Book
ge:30
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:31
026-051.indd 31 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Fashion History 31
(Text)
a
d
e
ll
n
When Edward VII ascended to the throne of England in 1901 fashion favored the mature gure
with ample curves and rounded bust line. The silhouette, called the S-bend or S-curve, was
achieved by tight-lacing the corset, which pushed the hips back and thrust the bust forward to
form a monobosom. Clothing, however, was about to give way to a new streamlined silhouette,
and the Edwardian era marks the last moment in fashion history that, by today’s standards,
could be regarded as costume.
FASHION DESIGN
Many of the precepts that we accept today as de ning haute couture can be traced back to
Charles Frederick Worth, an Englishman who opened his rst fashion house in Paris in 1858.
Often called the “father of haute couture” (history being written by and for the winners), Worth
was highly successful as a designer of lavishly decorated gowns of luxurious fabrics and
meticulous t. More lasting, however, was his impact on the industry as a businessman, a
promoter, and a celebrity in his own right. Thanks to his mastery of self-promotion, he and the
House of Worth are remembered for being the rst to show a complete collection of designs
on live models. After the showing, clients would make their selections, place orders, and have
custom- tted garments created for them—the very business model still practiced for haute
couture, but an innovation in its day.
Also a technical innovator, Worth accelerated the patternmaking process by developing
standardized interchangeable components—sleeves, bodices, collars, skirts, and so on—that
could be reused in different combinations when designing new garments. He took advantage,
too, of the newly invented sewing machine for most of the production process, saving hand-
work for ne nishing. In another pioneering move at the dawn of the department store, Worth
disseminated high fashion by selling his dress designs to other dressmakers and clothing
maunfacturers for distribution worldwide.
Although many of his contemporaries may have had similar business practices and most
certainly contributed to the fashion of the period, Worth stands apart as a fashion leader for
his embrace of a thoroughly modern way of doing business, both behind the scenes and in the
public eye. In 1868 he and his sons founded the Chambre de la Couture Parisienne, forerunner
of today’s Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, to establish the criteria a fashion house
had to meet to be labeled couterier.
03
Book
ge:30
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:31
026-051.indd 31 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:32
026-051.indd 32 2/26/13 7:38 PM
32 THE FASHION DESIGN REFERENCE + SPECIFICATION BOOK
(Text)
Costumier and dress designer
Charles Frederick Worth
Photograph by Hulton Archive/Getty Images.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Costume Institute, New York. Photograph by Amy Sussman/Getty Images.
Haute Couture and the
Chambre Syndicale
Haute couture constitutes made-to-order,
custom- tted garments constructed of
high-quality fabrics and sewn with extreme
attention to detail and nish. In France, the
Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture is
the regulating commission responsible for
bestowing on designers the highly prized
classi cation as an of cial haute couture
house. The organization has demanding
standards: A fashion house must create fty
new and original designs of day and evening
wear to be shown as collections twice a year
in Paris. It must also employ a minimum
of twenty full-time technical workers. The
number of houses that can boast the label
of haute couturier changes every year and
has dwindled over time, it but remains the
highest benchmark of quality and artistry in
the industry.
Prêt-à-Porter
Prêt-à-porter constitutes any off-the-rack gar-
ment, regardless of quality. These garments
are available in standard sizes and even at
the luxury level are considerably more af-
fordable than the couture clothing that often
inspires them. Most couture houses offer
one, if not a number of, ready-to-wear col-
lections. These collections generate greater
pro ts as they are manufactured using fac-
tory equipment and techniques, and are thus
produced more quickly, in larger numbers,
and at lower cost.
The Belle Époque, as the French term the period between 1890 and 1914, saw the advent of
clothing design recognizable today as fashion rather than costume. One prominent designer
was Jacques Doucet, who ourished during the 1890s. He was known for using fur in the man-
ner of fabric, seen in his designs for fur-lined coats. His tailored suits and uid tea gowns were
also coveted items. An extension of aesthetic dress, these tea gowns were worn uncorseted
at home throughout Europe and America. The trend would have a direct in uence on two of
Doucet’s in-house designers, Paul Poiret and Madeleine Vionnet, whose own designs later
contributed to freeing women’s bodies from the corset.
03
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:32
026-051.indd 32 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Book
ge:32
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:33
026-051.indd 33 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Fashion History 3 3
(Text)
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Costume Institute, New York. Photograph by Amy Sussman/Getty Images.
Charles Frederick Worth, court gown and train, 1888
-
re
03
Book
ge:32
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:33
026-051.indd 33 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:34
026-051.indd 34 2/26/13 7:38 PM
(Text)
1920s
THE FLAPPER
GABRIELLE “COCO” CHANEL
1910s
ORIENTALISM
PAUL POIRET
1
T
M
03
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:34
026-051.indd 34 2/26/13 7:38 PM
Book
ge:34
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:35
026-051.indd 35 2/26/13 7:38 PM
(Text)
1930s
HOLLYWOOD GLAMOUR
EDITH HEAD
1930s
THE BIAS CUT
MADELEINE VIONNET
03
Book
ge:34
Job:12-29742 Title:RP-Fashion Design Ref and Spec Book
#175 Dtp:204 Page:35
026-051.indd 35 2/26/13 7:38 PM
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.