Mendofleur

Yesterday I began the process of taking one of these antique garments apart, and as I did it became the ultimate treasure hunt.  Since I have sewn most of my life since as far back as I can remember, I have always been fascinated by clothing constrution, how a piece of flat, unstructured cloth can be sculpturally formed to fit the shape of a body……any body.  These two silks gems were constructed with such painstaking methods, machine sewing combined with infinite and detailed hand stitches with stays and scallops and bindings and padding.  Every bit except the interfacing, the stays, and small amount of batting for the shoulder padding was done in silk.  I worked on the beaded one first, taking it apart bit by bit.  When I went to iron the pieces, the beauty of the moire floral silk jacquard suddenly became alive.  The light, the moire pattern, the art of each piece was suddenly pronounced.  I literally became spellbound by the exquisite magic of these pieces. The first photo and the last show the label.  Now I intend to work the pieces into some sort of fabric creation yet to be determined.  As I continue with this piece I am wondering who wore it, what was the occasion, was it saved and put away as a family treasure only to be discarded later by someone not enchanted with its history or family importance?