linings, and seams sewn to last. It is offered in 4 colors from the imperial palette — Basalt, Vermiglio, Cuoio, Avorio — and built to be worn for years, not a single season.
| Style name | Tullia — pleated column evening gown |
| Silhouette | Floor-length column, gathered halter bodice, nipped waist |
| Neckline | Halter neck with a fine self-tie and open back |
| Pleating | Fine vertical knife-pleating, neckline to hem |
| Length | Maxi — sweeps the floor (≈ 150 cm, size S) |
| Sizes | S, M, L |
| Closure | Concealed side zip with halter tie at the nape |
| Outer | 100% polyester crepe |
| Lining | Fully lined through bodice and skirt |
| Stretch | None — woven, non-stretch |
| Transparency | Opaque (fully lined) |
| Care | Gentle cold hand-wash or dry clean; cool iron on reverse |
| Origin | Designed in Roma · ethically made |
| Model | Height 177 cm / 5'10", wears size S |
True to size through the waist and skirt; the halter bodice runs close, so size up if you are fuller in the bust or prefer more ease across the back.
Cut long for a floor-sweeping line — at 177 cm the hem just kisses the floor flat; allow for a heel, or have it shortened for flats.
Open the size guide for bust, waist and hip measurements in centimeters across S–L.
Complimentary express shipping worldwide; dispatched within 1–6 business days, import duties included. Most orders arrive in 3–6 business days.
30-day returns on unworn items with tags attached. Each piece arrives in a porphyry box with the HCT seal.
For evening, pair the Tullia in Basalt with fine-gold jewelry and a barely-there heel. Add the Faustina silk scarf at the neck or wrist to complete the look.
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The Tullia reads the fluted Roman column as cloth — vertical, exact, floor-length — and lets it fall the full height of the body in fine knife-pleated crepe.
Conceived by Hugo Caesar Tassi for the Faustina collection, the Tullia takes the most classical of motifs — the fluted column of the Forum — and translates its grooves into a sweep of fine vertical pleating that runs unbroken from a gathered halter neckline to the floor.
A softly nipped waist and an open back give the column its movement; the maxi hem pools and recovers with every step. It is grand without being heavy — a gown engineered to photograph as cleanly as it walks.
Cut from a substantial matte crepe, the Tullia keeps its pleats crisp through the evening and reads opaque in daylight and flash alike.
The crepe is chosen for weight and recovery: dense enough to hold the knife-pleats sharp, fluid enough to drape rather than stand away from the body. Fully lined through the bodice and skirt, the gown stays opaque under any light.
Offered in near-black Basalt, vivid Vermiglio red, warm Cuoio and soft Avorio, the Tullia answers four moods of the same evening — finished by hand in Rome and made to be kept far beyond a single season.
What she said after wearing it
Those fine knife-pleats catch the light as you walk, so the whole column seems to ripple. The crepe has real weight to it, nothing flimsy, and it skimmed the floor on me without a single alteration. A gala dress I'll keep for years.
The neckline holds without digging in, no fussing all evening.
I sit right between two sizes and chose the larger for a more relaxed line through the hips, which gave me a softer, draped column I love. If you'd rather it sat closer to the body, take the smaller of the two. The pleated crepe and that halter neckline are gorgeous either way, and the Basalt is a perfect deep evening shade.
I worried ivory might wash me out under candlelight, but the Avorio reads warm and soft rather than stark white. Against the pleated crepe it looked like poured cream at the dinner. Restrained and very expensive-looking.
The gown itself is everything I hoped, the pleated crepe column is stunning and the Vermiglio is a glorious red. My only frustration was the delivery: the courier's tracking went dark and the parcel simply never surfaced. The moment I emailed the atelier they sent a fresh one out, and that arrived in good time, so I did get to wear it. Just a stressful fortnight wondering if it would come at all.
Thank you for staying with us through such an anxious wait. A parcel disappearing in the courier network is exactly the sort of thing that should never land on you, and we're so sorry for the worry it caused. We're glad our team could get a replacement Tullia moving the instant you reached out, and that the gown lived up to it once it finally arrived in your Vermiglio. If anything else ever goes astray, contact@hctbeauty.com reaches us directly. Wear it in wonderful health. — HCT Atelier
Wore it to my sister's black-tie wedding. The cut is long and lean, falling straight from the halter to a hem that just kisses the floor, and the pleating gives movement without any cling. I felt elegant rather than squeezed.
Matte, dense, with a lovely dry handle that drapes instead of clinging. Far better made than the synthetic gowns I tried elsewhere at twice this.
Lovely dress, no complaint about the Tullia at all, the Avorio pleating is beautiful in daylight. The mishap was entirely at my end: the checkout didn't seem to confirm so I clicked through a second time, and a few days later two identical gowns turned up. Now I'm sorting out a return for the spare, which is faff I'd rather have skipped. The actual column gown is keeping me very happy though.
We're really glad the Tullia found its place in your wardrobe, and that the Avorio is doing exactly what fine-pleated crepe should in the light. A doubled order is never a hassle we want you carrying, so please drop a line to contact@hctbeauty.com and we'll arrange the return of the second gown and cover it from there, with no extra effort on your part. Thank you for your patience, and enjoy the one that's staying. — HCT Atelier
Chose the Basalt and it's a deep charcoal-near-black that softens beautifully under low light. Read it as ink, then almost graphite by the bar. Endlessly flattering.
Heartbreaking to open the box and find the gown had clearly been thrown about by the courier, the packaging staved in and the pleated crepe creased and marked. I'll stress this is a transit problem, not the dress, because the Tullia is genuinely beautiful. The atelier replaced it without quibble and the second came through flawless, pleats sharp, Cuoio gorgeous. But that first unboxing was a real low, hence the rating for the experience.
Opening a box you've looked forward to and finding it damaged in handling is a genuinely awful moment, and we're sorry the courier put you through it. You were right that the gown itself was never the issue, and we're relieved the replacement Tullia reached you as it should be, pleats crisp and the Cuoio looking its best. We're reviewing the carrier handling so this is far less likely to recur. Should you ever need us, contact@hctbeauty.com comes straight to the team. Thank you for giving the gown its second chance. — HCT Atelier
Every shot from the engagement party came out beautifully. The pleats give the camera something to play with, and the long line stretched me out so I looked taller than I am. Not a bad frame all night.
The fitted column skims everything you'd rather it skimmed and the vertical pleats do half the work. I felt held, never constricted.
I went bold with the red and have no regrets. The Vermiglio is a proper deep, saturated scarlet, not orangey, and on a floor-length pleated column it's quietly dramatic. Perfect for the opera.
Sat through a four-course dinner, danced, then a long taxi home, and never once wanted to change. The crepe breathes and the halter doesn't pull at your neck the way some do. A rare evening gown you forget you're wearing.
Exactly the register I wanted for a formal evening do. It's understated drama, the kind of gown that lets you talk to people rather than be a costume. The pleated skirt moved gorgeously on the floor.
Even after a long night of sitting the pleats sprang back without a crease.
The tan-brown caught me off guard in the best way. Cuoio on this gown is a warm caramel that looks rich against bare shoulders, nothing like the usual evening palette. I get asked about it constantly.
Turned it inside out, as I always do, and the inner seams are clean, the hem evenly weighted, nothing raw or rushed. For three hundred and a bit, the construction shames gowns I've paid far more for. A genuinely well-built piece.
I'm fairly tall and floor-length usually means a trip to the tailor, but the L just grazed the ground in low heels. The proportions of the bodice to skirt are judged perfectly. No hemming needed at all.
Walking in it is the whole pleasure. The pleated crepe sways a half-beat behind your stride, so there's this lovely liquid motion to the skirt. People kept watching me cross the room.
My husband's milestone birthday called for something special and this delivered. Quietly glamorous, beautifully cut, the sort of evening gown that suits a grown woman rather than a teenager. I felt entirely myself.
Third order from Hugo Caesar Tassi and the standard never slips. This gown is the most ambitious thing I've bought from them and it's also the best. The pleating alone is worth the trip.
It's all in that clean halter line at the throat. No clasp digging in, no gaping, just a smooth band that frames the collarbone and leaves the back open and elegant. The signature touch that makes the whole thing.
Ordered on a Tuesday, wearing it by the weekend, with nothing to pay at the door. The gown was pressed and ready, pleats crisp, box immaculate. Painless from cart to ballroom.
Answered by the Hugo Caesar Tassi atelier
It's fully lined and completely opaque — no slip required. Only the lightest details are very slightly sheer, by design.
True to size through the waist and skirt. The bodice is tailored, so size up if you're fuller in the bust. See the size guide for exact measurements.
Very much so — it was designed for evening, dinners and the after-dark hours. Basalt and the deeper tones read beautifully after dark; the lighter colors suit daytime.
Pieces that share the Basalt palette and the house line
