100 Years of Lingerie!
A hundred years ago, the flapper ruled Paris. And her boyish shape inspired a new kind of lingerie. Not only fluid and liberating, it was also deluxe. As author Juliette Morel confides in her Lingerie Parisienne, its outrageous decadence was a major part of its charm. Jane’s Vanity gives us a peek!
Post WWI, stylish European women learned of the latest lingerie styles from the watercolor plates of magazines such as Très Parisien, the official journal of the French fashion industry. The skimpy creations they displayed were essential to the wearers’ total look. As Morel notes, “Ladies who swathed themselves in heavy furs for outdoors were sure to be wearing gloriously fragile, transparent, soft materials next to the skin.”
“The emphasis was always on luxury–the quality of the material, the careful cut, and style.” And, for the first time, these garments were produced in color. Couturiers experiments with shocking but effective combinations of pink, blue, green, mauve, apricot, ochre, turquoise, and black.
Lingerie decoration was changing too. And, though exquisite, it had to be flat. We see the streamlined influence of Art Deco in its lace inserts, trims, pleats, tucks, ribbons, and embroidery (sometimes all at once).
Pajamas were also the rage, in countless interpretations. “The criterion in all cases was that the stylish simplicity of the cut should complement the richness of the material.”
A quick perusal of the JV website demonstrates the continued influence of these designs. The chemise takes top billing with the strategically-placed inserts of Layalina’s Noor Cherry Red or Aubergine Babydoll. Or the lacy details of Emma Harris’s Clara VIntage Rose Chemise. The roomy jackets and trousers of 20s and 30s pajamas are reflected in styles of Karma on the Rocks. Feel a bit Harlow in their Isa Hanabi Silk Pajamas or the Iza Kazari Aqua Pajama.
We leave you to contemplate what to wear beneath Gilda & Pearl’s flapper-like Champagne in Venice Dress: a tube of embroidered sheer white net, trimmed at the hem with marabou. We know Jane’s Vanity will show you the way.