Middle class woman in a striped Satin Gown with a furred pelisse and a white muff. (1778) The pelisse is a type of winter overcoat that Ladies throw on their shoulders to protect themselves against the rigors of the season. There are two types, the plain and the furred. The former are worn by the … Continue reading Galerie des Modes, 11e Cahier, 2e Figure
Category: 18th century
Galerie des Modes, 11e Cahier, 1e Figure
Elegant seamstress going to sell her work. (1778) Elegant seamstress, going to sell her work; one expects that she is rushing her steps, and in order to keep from overheating, or for coquetry, she has taken off her mantelet with two tapered points and hung it over her arm. Her gown is of Indian taffeta, … Continue reading Galerie des Modes, 11e Cahier, 1e Figure
Galerie des Modes, 10e Cahier, 6e Figure
Gentlewoman dressed in a Caraco, coiffed with a "Doll" cap in filet lace, trimmed with streaked liserés. (1778) Type of Polonaise Caraco, entirely closed in the front and not very décolleté, also called the Caraco à la dévoté. A band of gathered gauze is the trim; the volant is very high, with two rows of … Continue reading Galerie des Modes, 10e Cahier, 6e Figure
Painting Costume Analysis: Pamela Series, Part One
The novel Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded, by Samuel Richardson, holds a special place in the western literary canon, as it marks the transition between adventure novels and character-based novels, and was extremely popular in its day, but it is now largely unknown outside of English literature classes. The story is told in epistolary form, through … Continue reading Painting Costume Analysis: Pamela Series, Part One
Galerie des Modes, 10e Cahier, 5e Figure
Genteel woman at her toilette, folding a letter. (1778) Without extending here on the origin and antiquity of toilettes, we must confine ourselves to remark that a toilette is now an indispensable piece of furniture for all people; whether they have pretensions or are out of style. There are closed toilettes and dressed ones; the … Continue reading Galerie des Modes, 10e Cahier, 5e Figure
Mimic of Modes 