Friday 7 December 2012

And the lady wore fur

We had a terrific snowstorm in Stockholm Wednesday, luckily for me on my day off, as basically all public transportations came to a standstill. I also have a really bad cold and feel chilly, so to feel a bit warmer I dug out a couple of pictures of 18th century ladies wearing fur.

I admit, winter wear, 18th century style, don't look so warm to me. Fur lined capes and muffs must be wamr enough, but dainty shoes? Not very practical to me.


Winter



Madame Mole Raymond by Élizabeth Vigée Le Brun. 1787.
 

Louise Henriette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Chartres and Duchesse d'Orléans

Comtesse de Tillieres by Jean-Marc Nattier, 1750


Madame Francois Tronchin by Jean-Etienne Liotard, 1758


Maria Fredericke van Reede-Athlone at age 7 by Jean-Etienne Liotard


Henriette Caroline Christine of Hesse-Darmstadt by Johann Georg Ziesenis
 
It seems a bit uncomfortable to wear a fur choker, but it does finish off the look and would provide a good way to get rid of fleas- just take off the choker and shake over an open fire...

Mme Georges Gougenot de Croissy by Jean-Baptiste Greuze, 1757
 

Mrs. Wilbraham Bootle by George Romney, 1781


Marie Dolignon Mrs Philip Dauncey by James Northcote, 1789

Empress Maria Theresa by Jean-Etienne Liotard
A couple of years ago I made a green velvet gown with a fur trim, basically identical to this one. Only I saw the painting for the first time afte rmy gown was made.


Another version, I assume.


Angelika Kauffman by Nathaniel Dance
This one look so warm! It seems to be fur-lined, not just fur decorated. 
Lady said to be Madame Katinka by Nathaniel Dance.
It has been living on my harddrive for years, so I don't know where I found it now.

Apart from the fur, I love that her hair is just powdered around her face. A much easier look to pull off for a re-enactor than a fully powdered hair do, I think.


Mélanie de Forbin by G. Louis Le Barbier Le Jeune


Marie-Josephe of Saxony, Dauphine of France by Jean Martial Fredou, 1747


Maria Antonia von Bayern by Pietro Antonio Graf Rotari


Maria Josepha von Bayern probably by Martin van Meytens. ca. 1765


Queen Maria Carolina by Francesco Liani

The fabric looks like it has spots woven into the fabric. Very pretty.

Madame Freret-Dericour by Joseph-Siffred Duplessis, 1769


Queen Sophie Dorothea of Prussia by Antoine Pesne, 1737


The Baroness Bonne-Marie-Joséphine-Gabrielle Bernard de Boulainvilliers by Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun, 1785


5 comments:

Pernilla L said...

Haha, most of the fur is just silly and for show, and not really functional at all. I really want a fur muff, though, but I think I'll make it out of fake fur.

Lauren Hairston said...

I absolutely adore fur. I have several vintage pieces and I'm even wearing fur-lined slippers. Love these paintings!

Vintage Maison said...

I have a fur muff! It's lined in silk and very warm of course.

Isis said...

Pernilla L: Indeed they do! I plan to make one in fake fur as well.

Lauren: I love fur, but can't make myself weaing new fur for etical reasons and vintage fur because I have an (irrational) fear of creepy crawlies in them.

Carol Dent: I can imagine it is!

Status Quo Vadis said...

These portraits are so exquisitely rendered that their subjects' distinct PERSONALITIES seem to shine through, undimmed by time !

For example ...

If anyone enjoyed an occasional "naughty remark" it was obviously Louise Henriette de Bourbon, Duchesse de Chartres and Duchesse d'Orléans ! (Especially if it involved one of her rivals.)

And, whether in pitched battle or a mere game of bridge, Henriette Caroline Christine of Hesse-Darmstadt was surely someone to have on YOUR side.

As for the REAL reason behind Gabrielle Emilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, marquise du Chatelet's second, more vivacious portrait ... ? I suspect it may have had something to do with her pride at possessing one of her era's more successful facelifts.

The accuracy of my observations notwithstanding, THANK YOU for assembling such a glamorous gallery !

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