18th Century Mid. Nécessaire, London, England. Wood, shagreen, silk, tortoiseshell with gold mounts, steel. Includes: pen knife, beard trimmer, scissors, bottles, paper cutter, 6 razors, hone, strop. via Metropolitan Museum New York City, U.S.A. metmuseum.org
Definition Shagreen: A type of rawhide, or rough untanned skin, originally made from the back of a horse or a wild donkey. In the 18th century, the skin of a shark or stingray also began to be called shagreen.
What did Jane Austen and friends wear? Early 1800s fashions were elegant and pretty with high waists and fabrics that were almost transparent. These Empire style gowns, named after Napoleon’s first Empress, became popular throughout Europe, and were then copied around the world. Colorful outwear was added to make an ensemble more attractive and warmer. History Notes Book 26 Fashion Women 1805-1809. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809
1805 May Two Ladies In Jane Austen Style Walking Dress and Full Dress, English. White dress with a train under a purple cape, purple reticule or bag, and green parasol. Pink evening full dress with low cut bodice, short sleeves and light draping shawl. via Vernon and Hood at The Lady’s Monthly Museum, London, U.K. Definition Reticule, or Ridicule, or Bag or Purse: Often with a drawstring to pull closed and usually made of cloth or covered cardboard and often decorated with beading or embroidery. A reticule, or purse, or handbag, was usually carried by a woman during the Regency period to carry all their daily necessities. Earlier, women used pockets that tied at the waistline and were hidden in the folds of their skirts. Empire style, or early 1800s, high-waisted dresses made it impossible to either sewn in a pocket or to tie on a pocket. So women began carrying small, decorated bags called Reticules, or ridicules, which generally pulled close at the top with a drawstring.
1802 Gorgeous French Hats. Bodice and Trims. To match a blue dress with a spotted fur collar. Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costume Parisien. French fashions like this were copied by English magazines so these styles of hats would have been worn by Jane Austen and her contemporaries. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1801-1804
1801 White Dress With Train, French. Empire style high-waisted dress under a green Spencer and carrying a gorgeous reticule,or bag, with the additional accessories of gloves and red slippers. I can picture Jane Austen and her female friends and family wearing a white Empire style dress and Spencer like this for shopping or paying visits. Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien.
Definition Reticule Or Bag: Purse, often with a drawstring to pull closed and usually made of cloth or covered cardboard and often decorated with beading or embroidery. Carried by a woman during the Regency period to carry all their daily necessities. in the place of pockets. Definition Spencer: Short jacket, cropped at the waist, worn over a dress, or gown. Delicate and regency dresses provided so little protection from the cold, so over garments were essential for warmth, modesty and good health.
1800-1810 ca. Pineapple Reticule, or Bag. A knitted pineapple with long strings. In Jane Austen’s times, pineapples were a luxury imported item that most people in Great Britain had never seen, let alone tasted. When more pineapples were imported from hotter countries, or English gardeners started to grow some, pineapples became a much desired novelty and an exotic experience. Pineapple motifs appeared on dresses, furniture, household goods etc. Knitting pineapple reticules was part of this obsession with pineapples. via Kyoto Museum, Japan.
Definition Ridicule, Reticule, Indispensable, or Handbag: From the late 1700s, pockets could no longer be sewn into gowns, as skirts fell from just under the bust and were full and flowing. Instead, women began carrying small bags, known at first as ridicules and later as reticules, to keep necessary items on their person e.g. handkerchiefs, coins, vinaigrettes, calling cards, glasses etc. http://books2read.com/suziloveReticules
1800-1810 ca. Reticule, or Bag. A knitted pineapple with long strings. via Kyoto Museum, Japan.
In the early nineteenth century, reticules started to look like future handbags as they were often made from rigid card or molded mâché or card into a variety of shapes. Early bags were circular and with a drawstring but as women wanted their reticules to look individual they could be made with two halves and a hinged metal closure or with concertina sides. Materials varied from silk, cotton and string and shapes were round, hexagonal or lozenge shapes with shell shaped bags becoming very popular during the Regency and Romantic Eras.
1800s magazines were written for well bred women who could read, so they gave plenty of ideas for how ladies could make and embellish reticules for their own use and as pretty gifts. Needlework was highly encouraged as a pastime for a lady so bags were frequently embroidered or decorated with beading. By the 1820s, reticules became more like our modern handbags using soft leather gathered at the top or hard leather with a rigid fastener and metal chain for carrying.
1800 Riding Dress of A Young French Man. Blue cutaway coat with wide collar, loose pants tucked into high black riding boots, high white cravat, brown gloves, riding crop and a very small black hat. Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien.
1831-1850 ca. Reticule, Or Handbag, English. Round bag of crimson silk with embroidery and a drawstring. via Museum Of London.
Definition Ridicule, Reticule, or Handbag: From the late 1700s, pockets could no longer be sewn into gowns, as skirts fell from just under the bust and were full and flowing. Instead, women began carrying small bags, known at first as ridicules and later as reticules, to keep necessary items on their person e.g. handkerchiefs, coins, vinaigrettes, calling cards, glasses etc.
The term ‘ridicule’ derived from the Latin ‘ridiculum’ and first used in France during the 17th century and meant subjecting something or someone to mockery. As women’s tiny bags were mocked, or ridiculed, for being a useless fashion accessory when they were first used in the late 1700s, it’s likely this is how the name ‘ridicule’ started. The later term ‘reticule’ derived from the Latin reticulum, meaning ‘netted bag’ and was applied when bags became larger and often made from netting.
In the early nineteenth century, reticules started to look like future handbags as they were often made from rigid card or molded Maché or card into a variety of shapes. Early bags were circular and with a drawstring but as women wanted their reticules to look individual they could be made with two halves and a hinged metal closure or with concertina sides. Materials varied from silk, cotton and string and shapes were round, hexagonal or lozenge shapes with shell shaped bags becoming very popular during the Regency and Romantic Eras.
1800s magazines were written for well-bred women who could read, so they gave plenty of ideas for how ladies could make and embellish reticules for their own use and as pretty gifts. Needlework was highly encouraged as a pastime for a lady so bags were frequently embroidered or decorated with beading. By the 1820s, reticules became more like our modern handbags using soft leather gathered at the top or hard leather with a rigid fastener and metal chain for carrying.
What was fashionable for purses in past centuries? Call them what you like: purses, bags, handbags, reticules, ridicules, clutches, or pocket replacements. They all did the same job and they changed greatly with the prevailing fashions of time. books2read.com/suziloveReticules History Notes Book 3 By Suzi Love.
1804-1829 ca. Two Gentlemen and A Lady, Italian. Dressed as ladies and gentlemen would be in the times of the Bridgerton family and Jane Austen and friends. Gentleman in a caped overcoat with black top hat and red umbrella. Lady in walking costume of lavender cape over red dress, red shawl, white bonnet and black walking shoes. Gentleman in blue opera cloak with red lining, black top hat and black shoes. Men And Women In Costumes, 1804-1829 The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division, The New York Public Library. nypl.org The sort of fashionable outfit and items worn or carried by Jane Austen and her contemporaries when out walking. Outfits were always heavily accessorized with coats, shawls, hats and parasols.
What did Jane Austen and friends wear? Early 1800s fashions were elegant and pretty with high waists and fabrics that were almost transparent. These Empire style gowns, named after Napoleon’s first Empress, became popular throughout Europe, and were then copied around the world. Colorful outwear was added to make an ensemble more attractive and warmer. History Notes Book 26 Fashion Women 1805-1809. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809
The Empire waist gown defined women’s fashion during the Regency Era. ‘Empire’ is the name given in France to the period when Napoleon built his French Empire. High-waisted, loose gowns were adopted by the aristocracy as a symbol of turning away from the fussy, elaborate and expensive clothing worn in the 1700s. Jean-Jaques Rousseau advocated copying peasants and returning to a simpler life and more natural fashions. Unrestricting clothing was part of the new Democracy in France and these simpler and flowing fashions were adopted all over Europe, including Britain and despite the continual wars being fought against France during the early 1800s. Not even war stopped fashions from being copied everywhere.
