It’s actually a little cold here in Southern California so we immediately thought of coats so here’s an evening coat from Maison Worth, circa 1902:
Maison Worth, Evening Coat; Metropolitan Museum of Art (2009.300.308)
This coat is constructed from a silk brocade with a large floral design and trimmed along the front opening edges and cuffs with an ivory lace. The collar is in the Medici style and also trimmed in ivory lace with two large ivory-colored tulle bows. Finally, the sleeves are wide Mandarin sleeves. It’s interesting to note that the floral pattern has been matched so it’s symmetrical on the front and matches perfectly in the back, as can been seen in the picture below:
And for a view of a live model wearing the coat:
One thing that we found striking is that on initial viewing, it appears to be more of a tea gown with it’s lace and tulle trimming than a coat. It’s an interesting style effect giving both the appearance of something worn only at home while at the same time something that could be worn to a formal public event. This is a garment that we would love to be able examine in person. 🙂 This is definitely something we would love to recreate and it could even be worn today.
