I made this dress to wear for an event commemorating the inauguration of George Washington. Acknowledging that it the style would have been about twenty years too late for the inauguration, in the modern day I chose something that I had been inspired to make after several years of working for the Hispanic Society of America, which holds in its collection the Black Duchess of Alba. Painted in 1795 by Francisco Goya, the Duchess's chemise a la reine is distinctly Spanish in its styling. In my defense on this choice, the chemise a la reine had already been introduced by the 1770s but would not become truly fashionable until the 1790s when it was heavily associated with France right before the French Revolution.
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| Goya's White Duchess of Alba, in the collection of the Dukes of Alba |
My dress, true to the painting, is made of a true Swiss dot cotton, very
light and airy, and the sash is cotton sateen. The hem trimming and
jewelry remain in progress. For the ball I will utilize a more formal
hairstyle, although I do plan to style one of my wigs accurately for a
future photoshoot.
More photos forthcoming, as the Ball will be on 11 May!
YAAAAAAAS QUEEEEEEEEEN!!! This dress looked divine on you, I particularly love the Spanish influence you gave it. Spanish style is so underrepresented in living history/costuming, so it's nice to see it being given representation. The necklace also looks good with it all, I'm feeling a coral parure set would look bangin af with this, I'll talk to Kim about that.
ReplyDeleteLove ya!!!
Eliza