A Decorated Engraving

By the 19th Century, the Industrial Revolution, had led to the development of a wealthy middle class in Europe and elsewhere, many of whom wished to display their wealth by wearing the latest styles of clothing when they appeared in society. Consequently there was an explosion of interest in fashion.

Developments in printing techniques meant that fine quality engravings of costume could be printed in quantity and distributed to those who wanted to view these fashions. In addition to individual prints, many magazines developed which gave information on fashion, coupled with illustrations of the current trends. 

The print on this page is a French one, undated, but from the 19th Century.

The text below the figures states ' 

La Mode Illustree - Bureaux du Journal 56 Rue Jacob Paris' - which means 'Illustrated Fashion', plus the address of the shop in Paris where you could purchase these designs.

The print was then hand-colour with watercolours. 

As you can see, at a later date this print has been given a three-dimensional appearance by adding material and accessories. I have seen a number of old prints that have been altered like this, and it would be fun to try it now. 

It is still possible to purchase these old prints and also modern copies of this style of print, if you would like to try it yourself.

The materials have been cut and shaped to fit the design, and then simply glued in place. The three-dimensional effect has been enhanced by layering the materials in a few places. The lace and net below the skirt for instance have been tucked underneath the skirt material.

Old lace has been used to trim the costume and to make a headdress for the lady on the left. The lace is not very good quality, and personally I would have tried to use a slightly finer lace which would have been more in proportion with the costume. Other accessories, such as the pearls have also been used, and it would be fun to experiment with using other items.

If you look closely you can see that the hands of the ladies are sitting on top of the costume. The hands have either been cut out of the original print, or the print photocopied and hands cut from the photocopy, to achieve this. It is a nice effect.

If anyone is inspired to copy this idea we would love to see a photo of the results!