Cartier | Tiara | c. 1903
This tiara of graduated flaming hearts and C scrolls was inspired by a vision of France before the Revolution. Louis Cartier encouraged his designers to sketch 18th-century ironwork and architectural ornament in Paris and Versailles, and to study engraved jewellery designs.
Consuelo, Duchess of Manchester, was a prominent American heiress who married into the British nobility in 1876. The Duke of Portland recorded that she ‘took Society completely by storm by her beauty, wit and vivacity and it was soon at her very pretty feet’.
Coral Tiara | c. 1860 - 1870
Phillips Brothers, in which the dominant partner was Robert Phillips, were the leading supplier of coral goods in London, as well as being important goldsmiths and jewellers. In 1870 the firm advertised that it had ‘the most complete collection of fine coral work in the world’. Robert Phillips received the order of the Crown of Italy for his services to the coral industry in Naples.
I love this so much I posted it twice.
Sketch | Norman Hartnell | c. 1923
Hartnell designed this dress with two materials in mind: the under dress is of solid material and is covered from shoulder to hem with chiffon. The dress has a boat neck line with tight sleeves up to the elbow where they fan out with ‘scollop’ edging. This matches the hem of the dress. Hartnell added a beaded belt with tassels, matched by a band of beads on the sleeves. The design also shows a large head band with sparkling embroidery.
The simplicity and grace of this dress would have been perfect for the fashionable cocktail parties of the era.
pascalineinparis asked: Hey! I find your blog and pictures very interesting! I've been using it a bit for my studies, since i'm also studying fashion, not in NYC, but in Paris, France. :) Continue blogging it's great ;) Best Regards, Pascaline.
Thanks!
Court Presentation Gown | Boué Soeurs| c. 1932 -
This is a re-post but I don’t care because it’s fantastic
ornamentedbeing:
Without a doubt one of my favorite dresses from the Met.
Dress (Ball Gown)
c. 1900–1903
The colors!
House of Paquin | c. 1930
Stole | First quarter of the 20th century
This stole is unusual not only for its great dimension, but also for the use of fur trimming. The bobbin lace is handmade and its complex design indicates that its construction was carefully plotted to achieve a wrap of this size
Fox Fur Coat | Shannon Reynolds | c. 1968
This evening coat, with its sweeping proportions and generous use of white fox fur, harks back to 1930s glamour. It was created by respected American designer Shannon Rodgers.
I want this right now. I am so cold.
fuckyeahvictorians:
dessertfox:
driftingfocus:
aleyma:
French evening dress with swing motif, c.1850-55 (via).
“This evening dress of about 1850, with its bodice deeply pointed at the waist, pleated sleeves trimmed with fringe and figured ribbons, and full, bell-shaped skirt, exemplifies the opulence of Second Empire France (1852-70). The fabric itself, a Jacquard-woven silk produced in Lyons, reveals the derivative nature of mid-nineteenth-century textile design, which often used elements copied directly from prints of the work of well-known artists. In this case the images were adapted from two engravings by the eighteenth-century artist Jean Antoine Watteau, who was the object of renewed interest in France during the late 1840s. The choice of the swing theme, which was used to symbolize lovemaking during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, was especially appropriate for an evening dress, in which the wearer would want to appear demure yet flirtatious.” - Dilys Blum, from Philadelphia Museum of Art: Handbook of the Collections
