Fashion Plate, March 1815
Subject
Illustration
Title
Fashion Plate, March 1815
Date
March 1815
Description
Full Dress for the Opera, Theatre &c
This fashion plate is captioned “Full Dress for the Opera, Theatre.” It was published in March 1815 in La Belle Assemblée, one of London’s most important women’s magazines of the early nineteenth century. The woman in the fashion plate is wearing a dress in a pinkish-purple color described in Regency literature as “puce,” which is French for “flea.” The dress features the long-lasting tubular silhouette with high waist, round neckline, and double sleeves. The double sleeves are puffed at the top and fitted from the upper arm to the wrist, ending in a ruffle. The neckline has Vandyke trim and the hem has horizontal decoration at the hem, both of which are found in fashions from the 1810–1820 period (North 2011). Hats were an important component of evening dress, and this ensemble includes a matching hat with gold trim and a prominent feather. The look was designed by the dressmaker Mrs. Bell, perhaps a relation of John Bell, who published La Belle Assemblée.
References
North, Susan. “From Neoclassicism to the Industrial Revolution:
1790–1860.” In The Fashion Reader, 2nd ed , edited by Linda Welters and Abby Lillethun (Oxford: Berg, 2011): 53–68.
This fashion plate is captioned “Full Dress for the Opera, Theatre.” It was published in March 1815 in La Belle Assemblée, one of London’s most important women’s magazines of the early nineteenth century. The woman in the fashion plate is wearing a dress in a pinkish-purple color described in Regency literature as “puce,” which is French for “flea.” The dress features the long-lasting tubular silhouette with high waist, round neckline, and double sleeves. The double sleeves are puffed at the top and fitted from the upper arm to the wrist, ending in a ruffle. The neckline has Vandyke trim and the hem has horizontal decoration at the hem, both of which are found in fashions from the 1810–1820 period (North 2011). Hats were an important component of evening dress, and this ensemble includes a matching hat with gold trim and a prominent feather. The look was designed by the dressmaker Mrs. Bell, perhaps a relation of John Bell, who published La Belle Assemblée.
References
North, Susan. “From Neoclassicism to the Industrial Revolution:
1790–1860.” In The Fashion Reader, 2nd ed , edited by Linda Welters and Abby Lillethun (Oxford: Berg, 2011): 53–68.
Source
Donor: Elizabeth Brown
Identifier
URI 2011.13.84C
Contributor
Jeralyn Lora
Creator
Invented by Mrs. Bell, No. 26 Charlotte Str. Bedford Square.
Engraved for N 62 of La Belle Assemblee 1st. March 1815.
Engraved for N 62 of La Belle Assemblee 1st. March 1815.
Publisher
Invented by Mrs. Bell, No. 26 Charlotte Str. Bedford Square.
Engraved for N 62 of La Belle Assemblee 1st. March 1815.
Engraved for N 62 of La Belle Assemblee 1st. March 1815.
Collection
Citation
Invented by Mrs. Bell, No. 26 Charlotte Str. Bedford Square. Engraved for N 62 of La Belle Assemblee 1st. March 1815., “Fashion Plate, March 1815,” Historic Textile and Costume Collection, accessed May 13, 2024, https://uritextilecollection.omeka.net/items/show/417.