Démodé

historical costume projects & resources

18th C. Turkish Ensemble

Liotard - Portrait of Mary Gunning, Countess of Coventry

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The Concept

A mid- to late-18th century Turkish ensemble — gomlek (undershirt), salvar (trousers), and entari (robe).  The stuff Ottoman women REALLY wore, as filtered through 18th century French art & culture.

The Fabric & Trim

Block printed cotton with blue and green flowers on white.

The Pattern

Draped/drafted by me.

The Construction

The entari is entirely hand sewn, but due to time constraints I machine sewed the gomlek and salvar.  Also, I believe that there was an underdress worn in between the gomlek and entari, but I ended up combining the two for fewer layers with the right look.

    Bibliography

    Ribeiro, Aileen. Dress in Eighteenth-Century Europe, 1715-1789. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2002.

    Scarce, Jennifer M. Women’s Costume of the Near and Middle East. London/New York:  RoutledgeCurzon, 2003.

    4 thoughts on “18th C. Turkish Ensemble

    1. Hi there. I made an outfit like this last year for the ALHFAM national conference. I know you are draping it yourself but you may want to look up the pattern for a ghawazee coat which is what I used and then modified. It turned out great. Good luck.

    2. Dear Karen, Your outfit is beautiful and looks great on you. I made an entari of teal gauze with metallic silver threads that I wear with violet harem pants. It’s lightweight ,modest and perfect for this hot weather.

    3. I am loving your work! Do you have any patterns for sale? I am a novice sewer but would love to make something like your Turkish ensemble, 1780s Gaulle à la Polignac, 16th century Venetian gowns, or Florentine vest.

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