|
|
HARPER'S
BAZAR: DECEMBER 15, 1877
QUOTATION
BY FASHION DESIGNER WORTH
[Victorian Fashion]
From Harper's Bazar Personal Column:
-Miss Kate Field has had a thorough
chat with WORTH, and describes him as a tallish man, with a
big, clever head, and very prominent forehead. His brown
eyes are singularly shrewd in expression, and their seizure
of detail is surprising. He takes you in at a glance, and
knows what your style ought to be, which is such a comfort."I prefer simplicity to every thing else," he says, "but there
are women who don't believe in the value of a dress unless it is loaded with trimming.
They drive me mad, for they won't take advice. Now what is becoming to one person is
hideous when worn by another. I study to make the best out of the subject given me, as,
unfortunately, we can't have people made to order, can we? If I had my way, all women
should be slight, graceful, and pretty. Then dressing them would be an artistic pleasure.
A dress should never overpower the wearer. It should merely be an appropriate frame for a
charming picture, bringing out the beauties of the picture, but never distracting
attention from it. So few women understand this. Why, when I find I can make a costume for
less money than has been agreed upon, I actually annoy clients by telling them so. They
think that it can not be as handsome as it ought to be, and they would rather have more
material added, however much the design may be marred, than pay less. I assure you this is
a fact. Consequently when I meet ladies who know that dressing is an art, I take very
great satisfaction in having them as patrons. It isn't every woman who knows how to wear a
dress. When I have done my best, I try to make my client do her best, by seeing her walk
and sit down. To walk with style is rare enough, but when it comes to being able to sit
down in a dress properly - well, there are not many equal to that, I can tell you."
How To
Cite This Article:
"Personal
Column: Worth", December 15, 1877
[electronic edition]. Harper's Bazaar, Nineteenth Century
Fashion Magazine,
http://harpersbazaar.victorian-ebooks.com (2005).
MORE INFO:
Victorian Fashion: Find information and web
sites about Victorian clothing and Victorian fashion. Visit
museums with real Victorian clothing and view Victorian
fashion prints.
Chapter on Shawls:
Cashmere Shawls: A garment capable of appearing the most
feminine and graceful in the world was a "must have"
Victorian clothing garment for the lady of fashion.
Antique Prints of
Victorian Jewelry, 1851:
Beautiful examples of Victorian jewelry.
The
Costume Society of America
|
|
