To win! a princess dress or a » kit ! and « palace Present the booklet-game of the exhibition « Le xviiie au goût du jour - The 18th century back in fashion Couturiers and fashion designers in the Grand Trianon » Until 9 October 2011 organized with the Museum www.bubblemag.fr www.chateauversailles.fr Encore Eux – © Vivienne Westwood Spring/Summer 1996, Marcio MADEIRA - Zeppelin/J. M. Manaï/Ch. Milet/Thinkstock For Children 1 Welcome to the Grand Trianon! The 18th century back Estate. With its hamlet with its farm in fashion animals and its “mini-palace”, the Grand Petit Trianon, this is where the queen Trianon With this booklet-game, you can liked to stay with her children. discover all the secrets of the exhibition “The 18th century back To win in fashion” in the Grand Trianon palace in the Estate of Versailles. To end this journey to the land of princes and princesses, don’t forget During your visit, you will be able to draw the dress or the palace of Petit to discover sumptuous dresses of your dreams, fill in the form and Trianon Queen’s great fashion designers such as send off the last page. Hamlet Vivienne Westwood, Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier You may win a genuine princess and Christian Lacroix, who have dress designed by Mademoiselle P, been inspired by the fashion of the a specialist in made-to-measure th 18th century. costumes inspired by the 18 century, or a “palace” kit con- taining numerous games and toys The Marie- from SMALLable! Antoinette’s estate After you have visited the exhibi- Are you ready? tion, head off to Marie-Antoinette’s Your turn now! Practical advice • The exhibition is open every day from 12:00 noon to 6:30 pm (except Palace Monday). • Tickets: free for children; €10 for adults aged over 26 (exhibition + access to Marie-Antoinette’s Estate), • Included in the Passeport ticket to visit all the Estate of Versailles. © J-F. Péneau Péneau © J-F. 2 Fashion in the 18th century The 18th century, in the reign of king Louis XV, gave much importance to the enjoyment of pleasure and frivolity which was reflected in the way people dressed. Marie-Antoinette : a queen intensely interested in fashion Advised by Rose Bertin, one of the most famous fashion traders of the time, Marie-Antoinette, the wife of king Louis XVI, loved to wear finery, decorate her hair with © Bibliothèque municipale de Versailles Formal dress ball in Versailles, for the wedding of feathers and promote Monseigneur the Dauphin (the heir), on Wednesday new fashions. 24 February 1745. © J.-M. Manaï/EPV Portrait of Rose Bertin, the supplier of all the decora- At Versailles, fashion was an tive details on dresses and essential part of life! hats, by G. Ripart. In the Palace of Versailles, the ladies and their huge court dresses impressed all the Game of 7 differences ambassadors of Europe. Their dresses were so Find the 7 differences between those pain- large that by bowing their heads they could hide tings. The original (at the top) is a portrait themselves completely behind them and say all of Marie-Antoinette, in 1775 wearing a kinds of silly things! grand habit (formal gown), with her right In the palace of Trianon, the ladies wore simpler hand resting on a globe, painted by Jean- dresses. But, even though these dresses had no Baptiste André Gautier-Dagoty. train, they were still covered with decorations. >>>> © J.M Manaï/EPV 3 Women’s dresses in the 18th century The robe à la française Fortunately, the ladies could choose less formal and lighter dresses for outings, candle-light dinners or for playing all kinds of board and card games in the evening in the small apartments of the Palace. They then wore this “sack-back gown”, a kind of gown with box pleats in the back that fell to the ground and a shorter train, which was called a “robe à la française”. Dressing in those days was not easy. The blouse, petticoats, hoops, stay and dress all had to be put on in a certain order. To adjust the robe à la française, it was even necessary for a helper to get in under the dress to tie the small inner ribbons! Fortunately, the court ladies had well-trained maids for these tasks! © J.-M. Manaï/C. Milet Sack-back gown or robe à la The stay française, around 1750-1755. The stay was worn over a blouse. Laced in the front or the back, the purpose of the bone corset was to push the shoulders back and make the waist © J.-M. Manaï/EPV more slender. Worn very tightly, they were a frequent cause of dizziness and Marie Antoinette, portrayed in 1778 by fainting among the women of the Court! Élisabeth Louise Vigée-Le Brun, in formal gown, “with a hoop”. The grand habit (formal Question: Will you be able to recognise the robes à la gown) française during your visit? At the Court of Versailles, the ladies ................................................................................................................... could not dress whatever way they .................................................................................................................. fancied! For the grand ceremonies they Question: Find the geometrical shape formed by the bust wore a full outfit: a rigid and very bulky of a woman wearing a stay (circle the right answer). costume, consisting of a stay, a skirt held up by a large pannier or hoop, and a train 2 to 3 metres long! © J.-M. Manaï/C. Milet Stay, around 1750-1785 4 © J.-M. Manaï/C. Milet Stable © P. Rochas, par Olivier Theyskens, 2006. Thierry Mugler, 1992. © G. Blot/RMN Duchess in formal gown occupying one of the highest places with the queen. By Nicolas Dupin le Jeune. The pannier The pannier is worn under the petticoat and consists of a stiffened regular-shaped frame of whalebones or hoops of basketwork. The shape of the pannier evolved during the 18th century. In the middle of the century, hinged panniers of a modest size became popular as they were much more convenient. © M. Madeira/Zeppelin © M. Madeira/Zeppelin The purpose here also was to emphasise women’s curves Maison Christian Dior, 2007. Christian Lacroix, 1995. by widening the hips to make the waist look narrower. The width of some dresses supported by panniers could reach 3 Question: Among these dresses with panniers by 20th century metres, forcing the women to go through doors sideways! designers, which one do you prefer (circle the photo)? 5 Men’s costume in the 18th century In the 18th century men, like women, paid great attention to their clothing. The three pieces suit or habit à la française was made up of 3 garments: a coat, a jacket, a waistcoat and close-fitting breeches – which let these gentlemen riders show off their solid calves… The coat was long, reaching to the knees: the part between the waist and the knees, called the tails or basques, was divided to allow men to rise a horse and carry a sword. Don’t forget that all noble gentlemen in the 18th century were Yohji Yamamoto, 2011. Jean Paul Gaultier, 1998. riders, fencers and excellent dancers! ç Game: Indicate the name of the 3 items forming three piece suit. ç Question: You have pro- bably noted that some contemporary fashion designers have taken their inspiration from men’s costumes of the period for women’s outfits! Among these costumes, which one is really a man’s costume? Photos © M. Madeira/Zeppelin Balenciaga, by Nicolas Ghesquière, Vivienne Westwood, 1979. 2006. 6 Fashion accessories in the 18th century Accessories playing hide-and- seek… Fans of all kinds, large bonnets, hats sporting flowers 4 or feathers, embroidered clutch bags, beaded purses, Game: Arroword crossword high-heeled shoes decorated with buckles, buttons, ç scarves and shawls, hidden pockets… the accessories 1 played hide-and-seek! 5 The shoes, covered with embroidered silk, were hidden under the petticoats. The pockets concealed under the skirts held handkerchiefs, perfumed salts, precious scissors. The fan was used by ladies to hide their faces and their extravagant “beauty spots”. The buttons 3 would be opened to read romantic messages or look at amorous scenes. ç Question: What was the fan used for? 2 To fan one’s face when it was too hot. To fan a slow fire to make it light. To chase birds away. 1 2 3 4 5 7 The care for details: fabrics and ornaments in the 18th century… During theatre performances and balls, women competed with each other to display the beauty of their finery made from the finest silk ç Question : fabrics richly decorated with lace, Imagine a name for this hairstyle. flowers, feathers, beads, pearls and semi-precious stones. And, of course, they showed off their diamonds! Well of course, they were in the King’s court! «Pagoda» shaped sleeves: Type of Flouncing: Long and narrow panels A learned sleeves that were narrow down to of fabric flounced in the middle glossary*… the crook of the arm and then en- and added to the edges of dresses ding in a wide flounce. and skirts. The vocabulary of the period used thousands of words and expressions to describe all the precious little details of clothing. The words used for the clothes and their ornaments are often mysterious and even the historians do not always know what they mean! Robe à la française, vers 1750-1755. * Pascale Gorguet-Ballesteros, Glossary, in “Le XVIIIe au goût du jour. Couturiers et Photos © J.-M. Manaï/C. Milet créateurs de mode au Grand Trianon”. © J.-M. Manaï/C. Milet ” (Victory). ” Victoire La Jacket (caraco): A jacket with May-bug’s eyebrows (sourcil de “ Catalogue published by: Artlys, Château ç , known as as known , Pouf : tails of variable length and long or hanneton): Silk braid trimming Answer de Versailles et de Trianon three-quarter sleeves.