1912 Gazette du Bon Ton Fashion Plate, Cachemire Vert

Description

The Gazette du Bon Ton, put out by the retailer of the same name, was considered the trendsetting magazine of … more The Gazette du Bon Ton, put out by the retailer of the same name, was considered the trendsetting magazine of the era. Founded by Lucien Vogel and targeting Paris's upper class, it ran from 1912-1925. Only ten colour plates were printed per issue, and artists vied for the prestige of illustrating the latest Parisian fashion and lifestyle trends. As these pochoirs attest, the high style and iconic femininity made the items featured in the pages "must have's" -- right down to the furniture!

This pochoir - created when single layers of color are added by hand to a lithograph using a stencil - is plate 9 from the first issue. It shows green cashmere and a "robe du soir" evening gown by Redfern. Founded by John Redfern who followed in the sartorial steps of his father the tailor, Redfern & Sons was a British tailoring firm with branches in London, Edinburgh, Paris, and New York. The Paris extension was operated as a couture establishment while its other branches functioned primarily as tailors and importers. The Redferns are credited with making tailored clothing chic for women, and although known for making outfits for ladies who rode, played tennis, and went yachting, they also helped popularize the high-waisted, so-called Grecian style of 1908. less