Archives | Fashion History Timeline

1840 – Queen Victoria’s Wedding Dress

1840-1849, 19th century, garment analysis

When Queen Victoria wore this white dress of Spitalfields silk and Honiton lace to her wedding in 1840, she broke from royal custom and encouraged a lasting tradition for Western bridal fashion.

1872 – Emile Pingat, Visiting Dress

1870-1879, 19th century, garment analysis

Emile Pingat’s lavish visiting dresses were the height of fashion for decades; this one is eye-catching for its color-blocking, careful details, and complicated finishings.

1904 – John Singer Sargent, Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess D’Abernon

1900-1909, 20th century, artwork analysis

Two decades after premiering his most scandalous painting, Madame X, John Singer Sargent unveiled a portrait of another woman known for her unworldly beauty and charm – Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess D’Abernon.

1878 – James Tissot, Evening

1870-1879, 19th century, artwork analysis

Tissot paid close attention to dress details, but his habit of adding a personal flair into the design sometimes rendered his paintings somewhat out-of-step with contemporary fashion trends.

clocks/clocking

17th century, 18th century, 19th century, C, term definition

Decorative and strengthening embroidery on stockings in Europe and America during the 16th-19th centuries.

1883 – Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Dance at Bougival

1880-1889, 19th century, artwork analysis

Dance at Bougival captures a dance in progress, with a casually dressed man whirling around a woman in a simple but fashionable pink cotton ensemble.

clavus/clavi

ancient, C, term definition

Decorative vertical stripes that ran over the shoulder on the front and back of a Late Roman or Byzantine tunic.

1640-1649

1640-1649, 17th century, decade overview

The 1640s saw womenswear trend in a softer and slightly simpler direction, with low necklines and billowing three-quarter length sleeves often in satin of a single color. With much of Europe at war, menswear took on a more militaristic edge and a parallel simplification, with the wearing of buff coats widely adopted in England.