Russian ElEgancECountry and City Fashion
118 Urban CostUme in rUssia 18th–early 20th CentUries
133
In the 1780s, there was a growing tendency towards simplification of the
silhouette of women’s dress. Bulky panniers were gradually replaced by a
roll of horsehair attached to the waistline at the back. Striped fabrics came into
fashion and dresses made of pale fine fabrics began to appear. The new trends
became more pronounced after the French Revolution of 1789-1793.
The most fashionable silhouette in the 1790s was the chemise dress (from
the French word chemise, a shirt). Dresses of this type, in one piece or seamed,
had high waists, and externally they looked like a shirt – hence their name.
They were characterised by a low neckline, sometimes adorned with a frill, and
abundant folds and a train at the back. The dress is gathered under the bosom
by a belt. Such dresses were sewn from light linen and cotton fabrics – various
types of muslin, cambric, lace, crepe, tulle and gauze. Preference was given to
fabrics with a tiny floral pattern, stripes or single-colour, especially white. The
main part of a chemise dress was embroidered with gold and silver threads and
its hem was trimmed with strengthened edging and embroidered with a floral
pattern in chenille and tinsel featuring palm-trees.
Underneath these dresses women wore gauze shifts, and true ladies of fashion
wore only thin flesh-coloured underwear. Here is what S. P. Zhikharev writes in
his Notes about the impression that these dresses made on a Moscow elegante
during her visit to Paris: “You just cannot imagine what adorable chemises they
are: when you put one on and take a good look at yourself in the mirror, you will
be amazed at how easy it is to see through!”
Chemise dresses—favourite garments of Marie-Antoinette, the guillotined
French queen—almost simultaneously appeared in London, Berlin and St.
Petersburg. This completed the process of distribution of a single European
urban costume that meant the distinctive features of local and national dress
were disappearing.
132
Detail of skirt from a woman’s dress
1810s – 1820s, Russia
Cotton tulle decorated with embroidery
with colourful wire-ribbon, beaten
material, tinsel and glass beads.
133
Woman’s shoe made from pale pink satin, so-called “starling shoes”
1795 – 1805, Russia
Silk, leather.
134
Woman’s dress made from white muslin with belt
1790s, Russia
Cotton fabric, gold and silver tape,
embroidered with wire-ribbon, sequins,
beaten material, coloured silk and silver
thread.
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128 Urban CostUme in rUssia 18th–early 20th CentUries
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145
Folding fan
Late 18th – early 19th century, Russia
Bone, silk band, steel plates, carving,
gilding.
146
Comb
1830s, Russia
Carved tortoiseshell.
147
Woman’s shoe of pink satin
1790s, Russia
Silk, leather, silk embroidery,
appliqué, trim
with bow.
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Urban CostUme in rUssia 18th–early 20th CentUries 129
148
Woman’s dress made from silk blonde lace with “burnoose” cape
1840s, Russia
Cream-coloured silk blonde lace, satin.
In the 1840s, women’s costume was marked
by a new silhouette. Puffed sleeves were
replaced by narrow ones, fitting the arm
tightly. The narrow waist was lowered slightly
and the close-fitting bodice at the front and
rear ended in a narrow tongue in the centre.
As before, the neckline remained low and
round, revealing the shoulders. Sloping
shoulders of a marble whiteness were in
fashion. Ball gowns with such a neckline were
often decorated with ruches, lace or what was
known as the bertha—a wide deep cape-like
collar, which was made either of lace or of
the same fabric as the gown itself, or else of
ribbons used for trimming. The skirt became
ever fuller and longer, resembling a bell shape.
By the early 1850s, starched underskirts began
to be reinforced by longitudinal strips and
circular hoops of whalebone. Such a skirt was
known as a crinoline.
The gala dress of the 1840s was intended
either for a ball or for a wedding. The precious
blonde lace is elegantly arranged over an
underslip of white satin. Only a very rich bride
such as, for example, Olympiada Samsonovna,
the daughter of a Moscow merchant from
Alexander Ostrovsky’s comedy It’s a Family
Affair, We’ll Settle It Among Ourselves, who
mentions her “blonde wedding dress on a
satin underslip,” could afford to order such
a garment.
A woman of fashion could appear at a
ball clad in this gala dress wearing on top of
it a light silk cape hand-embroidered with
white silk using a tambour stitch. In keeping
with the fashion of the 1840s, the cape had
a decorative hood with tassels at the end and
was called a burnoose.
Uniform of private in Palace Grenadiers
1840s, Russia
Cloth, ribbon, metal, embroidery.
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172 Urban CostUme in rUssia 18th–early 20th CentUries
206
Man’s shoes
1910s, St. Petersburg, Skorokhod footwear
factory
Kid, leather.
The man’s shoes, made of light brown
kid, have wide and high toes, thick
leather soles, and stacked heels made
of several layers of leather.
207
Man’s suit
1900s, Russia.
The single-breasted frock coat of
black wool with rounded front skirts
is of a loose cut. The trousers of striped
wool with narrow grey stripes on a
black background are straight, without
turn-ups. The head covering is a
boater—a stiff golden straw hat with a
narrow straight brim and flat crown.
The basic types and forms of men’s costume hardly change during the
second half of the 19th century. The invention and introduction of sewing
machines made it cheaper to manufacture clothing and gave birth to the ready-
to-wear trade. Men’s clothing, began to be manufactured on a commercial
scale with the rise of a new kind of businessman. For him, clothing had to be,
above all, inexpensive, comfortable, practical and expedient. Thus the jacket—a
shortened frock coat, which was initially made of checked fabrics and worn with
single-coloured trousers—came into being. From the 1870s, suits consisting of
a jacket and trousers of the same material began to be made.
While this was happening, new changes were made to the frock coat. In the
late 19th century, alongside full-length frock-coats, a new, shorter version was
being made, which became known as a morning coat. It becomes customary
to wear black woollen trousers with a thin grey stripe, and a waistcoat with a
similar colour scheme, with a black woollen morning coat. The businessman
appeared as a recognisable type, occupied with the management of industry,
with finances and with trade. Members of the intelligentsia – doctors, engineers,
teachers and writers – also wore this type of clothing.
Workers’ costume consisted of a calico shirt with the collar fastening at
the side and belted, worn over dark trousers tucked into boots, a waistcoat,
and a jacket. All these articles of clothing were of factory-made fabrics.
On festive occasions, a worker donned a white hand-embroidered shirt and
a skirted woollen surtout.
Thus, workers’ costume, while retaining native elements, gravitated to
new standard forms oriented towards practicality, convenience
and functionality. These features of men’s dress came to the
fore after World War I. The October revolution of 1917
changed the structure of Russian society, and the suit
ceased to be an attribute of the social status.
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Russian ElEgancEluisa V. YEfimoVa TaTYana s. alEshina
In Russian ElEgancE, Yefimova and Aleshina unveil and demystify a previously unfamiliar area of costume and fashion history. They provide a remarkable source using gorgeous images and formidable scholarship, creating a truly pleasurable learning experience for the costume historian and novice alike.
KaREn TRiVETTE cannEll Fashion Institute of Technology, New York
www.vivays-publishing.com