Posted in Arts, Events, Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged fashion designers, fashion exhibit de Young Museum, fashion history, fashion icons, fashion news, fashionable quotes, history of fashion, Patrick Kelly, Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love, vintage fashion, vintage style on October 25, 2021| 1 Comment »
I just want my clothes to make you smile.
Patrick Kelly (1954-1990), American fashion designer.
Well, I think Mr. Kelly achieved that desire. His whimsical fashions definitely make me smile.
Tune in tomorrow for my two cents on Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love exhibition on now at the de Young Museum.
Posted in Events, Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged fashion history, Happy Holidays, history of fashion, holiday fashion at home, holiday style, pandemic fashion, pandemic holidays on December 24, 2020| 4 Comments »
OverDressedforLife wishes readers a Merry Christmas.
Take a break from the festivities tomorrow and tune in for the first day of The Twelve Days of Vintage Handbags.
Stay safe.
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged bojagi, fashion history, fashion in the middle ages, historical costume, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, Middle Ages, style, tabard on October 15, 2020| Leave a Comment »
Keeping up with my interest in historic clothing and layering, I decided to make a tabard.
Tabards date back to the Middle Ages and are like long vests, but with no sleeves and no side seams. Sometimes a tab of fabric might have been attached at the waist to connect the back and front panels. Monks wore tabards (pictured right) as did the military and later, servants. In the early 18th century, fashionable women sported tabards made of embellished luxurious fabrics such as velvet (see image at the bottom).
I like the look of tabards and fashioned my own out of a loose weave cotton. The simple silhouette isn’t hard to construct; I simply cut the fabric, sewed the two panels together at the shoulders, and finished the edges. The trickiest part was cutting the neckline and that’s not perfect, but luckily it doesn’t ruin the piece. What worked out really well are the tabs, bojagi tabs.
Bojagi is traditional Korean wrapping cloth made out of scraps of fabric. What was an every day necessity is now an art form and the bojagi technique of exposed hand stitching is used for much more than wrapping cloth. I thought the patchwork of color in a medium weight silk would make an interesting addition.
I’m not sure how I will sport my tabard, but I know I’ll have fun creating outfits.
NOTE: Please excuse any blips or inconsistences in the images or the font. WordPress has recently changed their editor platform, which is causing problems.
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged Celine, college co-ed fashion, early 20th century fashion, fashion history, Hedi Slimane, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, suffragette fashion, women's historical fashion, women's style on August 12, 2020| Leave a Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines I looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus I had to write a comment.
We’ve reached the 20th century: Blouse and skirt.
Hedi Slimane for Celine is channeling the independent woman of the nineteen-teens. His blouse with high collar, lace, and long sleeves paired with a long simple skirt says college co-ed or suffragette, or both!
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, tagged fashion history, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, late 19th century fashion, leg of mutton sleeves, shirtwaist, tailor-made, women's style on August 5, 2020| Leave a Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines I looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus I had to write a comment.
Gotta love those extreme sleeves of the Late 19th Century.
Over-sized puffy sleeves on this otherwise simple cotton dress is the descendant of the Leg of Mutton Sleeve, which enjoyed a revival in the 1890s after its debut in the early part of the century.
By the 1890s hoops and bustles were out of fashion. As women were becoming more independent, some fighting for the right to vote, they needed to get around more easily. Simpler skirts paired with shirtwaists (blouses) were the look and when the skirts narrowed, the sleeves expanded.
A tailor-made with leg-of-mutton sleeves. c.1895. Image from Survey of Historic Costume (Fairchild Books).
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged early 19th century fashion, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, Louis Vuitton, Marie Sleeves on July 29, 2020| 1 Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines I looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus I had to write a comment.
This week we are up to the Early 19th Century: Marie Sleeves.
Louis Vuitton’s pretty puffed sleeves feel very 1820s Romantic. Called Marie Sleeves back in the day, the puffs were created by using tied ribbons. Today, elastic creates the same effect and LV has added touches of lace for good measure.
Come back next week!
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged 18th century fashion, ball gowns, fashion history, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, Marc Jacobs, Rococo, royal court fashion on July 22, 2020| Leave a Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines I looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus I had to write a comment.
This week we have the fluff and frills of the 18th Century Ball Gown.
This expansive backside and numerous ruffles makes this gown by Marc Jacobs fit for any Rococo 18th Century royal court. (But this model’s tiny head is calling for a tall wig.)
More historical fashion next week.
Posted in Events, Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged 16th century fashion, dublet, historical fashion in modern fashion, history of fashion, men's fashion, men's historical fashion, trunk hose on July 8, 2020| 1 Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines I looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus I had to write a comment.
This week it’s the Trunk Hose from the 16th Century.
I was excited when I found this modern short skirt. It immediately reminded me of the ever popular men’s Trunk Hose. The precursor to Breeches, Trunk Hose initially were short and puffy, but over time they became longer and more narrow. On top a gentleman wore a Dublet, which was attached to the Trunk Hose with laces (called points) threaded through the waistband. He sported stockings and soft shoes, later boots. In the early part of the 16th Century, ruffs were all the rage to wear at the neck; by the middle of the century Falling Collars were the thing. Check back next week for more on that.
Posted in Fashion, Uncategorized, Vintage, tagged Barbette, Calvin Klein hat 2020, fashion in the middle ages, Fillet, history of fashion, Middle Ages, modern hats on July 1, 2020| Leave a Comment »
One of the assignments in the fashion history class I recently completed was to find historical fashion references in current fashion. In magazines we looked for examples covering ancient clothing to the 20th century and matched with historical images from books, plus we had to write a comment.
This week: The Fillet
This hat by Calvin Klein is much like a Fillet from the Middle Ages. Women in that period really loved their headdresses, some were quite sculptural. The Fillet was among the more modest designs and usually had a Barbette, or chin band.
Check back next week for another historical fashion reference.
Posted in Arts, Events, Fashion, tagged costume, history of fashion, Isabelle de Borchgrave, Legion of Honor on May 17, 2011| 3 Comments »
Queen Elizabeth I court dress. Paper rendering by Isabelle de Borchgrave. Photo: Andrew Fox
Good news for slow pokes who haven’t yet made it to Pulp Fashion: The Art of Isabelle de Borchgrave at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco – the popular exhibit has been extended through June 12th. A cross between art and fashion history, Pulp Fashion features over 60 historical costumes made entirely of paper by Belgian artist, Isabelle de Borchgrave.
de Borchgrave is a trained painter with a fondness for textiles. In 1994 she began using paper to recreate costumes from early European paintings. The Legion of Honor is the first U.S. museum to host a retrospective of de Borchgrave’s work.
The exhibit was curated by Jill D’Alessandro and is divided into six rooms each housing different themes of de Borchgrave’s work covering 400 years of fashion including:
And one room is devoted to the Spanish designer and artist Mariano Fortuny.
In addition, de Borchgrave has created especially for this exhibit four costumes inspired by paintings from the Legion of Honor permanent collection.
Detail of Queen Elizabeth I Court dress. Paper rendering by Isabelle de Borchgrave. Photo: Andrew Fox
de Borchgrave uses plain pattern paper that she stencils and/or paints with acrylic ink and shapes into clothing. (For lace she uses lens cleaning paper.) She says she uses paper for its simplicity and purity.
Her craftmanship is impressive to say the least and in photographs de Borchgrave’s paper costumes appear real, however, in person they look like what they are – artistic renderings of clothing. This is worth noting as the paper medium highlights certain qualities of the costumes that fabric might not. For example, the images on Queen Elizabeth I court dress are more striking than its voluminous shape and the detail of a cord belt or a line of slender buttons on a Fortuny tunic catches the eye more so than the famous pleats. Given that we are looking at paper rather than fabric, we are looking more closely and differently, therefore perhaps finding new things.
Well spaced and placed in imaginative settings, the exhibit offers the opportunity to view the pieces up close. Most are visible at all angles, but for the few that aren’t, mirrors would have been a helpful addition. There are panels with information and a video showing de Borchgrave at work, however, the museum has run out of brochures, which would have been handy to refer to while touring the exhibit. (There is a catalog and other books on de Borchgrave available in the museum gift shop.)
Pulp Fashion is worth a visit to experience historical costumes come to life in an unexpected medium. Bring a group of friends along for a post visit discussion.
Pulp Fashion: The Art of Isabelle Borchgrave runs now through June 12th at the Legion of Honor, 100 34th Ave., SF.
OverDressed for Life 