La Belle Assemblée for the Win

Wowza!

I rather think that this Kensington Garden Walking Dress from the July 1809’s La Belle Assemblée can only be described as a complete and utter show-stopper. Can't you just see eyes widening and heads whipping around as our young lady, attired thus, ambles through the park on a fine early summer day!

The accompanying text reads as follows: A spenser bodice of pale pink sarsnet. White muslin dress, with double row of scollop lace forming a light flounce round the bottom, over which is worn a black lace mantle and train. Egyptian bonnet, composed of pink sarsnet and antique lace. Shoes and gloves of pale yellow. Amber necklace and earrings. Hair after the Egyptian manner. Parasol of pink and brown shot, with white fringe.

The pink spenser (with a slightly military air lent by the simple frogging down the front) and white muslin dress with rows of lace around the hem seem ordinary enough for a nice stroll along garden paths. The Egyptian bonnet, which looks like the offspring of a tricorn hat and a turban, wakes things up a bit, and the pink and brown shot (taffeta? silk?) parasol with white fringe is charming…

But then the ensemble takes a turn into Hollywood fantasy costume with that black lace mantle, set on the shoulders with a dramatic flaring collar (tied with a prosaic little cord!) It’s got an almost science fictional feel to it, that collar—but the lace turns that on its head and into I don’t know what! 

And dragging on the ground (yes, that’s right—a lace mantle as part of a walking dress.) Is it conspicuous consumption, utter frivolity, or...or what?

I think I need a little lie-down now—this print packs a wallop! How about you? Would you wear this on your next foray into Kensington park?

Ooh La La, La Belle Assemblée!

Now this is quite the light summer frock! May I present to you the Kensington Garden Fashionable Promenade Dress, courtesy of the July 1, 1811 edition of La Belle Assemblée?

There’s a great deal going on here, so let’s see what the description says...

“A round robe of white jaconot muslin, with a bodice of violet sarsnet, trimmed with rich silk Brandenburgs of Austrian green, a half pelisse of fine transparent muslin, with Bishop’s sleeves, fancifully tied with a green ribband. A Hymen hat of purple brocaded ribband and lace, ornamented with a green military plume; a Chinese parasol of purple sarsnet, shot with green; gloves and shoes of York tan.”

Well. The first thing that I noticed about this dress is the waistline: it falls more or less at the natural waist, which is unusual...but one thing I love about the clothes from these years is that they weren’t as strict as, say, the 1820s would be in terms of line and structure—so there was some room for creativity. The dark violet bodice contrasting with the soft white muslin of the skirt and half pelisse makes a striking statement; I wish it was possible to see how long the sleeves were under that pelisse. The frogging and tassels crisscrossing the bodice are striking as well, and rather emphasize the bust.

I don’t think I’ve run across a half pelisse before: it’s almost like an open cardigan, and seems to end in fanciful points. The sleeves tied with ribbon down the length of the arm is a style that will persist on and off now through the 1820s, until the enormous sleeves of the 1830s will make such a look impossible.

The hat is curious, I thought. The drawing is a little awkwardly done so it’s difficult to see exactly what is going on here; it looks rather like a box perched on the back of her head, but the green plume over the top of the forehead is quite dashing. And since this is a promenade costume, note the quizzing glass: one must see as well as being seen!

What do you think? Would you wear this on your next jaunt to Kensington Gardens?