A fashion plate from the publication L’Art et la Mode, March 1906 (below), illustrates another interesting variation. The drawn figure is shown on a background of light blue and ocher watercolor; a trace of the same light blue is shown on the dress itself. This effect might just be the work of the illustrator, however the caption below reads: “UNLINED VALENCIENNES GOWN WITH SEPARATE SILK SLIP”, and the light blue strokes seem to emerge from under the skirt and along the torso and the upper part of the sleeve. This pale shade of blue is similar to the coloring of the rose print of the Doucet dress, and is in accordance with the fashionable pastel palate favored by designers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, like Doucet himself.

Unlined Valenciennes Gown with Separate Silk Slip. Source: L’Art et la Mode, March 1906, plate 1696. Special Collections and FIT Archives.

Additionally, Harper’s Bazar article titled “Embroidered Parasols,” June 1909, shows that a touch of color to an all -white outfit was quite fashionable:

During the long “reign of lingerie” styles were subtly adjusted, trimmings updated, and proportions shifted. The photograph below appeared in Le Figaro-Modes in June 1904; it is an example for the influence of Art Nouveau, not only in the floral motifs characteristic to the movement in France, but also in the curvaceous silhouette. In the late 1890s the fashionable body was shaped by the “monobosom” corset. The new corset forced the upper body forward and lower body backwards, creating a sort of s-shaped silhouette, in perfect harmony with the aesthetic of Art Nouveau.

Lingerie dress showing the influence of Art Nouveau. Source: Le Figaro- Modes, 15 June, 1904, page11. Special Collections and FIT Archive.

Between the turn of the century and the end of the first decade the fashionable body gradually changed – from a rounded, curvaceous figure enforced by stiff corsets and heavy petticoats to a slimmer, elongated shape attained by softer, smoother undergarments.

In lingerie dresses the design details, such as ribbons and lace insertions, segmented the body in a way that emphasized the desirable fashionable silhouette. Whereas earlier in the decade the body was divided into several horizontal planes- emphasizing the shoulder, hip, cinched waistline and swirling skirt, in the later years of the decade the placement of trimmings is used to elongate and slim the shape. In the second half of the decade the style of trimmings also changed. If at the begging of the twentieth century fluffy ethereal ruffles, gathering, ruching and other dimensional decorations were used, from about 1907 fashion magazines show more and more afternoon dresses with flat trimmings such as embroidered ribbons, pin-tucking and lace.

Since a shift in silhouette naturally demands a change in accessories, the new slim figure was balanced out with wide brim hats, usually heavily decorated. Although these enormous hats were often ridiculed, the labor and attention invested in them mark the beginning of what many consider the “golden age” of millinery, which stretched through the first half of the twentieth century. It is important to note that hats were essential feature of respectable dress through the centuries, and were mandatory for socializing outdoor at this period.

Big hats were worn over equally big hairdos. The hair, properly pulled back and upward, was sometimes reinforced by false hair pads (“transformations”), which also helped to stabilize the long pins that were necessary to anchor the massive, excessive hats. The result was a voluminous head that appeared so large it made the neck seem longer, the shoulders smaller and the body slimmer and more elongated.

Dress for the races. This is a wonderful example of how lingerie dresses were accessorized- with matching lingerie parasol, large hair style and even larger straw hat decorated with matching trimmings. It is also interesting to note that to emphasize the model’s columnar figure, she is photographed standing next to a Roman type column. Source: Les Modes, A8, N92, August 1908.

Lingerie dresses worn at the races on one afternoon in the summer of 1908. Source: Les Modes, A8, N92, August 1908.

It is evident that although the lingerie dress and the setting in which it was worn remained virtually unchanged throughout the first decade of the twentieth century, the style and desirable figure certainly transformed. There is a sharp contrast between the exaggerated, excessive style of the earlier examples to the sleek, modernized style of the later ones- the earlier examples stylistically belong in the nineteenth century, while later examples face the new century. With the appearance of modern designers, like Coco Chanel, this dainty, ultra-decorated style seemed old-fashioned in comparison to the new, clean and streamlined style of dress.