This is part one of the 1810s female lookbook, you can find part two here.
While neo-classical style carried over from the previous decade, the 1810s saw an interruption to the clean and streamline silhouette of female fashion. The once pure line of a dress was now broken by increasingly excessive trims. Tubular skirts evolved into angled, triangular shaped garments and hems began to rise away from the floor. This new style of skirt was gathered at the back and the fullness was emphasised by the wearing of a bustle pad. The increasing cultural influence of romanticism was most evident in the growing fullness of sleeves. Gone were the soft sleeves of the previous decade and in their place came the exaggerated puff, the precursor to the ginormous gigot sleeve that would come into fashion in the 1820s.
The colour palette veered away from the light and pale fashions of the early 1800s and into one decidedly brighter and saturated. Textiles became more diverse, with firmer cottons and silks supplanting the draping fine muslins of the previous years. Overall, the easy fluidity of the early 1800s was replaced with a stiffer silhouette.
The Napoleonic Wars played a significant role in the development of clothing. Thanks to campaigns in places like Prussia and Poland, there was now an influx of fur in women's ensembles. Paris was the leading fashion capital and France in general influenced clothing around the world. One of the most notable icons of this French style influence was Joséphine Bonaparte. As wife of the self-proclaimed emperor, she was the undisputed leader of fashion during the early 19th century. Her every action and nuance of appearance were followed eagerly by newspapers and journals in France and abroad. Fashion-conscious women idolised her and attempted to copy her enviable style, which included luxurious Kashmiri shawls and the era-defining high waistline. CC links under the cut.
You can check out more 1810s content here and the rest of the Ultimate Decades Timeline series here.
