Alicia Rex
Marian Zengel
Wearable History
September 7, 2015
Vintage Garment Analysis
On the twenty-first of August, our Wearable History class took a trip to downtown Bowling Green, to visit Mosaic Confinement Studio. The studio had an old-fashioned vibe, and was like a vintage-garment haven. There, we were asked to choose a piece that we thought was vintage, identify the time period it actually came from, and also take some additional notes on the style and the garment’s details. After searching through multiple racks, the first piece I found was a lace blazer. It turned out to only be vintage-inspired, so I went searching again. I came across a few other pieces, but nothing was really jumping out at me. Eventually, I came across a lavender dress that immediately made me think of Julia Roberts in “Mystic Pizza”, and I knew I found my garment.
My garment is an eighties inspired, lavender formal gown. I am able to identify this by one major factor, and that was its off-the-shoulder, puffy sleeves. This was a major staple of eighties formal wear. It had a metal zipper down the back, and no buttons, also confirming that it was from a more recent period. The dress had a straight silhouette, was fitted at the waist, and had no shaping. Although there was no shaping, there were seams that supported the shape of the breast area. The
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garment had finished seems, and I was not able to identify a designer. There were various details of this garment that made it special, that I really appreciated.
The dress was adorned with ruffles all the way around the top of the sweet-heart neckline and sleeves, and also all along the bottom. The garment also had multiple layers. One layer was of a lavender color. There was also a layer on top of that, which was made of a more sheer-material and had stripes of off-white and lavender. This second layer was subtle enough to add shiny detail, without taking away from the beautiful purple color. The dress also had a sash of the second layer’s same material, around the waist. My garment was rich in
character. As for fashion in the eighties, that was also full of character. This was a fun decade. The brighter and the bigger everything was, the better. This applies from everything to hair, makeup, accessories, and to clothes. If you look around right now, you can see that the eighties have definitely made a come-back. Some major eighties staples that have taken over again are bagginess, leggings, acid-wash denim, neon heels, leg warmers, lace, high-top sneakers, pointed-toed shoes, exercise wear, and jump-suits. Another huge eighties trend that we can see slowly making its way back, is unisex fashion. The eighties were a busy time when it comes to fashion trends. There were various different types of trends, all packed into one decade. Every group of people had a distinct style. Today, we seem to be all across the board, in terms of who wears what. But in the eighties, you had a way that the “punk rockers” and the “goths” dressed, a way that the people who enjoyed hip-hop dressed, and a way that the “preps” dressed. If you were a part of the “punk scene,” you probably had safety pins somewhere on your leather or denim jacket, and had lots of ripped clothes. The “hip-hop” scene started our sneaker craze, and made gold jewelry really popular. If you were a part of the “preppy scene,” you could probably be seen in argyle, the brand Polo, khaki pants, or cardigans. As for formal wear, my garment was a fabulous representation of formal wear from the eighties. The formal wear of the time, often had a “shiny” look. Some dresses were even made of metallic materials. Ruffles were where all the “poof” came in, and were a must-have on eighties prom dresses. Bows and sashes also adorned a lot of eighties dresses. As for length, tea-length was a popular style. Tuxedos have not changed much, but we can thank the eighties for the tradition of coordinating with our prom dates. In conclusion, the eighties were a time for diversity and self-expression, and had something for just about everyone. After choosing a garment from the eighties, and doing some research, I have learned that I have an appreciation for the decade. It was an exciting time, where “less is more” was absurd. I have also learned how social attitudes affect fashion, and I think the millennials can thank the eighties for a lot of the trends that they enjoy today. As for my garment, this assignment has definitely taught me that the past holds treasures. Bibliography 1980s in fashion. (2015, August 6). Retrieved September 8, 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980s_in_fashion#Punk_style Ferarro, L. (n.d.). 80s Fashion. Retrieved September 8, 2015, from http://www.liketotally80s.com/80s-fashion/ The top 80s Fashion Trends and 80's costumes for Halloween. (n.d.). Retrieved September 8, 2015, from http://www.thefashionpolice.net/80s-fashion-a-guide.html
Throughout history, there were many things that influenced fashion and the ideal body image of the time. Things such as politics, and changes in social roles were some things that had an influence on the fashion of the day. One particular shocking thing that had influenced on the fashion around the 1800s were sickness and diseases. Not only were diseases and sickness caused by different fashion trends, but it set the tone for certain ideal body images and also influenced the fashion of the time.
Baker Patricia, 1991, Fashions Of A Decade: The 1950's,. New York, Facts On File, Inc.
...dia of Clothing and Fashion. Ed. Valerie Steele. Vol. 2. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2005. 88-89. U.S. History in Context. Web. 5 Mar. 2014.
uncovered the shoulders revealing lavish necklaces. The goal of women’s clothing was to be elegant and full of character at the same time (Middle Ages Ladies dresses).
The ladies dresses of the early Middle Ages were influenced by the classical styles of the Greek and Roman women. Their dresses were tight to display the elegance of their figure. Dresses were embroidered and luxuriously decorated. Some dresses consisted of two tunics and of a veil or drapery. The veil was thrown...
Peacock, John. The Chronicle of Western Fashion: From Ancient times to the Present Day. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1991. Print.
In October of 1904 George Simmel, a well-respected German sociologist, published an essay titled “Fashion” in the International Quarterly. At this time, Simmel had finally obtained the position of professor and was acknowledged by intellectual communities in both Europe and America. Though Simmel does not explicitly connect his work to specific events and debates of the time period, there are multiple implicit connections including his discussion of the ego introduced by Freud, a quick mention of Bismarck and party leaders within constitutional government systems, possible connections to Darwin’s theory of man, and consistent mentions of socialism in relation to its opposition to individualism. What is most prevalent in Simmel’s work is a clear
Alberta Ferretti’s 2017 Resort Collection (Figure 2) adapted two fashion features showed in Marie Therese de Savoie, Comtesse d'Artois (Figure 1). Firstly, the Comtesse in Figure 1 wears a linen and silk-blend gown that is trimmed in lace. As shown in the picture, the Ferretti’s dress is made with the similar fabrics, which are linen and silk. Ferretti chose the light fabrics to evoke memories from the past. Moreover, in Figure 1, the sleeves are 3/4 in length and are very fitted. The fitted sleeves go until the elbow, which leads to three layers of linen. This style was very popular in the 18th-century. In Figure 2, Ferretti added three tiers of linen on the fitted sleeves as well.
Lawson, David "History Of Renaissance Clothing - How Today's Fashion Is Affected." 6 Jul. 2011 EzineArticles.com. 16 Nov. 2011
Freeman S. (2004). In Style: Femininity and Fashion since the Victorian Era. Journal of Women's History; 16(4): 191–206
Bernier, Jane, and Ruth E. Adomeit. Women's Fashion of the Victorian Era, 1837-1901. Cleveland Heights, OH: Borrower's, 1983. Print.
“Miss Pandora, how do you like your evening gown?” a maid asks me as she assists me in putting on my long linen dress. It is a long sleeved, black and gold evening gown with a white ribbon draped around the waist. The dress has the gold linen fabric as a base with black fabric as a second layer. The torso is covered with a thin layer of black lace starting on the left shoulder and extends to the right side of the waist.
middle of paper ... ... It also analyzed the influences of modern dresses. As Palmer and Clark (2005) mentioned earlier, both decades are the classic era in fashion history.
Clothing has been around for thousands of years; almost as long as the modern human has. At first, it served the practical purpose of protection from the elements; but, as life for early humans stopped being a constant struggle to survive, they started noticing how they looked and the concept of fashion began to take shape. These first few garments were typically dyed draped cloth that was pinned at the shoulder and/or waist. This was seen in many ancient civilizations around the world, Greek and Roman the most notable. Over time, clothing began to get more and more complex and formed to the body’s shape, eventually leading up to the tailored style we now have today. However, the sophisticated world of Haute Couture; or high fashion, can distinctly trace its roots to Paris during the mid-19th century. Clothing from there was thought to be superior to those from anywhere else, and women began to come from all over Europe just to buy dresses. This was probably due in part to one notable dressm...
Fabrics can be made of natural and synthetic materials. Natural fabrics, like cotton (NY Fashion Center) for example, are found here on earth while synthetic fabrics are manmade (MV Styles). There are many distinguish ways to determine if a fabric is natural or synthetic. Each fabric is different in its own way due to it reaction to heat, its odor, residue and chemicals (MV Styles). Fabrics are seen and used every day and in every way. Synthetic material has been pushed more into the picture because it much easier to make and the cheapest to buy. Synthetic materials are sometimes made form fossil fuels like coal. Cotton and Broadcloth are natural fabrics; Polyester is synthetic and Flannel in a synthetic blend with cotton. Fabrics are made up of fibers which have their own chemical structure, which determines their classification. Polymers make up the fibers (Ball-Deslich and Funkhouser). Since cotton is natural, it comes from a natural cellulose fiber with the polymer of glucose (Cotton). Polyester is synthetic which can be classified as saturated or u...