Titanic Era Gowns

I originally began researching vintage gowns in response to some reading I was doing on the Titanic.  Reading books and watching documentaries spurred my curiosity about the lives of those who made the fateful voyage.  Lady Duff-Gordon was a passenger and when I learned that she was known as the dress designer Lucile, I couldn't resist looking up some of her designs.  One thing led to another and I began wondering what the passengers might have worn on board the unsinkable ship.  Which of course led me here.  

I am excited to see that so many beautiful costumes still exist today.  While it's nice to see a designer's sketches, there's just something about seeing the actual gown.  It imagine t's easy for me to imagine the excitement of wearing a beautiful gown like this to a ball.  Who was there?  Who was popular?  Was her dance card filled?  Who was her favorite?  What food and drink was served?  What did the band or orchestra play?  Did she go home that night with stars in her eyes or was it just another event in a long line of obligations?  I want to know.

This gown was made by the Paris fashion house of Callot Souers sometime between 1910 and 1914.  According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 

"In the Directoire revival, the waistline was raised in the manner of a century earlier, but with corsetting that had the vestiges of the monobosom. Perhaps even more importantly, the silhouette reflects Europe's examination of Eastern dress, the softness, raised waist, and lower bust stance suggesting "ukiyo-e" prints and other Japanese style.

Attuned to the Orientalism of the decade, Callot Soeurs reined the silhouette into a cylindrical wrap, effortless in lingerie-weight fabric. Yet, for its innovations, the work of Callot Soeurs does not stint the couture's roster of technical skills. Here, sequins vary: some are punched into a filigree pinwheel, others are hammered flat; in some instances metal is overlaid onto faceted crystal. But even this ornamentation is not entirely for the pleasure of diversity, but for the calculated and magical effects of such varied surfaces seen in evening and candle lights."

Can you imagine it?