Le Costume Historique contains nearly 500 plates on dress. In this impressive work he establishes the methods employed by dress historians everywhere. He utilises multiple sources such as surviving artefacts, portraiture, illustrations, monumental sculpture, and texts by voyagers and other observers. Although focusing mainly on European social and military elites, he reconstructs a material history of dress since antiquity which is truly global in scope. This unique series enriches costume history and demonstrates the continued allure of dress, long after its moment in fashion has passed.]]> Auguste Racinet]]> Books]]> Le Costume Historique.]]> Auguste Racinet]]> Books]]> Le Costume Historique.]]> Auguste Racinet]]> Book]]> Utopia was published in 1516 in Latin; this is a 1684 English edition.]]> Thomas More]]> Books]]> Bell’s Court and Fashionable Magazine describes ladies’ dresses on the anniversary of Her Majesty Caroline’s birthday: ‘…scarlet petticoat with black lace…diamond bows…draperies, rows of gold cockle shells and chains, strings of pearls and pearl tassels…’ Following in decreasing order of status and detail are accounts of dresses worn by others attending the soirée, from princesses to countesses in this early version of the celebrity fashion spread. The evening full dress described in the May 1809 issue of the section ‘La Belle Assemblée’ seems to match the engraving opposite, which is dated April. The content for Bell’s ‘fashionable magazine’ was often gleaned from ‘elegant public and private sources.’]]> John Bell]]> Books]]> Vogue’s special Millennium issue. Capturing the essence of the genre with its promise of transformation, the cover declares that ‘the future starts here’ with a new body, new clothes, and a new you. Another fashion trope is the relationship between fashion and art – a relationship perhaps more love affair than marriage. (Unfortunately permission was not granted to use the cover image of this issue)]]> ___]]> Magazine covers]]> New Zealand Fashion Quarterly invokes Schiaparelli, Yves St Laurent and even Len Lye. The art connection turns out to be the back drop for the fashion spread ‘Wet Paint’. ‘Muscle and moxie’ is the new fashionable ideal, yet stars of a new virtual-reality thriller pose for a fashion shoot, themed as romantic drama -with him on top.]]> ___]]> Magazine covers]]> Harper’s Bazaar, model Miranda Kerr poses almost nude on a balcony as ‘a woman comfortable in her own skin’. The question arises: Is nudity fashion?]]> ___]]> Magazine covers]]> Life of London (1821), illustrated by caricaturist George Cruikshank. Regency ‘men about town’ Tom and Jerry revel in Beau Brummell’s perfectly tailored dandyism of linen shirts, high collars, and trousers (which he popularised). Other aspects of fashion are present: sideburns, ‘Brutus’ hair styles (no periwigs or powder), tight breeches, silk stockings, and cravats. For high society women afternoon or evening dress was the choice: high waistlines, cone-shaped skirts, exposed shoulders, hem and neckline decorations, and pinched sleeves. Although Cruikshank portrays the excesses of English fashion, there was a move towards practicality of dress in this period; a decided informality that enabled individuals to reflect something of their personality in their dress.]]> Pierce Egan]]> Books]]> Harper’s Bazaar (1867) and Cosmopolitan (1886) there had been earlier ones. One, The Gallery of Fashion, appeared between 1794 and 1803 and was deemed Britain’s first fashion magazine. King George III’s daughters were subscribers who read it avidly. Today there are hundreds of ‘Fashion’ magazines, ranging from Allure (1991), AneCan (2007), and Elle (1945), to Look (2007), Seventeen (1944), and W (1971). Before the advent of photography, fashion was documented through engravings, paintings and drawings. This mis-bound volume of The Ladies’ Gazette of Fashion contains the ‘newest’ fashions of London and Paris from May 1856 to November 1864. The chief sponsor for these superb hand-coloured images is the silk mercer firm of Grant and Gask, Oxford Street.]]> ___]]> Books]]> The Ladies’ Gazette of Fashion]]> ___]]> Books]]> Vogue issue also features the psychological diet and a photographic essay by Irving Penn showing sixty working men in their working clothes - a charming display of macho, industrial chic. Vogue patterns are promoted in the last few pages of the magazine with ‘How to find a bathing suit in July: Make one.’ Pattern numbers, size range and material yardage are detailed, but unlike the Australian Home Journals, there are no free patterns here.
(Unfortunately permission was not granted to use the cover image of this issue)]]>
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La Mode, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and others to record the fashionable wealthy wearing the world’s most exclusive clothes. These Paris fashion plates brought fashion clues to readers around the world, while chronicling the unique period before fashion photography shifted focus onto studio models.]]> Celestine Dars]]> Books]]> ___]]> Magazine covers]]> Harper’s Bazaar US editor-in-chief at the time, Carmel Snow. The ‘look’ was defined by cinched waists and voluminous skirts – an antidote to the austerity of women’s wartime fashion. Described as ‘mutinous indulgence’, some skirts used up to 20 metres of fabric. Dior continues today as one of the most successful brands in the world, designing not only couture but perfumes and accessories as well.]]> ___]]> Photographs]]> Farid Chenoune]]> Books]]> Dior, YSL (1936-2008) created a new, more androgynous silhouette where ‘line gave way to style’. His tenure however was cut short when he was conscripted into the army in September 1960. After lasting 20 days in the army, and breaking ties with Dior (including suing them for breach of contract), YSL opened his own fashion house at the end of 1960.]]> Farid Chenoune]]> Books]]> Mark Holborn]]> Books]]> Dilys Blum]]> Books]]> (Unfortunately permission was not granted to use the cover image of this issue)]]> ___]]> Magazine covers]]> ___]]> Books]]> ___]]> Magazine]]> Otago Daily Times for 20 years.]]> Gary Blackman]]> Photographs]]> Avice B. Bowbyes and Nancy Ainge]]> Pamphlets]]> Christian Dior – in the 1960s Marc Bohan was the creative director; Jeanne Lanvin – Lanvin (1867-1946) established the oldest fashion house still in business today; Pierre Cardin – an Italian-born French designer who worked for both Dior and Schiaparelli before establishing his own brand; and the International Wool Secretariat – established in 1937 to promote wool sales for wool growers around the world, including New Zealand.]]> ___]]> Invitations]]>