ASOS DESIGN v neck button down mini dress with lace trim and godets in black ASOS Long Sleeve Short Black Low V Neck Party Dress Black Medium When did wearing black become fashionable? While a little black dress is a classic now, the shade was not always considered chic. For most of the 19th century, black clothing was reserved Mourning dress American The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Fashionable Past: Mourning for Prince Albert An 1860s Black Silk Dress