As Julia Thomas points out in Pictorial Victorians, the satirical cartoons and anecdotes in Punch heavily colored contemporary (and modern) impressions of the fashions of the 1850s and 1860s. As a result, the wide skirts seem like fantastical costumes that played havoc with ordinary life and were impossible to move around in. And so the myths … Continue reading Fashion History Mythbusters: The Cage Crinoline or Hoop Skirt
Tag: 19th century
On Ball Dress …
Journal des Dames et des Modes, 1813 ... The fashion is for coiffures à la chinoise so high that, even with the longest hair, it is difficult to create them. M. Palette has created false coques* of hair; and, with this accessory, or a part of it, for the coques come apart, one can create the highest … Continue reading On Ball Dress …
Jennie Goodman's Wedding Dress (1878)
I've been sitting on this pattern for a while because this is, frankly, one of my favorites of the dresses I put online at the Chapman. CHM 1971.38.1 (pattern available at link) Now, the photo is not great. It's a decent view of the bodice, but you don't get a good sense of the elaborate … Continue reading Jennie Goodman's Wedding Dress (1878)
On Mourning
(I decided to write this post because I'm planning to branch out into historical social topics more frequently - but it lines up very well with an event this week! I will be attending Death Becomes You at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Halloween, in a post-Edwardian black wool dress with white collar and cuffs. Hope … Continue reading On Mourning
Georges Doeuillet (1865-1930?)
Georges Doeuillet may be the least-known couturier I've written about so far - or perhaps second, after Jenny, since his real name is generally available. The only time his name comes up is in conjunction with Doucet, when the two houses merged at the end of the 1920s. But in fact (let this not be … Continue reading Georges Doeuillet (1865-1930?)
Mimic of Modes 