You’ve probably seen this long ago, but just in case you missed it… Carolyn reproduced an entire middle class Englishwoman’s outfit from c. 1750-70 as an MA project, and it’s really quite amazing. Not only are the garments gorgeous, but they’re all handsewn from period sources and she did all of the work while in costume. Check out her site for details on the project and exhibition of her garments.
La Mesur d’Excellence
For anyone interested in 18th century costume research, particularly French sources, check out the amazing La Mesur d’Excellence. The Modes section includes scans (sometimes many pages, sometimes only a few) of some really important and rare sources. It’s worth clicking on the preview images, because sometimes the full “image” actually includes a couple of pages (not shown in the preview). What an amazing collection!
18th c. Court Costume Book Now Available
If you’re interested in buying the catalog for the 18th century court costume exhibit discussed below (Fastes de Cour), it’s now available at the cheapest price here from Amazon.fr. Yes, the interface is all in French, but the layout/buttons are exactly the same as the English language version, so it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out — and you can sign in to your Amazon.com account and it will pull up all your info. (Random site note: adding tags to this post to see if those are useful; if so, I’ll eventually go back and tag older entries too.)
Court Fashion Exhibit at Versailles
If you don’t live anywhere near Paris, be depressed with me that you are missing what looks like one of the more fabulous costume exhibits ever: Fastes de Cour: Le Costume de Cour en Europe, 1650-1800, currently on exhibit at the Chateau de Versailles. The website is fabulous, I’ve just ordered the catalogue, but I am still depressed. I am even more depressed to miss the symposium in early June. Do check out the website. Make sure you zoom the pictures. Le sigh.
Marie Antoinette-related exhibit in NY
The Everson Museum of Art (Syracuse, NY) is presenting an interesting-sounding exhibition called, “Marie Antoinette: Styling the 18th-Century Superstar”. It features 20th and 21st-century fashion design inspired by the 18th-century fashion aesthetic of Marie Antoinette. You can see some photos on their website.