Collaboration with whatgrandmawore and whatsaroxy: Fashion Illustration

This post is one of many in a collaboration with whatgrandmawore and artist Roxy Van Bemmel. It focuses on the interpretation of historical garments and textiles in an illustrated form, from a modern, abstract, and creative perspective. Roxy van Bemmel painting of an 1826 dress belonging to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (2019). All …

Theme of Month: Artistic and Aesthetic Dress

In light of The Costume Society’s upcoming July conference, Pre-Raphaelites and the Arts and Crafts Movement, the terms (in this instance) of the month are Aesthetic/Artistic dress. E.582-1953. F. Champenois. Mucha, Alphonse. Colour lithograph. c1898. Victoria and Albert Museum, London. http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O590845/f-champenois-poster-mucha-alphonse/ These two words are used interchangeably, and can be applied, as stated by Aileen Ribeiro in her …

Guest Blog Post from Rachel Sayers: The History of Irish Dress 1750-1850

whatgrandmawore is pleased to welcome our first guest post from Rachel Sayers! Within the study of fashion history, Irish dress is one of the most neglected and under-researched aspects. There have been less than ten major texts on Irish fashion to be published in the last 40 years, making writing, disseminating and researching Irish dress history …

Like Mother Like Daughter: Jeanne Lanvin and Gazette du Bon Ton from 1920-1925

Jeanne Lanvin was a prolific French couturier who enjoyed several decades of success during the twentieth century. First training as a milliner during the late 19th century and subsequently opening her own business in 1889, Lanvin eventually joined the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in 1909. She ran a highly successful fashion house for many years, …

Inside the Regal Wardrobe – A Review of Royal Women at the Fashion Museum Bath

Over the weekend I got the chance to visit Royal Women, the latest temporary exhibition held at the Fashion Museum. For international readers, or for those who have never had the chance to visit the museum before, the Fashion Museum can be found in Bath, a British UNESCO city known for its famous Roman Baths and …

Classicism and Couture: Greek Art and Design Meets Chanel

‘I’m suggesting going back to move forward. To create the future, you have to pay attention to the past.’ – Karl Lagerfeld ‘There is some irony in a designer who famously dislikes nostalgia creating a collection inspired by an era from about 2,500 years ago.’[1] We start this blog post with two opposing perspectives of …

Boué Soeurs: Calling for Research Help!

Last year whilst researching the dress of debutantes, I encountered a designer which I previously had little knowledge of. The name was Boué Soeurs, and the dress I uncovered was the garment pictured below: Above Images: C.I.68.48a–e. Boué Soeurs presentation ensemble. c1928. Silk, metallic threads; silk; feathers, cellulose nitrate. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. When I …

Sculpting Fashion: Madame Grès – A Biography

Germaine Émilie Krebs was born in 1903. As a young French woman, who aspired to become a sculptor, Krebs was unaware that her career was destined to be within the world of fashion, later becoming the master couturier Madame Grès. An extreme hard-worker, who kept her private life secret and away from the cameras, Grès …

Blooming Marvellous: A Review of the V&A’s Fashioned From Nature Exhibition

Fashioned From Nature could not have come at a more critical time. Increased environmental awareness has finally seemed to resonate with the population. Hopefully, and crucially, it will and has made people aware of their own behaviours; how they personally impact the planet on which we live, and share. Reactions to programmes such as BBC’s Blue …

The Vulgar: Fashion Redefined

‘Vulgarity exposes the scandal of good taste.' - Adam Phillips Exhibition poster for The Vulgar: Fashion Redefined Exhibition. Image Credit: The Barbican. It's quite unusual to find the works of Madame Gres, Karl Lagerfeld, Alexander McQueen, and Christian Dior, amongst many other cherished designers in an exhibition titled The Vulgar: Fashion Redefined. The Barbican Art Gallery has installed a …