Victoria & Albert Museum, room 40

I've just come back from London where I went for a course at London College of Fashion. London, despite the conservative British viewpoint, is the place where the ultimate edgy fashion happens (Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; it was actually Westwood herself who created the ultimate punk look for Sex Pistols detronizing in result so popular at that time hippie look). Yet, despite London's edginess, British fashion values classic outfits above all (hence the ongoing popularity of Burberry trench coats or Hunter wellies). This might be observed while entering the fashion gallery in Victoria & Albert Museum (level 1, room 40). It covers four centuries of fashion history (18th-20th cent.) uncovering its divirsity, changeability and progress, going from richly ornated dresses to minimalism.

My favorite pieces were the corset and the Longchamp bag (off-topic, Kate Moss-designed Longchamp bags are coming soon!).

Here are some pictures of undergarments from the 19th cent: a crinolette and a corset.

Corsets, as we all know, were used to enhance female lines by highlighting, or creating, an impossibly small waist in order to achieve an hourglass figure. In fact, they ultimately deformed female body. Crinolette, on the other hand, was to strenghten this look. First, women used crinolines, yet by the late 1860s they were replaced by crinolettes that helped to drape the skirt fabric over the hips, as the elegant draperies required good support.

There are also some 19th-century dresses on display:

The second dress is a part of the 'Early Designers' display. It's an evening dress designed in 1881 by Charles Frederick Worth, "a Paris-based couturier who turned dress-making into an art form".

The following dresses were made by French cuoturier Madeleine Vionnet (but purchased by a British lady, Lady Foley). The first on is a white organza and net ball gown and the other is a black lace ball gown.

Other interesting pieces were clothes from the late 50s and early 60s. The amazing red, silk organza evening dress by Jacques Heim (Paris, 1959) and a beautiful off-white dress with blueberry blue flowers.

And last but not least, an amazing Longchamp suitcase (2004):



On the V&A museum's website you may find additional information about the collections but also about fashion in general:

- Vivienne Westwood e-cards http://www.vam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/1231_vivienne_westwood/epostcard.cgi

- The history of corsets and crinolines http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/fashion/features/corset/index.html

- Fashion reading lists http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/fashion/resources/booklists/index.html

- Wedding fashion (with georgeous wedding photos)
http://www.vam.ac.uk/things-to-do/wedding-fashion/home

photos by ancyk