The Complete Costume Dictionary
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The Complete Costume Dictionary Elizabeth J. Lewandowski The Scarecrow Press, Inc. Lanham • Toronto • Plymouth, UK 2011 Published by Scarecrow Press, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 http://www.scarecrowpress.com Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom Copyright © 2011 by Elizabeth J. Lewandowski Unless otherwise noted, all illustrations created by Elizabeth and Dan Lewandowski. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lewandowski, Elizabeth J., 1960– The complete costume dictionary / Elizabeth J. Lewandowski ; illustrations by Dan Lewandowski. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-0-8108-4004-1 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8108-7785-6 (ebook) 1. Clothing and dress—Dictionaries. I. Title. GT507.L49 2011 391.003—dc22 2010051944 ϱ ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Printed in the United States of America For Dan. Without him, I would be a lesser person. It is the fate of those who toil at the lower employments of life, to be rather driven by the fear of evil, than attracted by the prospect of good; to be exposed to censure, without hope of praise; to be disgraced by miscarriage or punished for neglect, where success would have been without applause and diligence without reward. Among these unhappy mortals is the writer of dictionaries; whom mankind have considered, not as the pupil, but the slave of science, the pioneer of literature, doomed only to remove rubbish and clear obstructions for the paths through which naming and Genius press forward to inquest and glory, without bestowing a smile on the humble drudge that facilitates their progress. Every other author may aspire to SCARECROW PRESS, INC. praise; the lexicographer can only hope to escape reproach; and even this negative recompense has been Publishedyet granted in the United very few.States of America by Scarecrow Press, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing—Dr. Samuel Group, Johnson, Inc. preface to The English Dictionary 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200 Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.scarecrowpress.com PO Box 317 Oxford OX2 9RU, UK Copyright © 2004 by All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Cataloging in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Insert CIP data Printed in the United States of America ϱ ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Manufactured in the United States of America. Contents Acknowledgments vii Introduction ix DICTIONARY 1 Appendix A: Garment Types 327 Appendix B: Garment by Country 397 Appendix C: Garment Types by Era 517 Selected Bibliography 571 About the Author and Illustrator 579 v Acknowledgments Many people made this book possible. I want to offer my special thanks to the following peop le for their inspira- tion and assistance: to my husband, Dan, for his computer wizardry; to Dan and to Aaron Solomon for their as- sistance in making many of the 19th-century illustrations possible; to Jessica McCleary and Stephen Ryan at Scare- crow Press for believing in this project and prodding me regularly to keep at it; to the interlibrary loan librarians at Midwestern State University who never turned me away when I came asking them for yet another obscure book; to the reference section librarians at libraries across Texas who helped me with access to their rare book collections; to LaLonnie Lehman, fellow costume designer, who encouraged me to turn this project from a private list of fun words into a book; to my fellow faculty members at Midwestern State University who encouraged me to finish this daunting task; to the members and officers of the U.S. Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) who constantly challenge themselves and others to improve themselves and expand the world of theater; and to my dear friends who understood when I went into hibernation to finish this project. The illustration of the shako is dedicated to the memory of Karen Tursi (1959–2010). She used to wear a shako like this, and she made it look good. Finally, my thanks to my parents, Dr. Donald R. and Caroline Schertz, both educators, who instilled in me from a very young age the desire to read, learn, ask questions, and challenge myself to continually grow intellectually. vii Introduction When I began this project 15 years ago, it started in my search for understanding the terminology used in an 18th- century diary written by one of my ancestors. As the years passed, I began to run across more costume terms that were new to me. I jotted them down and began collecting them on notecards. When the notecards threatened to take over my office, the project moved to computer files. When the computer files grew, the project became a book. You never know where the search for knowledge will take you! In the appendices, I have categorized the terms in three ways (when possible): by country of origin, by type of word, and by time period of origin. The time periods were chosen using Lucy Barton’s Historic Costume for the Stage (Boston: Walter H. Baker, 1935), a standard referred to in many texts of the 20th century. In my research I have accessed as many books as were available to me. I have attempted to categorize these terms as carefully as possible, but inevitably there will be mistakes. These errors are mine alone—the errors of a researcher lost in their passion for the project. Errata, additional terms, definitions, and other comments can be sent to the author by visiting mostlyharmlessweb.com. Along the way, I learned that each new age creates its own fashions and its own language for the fashions of the past. The pace at which these fashions change is rapidly accelerating. In five or 10 years, the world will have added hundreds of new clothing terms. I challenge the next generation of lovers of fashion and costume to record those words for posterity. ix A à gomito: Renaissance (1450–1550 C.E.). Italy. A sleeve à la Maintenon: Early Georgian (1700–1750 C.E.). that was cut full at the top and narrow at the wrist. France. Coiffure made fashionable by Mme de Main- à gozzo: See à gomito. tenon. ‘a ‘iku: United States of America. Hawaii. High collar; à la Marie Stuart: Crinoline (1840–1865 C.E.). United stiff collar. States of America. Woman’s evening wreath with a à jour: France. Lace of drawn work or another openwork. point in the center front. à la Byron: Romantic (1815–1840 C.E.). France. Man’s à la Marlborough: Late Georgian (1750–1790 C.E.). unstarched, floppy cravat. France. Ladies’ fashion named for John Churchill, à la chale: Bustle (1865–1890 C.E.). In 1868, a heart- first duke of Marlborough (1650–1722 C.E.). shaped neckline. à la Napoleon: Romantic (1815–1840 C.E.). France. à la du Barry corsage: Crinoline (1840–1865 C.E.). Man’s untied cravat worn crossed in front. France. Popular from 1850 to 1867, a bodice with à la plaquette: Late Georgian (1750–1790 C.E.). France. stomacher-shaped front. In 1787, a woman’s hairstyle where the hair was à la Farare: Late Georgian (1750–1790 C.E.). France. In worn in spherical shapes by the ears. 1787, a woman’s wide-brimmed, very high crowned à la Raphael: Bustle (1865–1890 C.E.). In 1868, a square bonnet that was trimmed with three feathers and neckline. eschelles. à la Titus: Directoire and First Empire (1790–1815 C.E.). à la Figaro: Late Georgian (1750–1790 C.E.). France. France. A woman’s hairstyle resembling the hair of Garments in the fashion of the country costumes a person condemned to the guillotine. It was often worn in the 1784 production of The Marriage of Figaro. worn with a red ribbon tied snugly around the neck. à la George V: (1910–1919 C.E.). United Kingdom. à la Victime: See à la Titus. Named for King George V who popularized the à la vielle: Crinoline (1840–1865 C.E.). Form of quilling. fashion, a man’s soft woolen cap with a short visor- à l’espignole: Crinoline (1840–1865 C.E.). Fan that style brim. folded at the joint. à la Grecque corsage: Crinoline (1840–1865 C.E.). A line: (20th century). Triangular or A-shaped dress France. Popular from 1850 to 1867, a bodice with a worn belted or unbelted. See also trapeze. low, square, off-the-shoulder décolletage. The bodice à l’innocence reconnue: Late Georgian (1750–1790 had vertical pleats extending from the shoulders to C.E.). France. In 1770s, a skirt fashion popularized the center front waist. from trial of a cook-maid. à la jardiniere: Romantic (1815– a tsi’kin: United States of America. Blackfoot Indians’ 1840 C.E.). Austro-Hungarian Em- moccasins. pire. An 1830s sleeve style featur- a ‘ula: United States of America. Hawaii. Reddish; ing short, tight sleeves that were brownish.