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| image source- book~ "Daring Do's" |
I have been obsessed with this fashion since reading about it in the book, "Daring Do's, A History of Extraordinary Hair", by Mary Frasko. She refers to it as "Mode 1830", devised by the hairdresser Croisat. Prior to this time very simple coiffures such as the titus cut were the rage and a woman of fashion had no need for the services of a hairdresser. What better way to revitalize one's ailing practice than by inventing a coiffure that required wire frames, scaffolding and a variety of accessories such as flowers, feathers, jewels, ribbon and other assorted gee-gaws?
From what I have gleaned from my readings, two of the prevailing modes at the time were the "coiffure a la Chinoise(Chinese)" and the Apollo's Knot Coiffure...
The Woman of Fashion- 1830
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| source: "The Ladies' Museum for the Year 1830" |
The coquette, dizzy, intoxicated, at last returns home to undress and give her head to her hairdresser, an artist of renown, who is, at the same time, physiognomist, chemist, designer, and geometrician. This gentleman—another headsman— quickly seizes on her head, examines attentively all its forms ; his compass in hand, he traces shapes, angles, triangles; he observes the distances between the angles of the forehead, assures himself of the proportions of the face, and applies himself to seize deftly upon the relations between the two sides of the forehead and the two sides of the face, which commence its fall and terminate beneath the ears. He then imagines a kind of head-dress which tempers all that is too piquant in the physiognomy of the fair, he creates a turn-up after the Chinese fashion, which smoothes the hair over the temples and leaves to the forehead all its magnificence and purity of design. Sometimes, also, according to his fantasy, he weaves mats, astounding pads and pyramidals, which he skilfully raises in stories on the summit of the head, leaving on the sides two masses of small bands like grapes, which he curls and puffs with charming art.
To the questions of his client the hairdresser responds in a tone sweet and respectful; he does not always wait to be interrogated, and narrates willingly the anecdotes which have come to his knowledge or he has learnt by reading the newspapers. The hairdresser of 1830 is essentially romantic, but he has the art to show himself according to his company, either ministerial, or liberal, or royalist; he cites indifferently the Quotidienne, the Drapeau blanc, or the Journal des De'bats. When he has disposed, with taste, upon the edifice he has so delicately raised, flowers, feathers, an aigrette, pins with fine stones, or a diadem, Figaro retires, and our lady of elegance puts on a robe of painted bookmuslin, with short sleeves and low body, in the style of the Virgin; she takes with discretion a few diamonds, earrings, and necklace, and deigns to hear that dinner is ready.
source: The Frenchwoman of the century by Octave Uzanne, 1877
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| image source~ book~ "daring Do's" |
The hair, for the ball-room, is dressed in the Chinese style: on one side of the face is a plain band of hair, on the other a full cluster of curls. The Apollo's knot is very much elevated on the summit of the head, and appears full in front: among the tresses is mingled white and coloured gauzo, with marabouts and ears of corn, in diamonds. A white dress-hat has appeared at an evening party, of gros de Naples; with white flat feathers, tipped and edged with pink, and playing over the hat in every direction. Some toques are half of velvet and half of coloured gauze; they are laid in folds on each side, on the temples, and in the front is a bouquet of marabouts or an esprit. The dress-caps are made with double wings, and are of black and white blond: between the wings is a wreath of geranium, the flowers of which alternate with a plait of blond. Turkish toques are ornamented with two crescents, which support two aigrettes placed on in a V. Spanish toques consist of a gold net, and are ornamented with a plume and a gold tassel on the right side. A wreath of white roses is sometimes all the ornament on the hair, and is placed on the summit of the head; while others place a wreath of red-and-white daisies on one side. Pinks pomegranates, and ranunculuses are also favourite flowers for the head. These are detached, and not in wreaths.
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| source: "The Ladies' Museum for the Year 1830", Apollo's Knot Coiffure |
On some evening head-dresses is a white eiprit, in the form of a diadem, with the Apollo's knot fastened by a diamond comb. Berets of ponprau-coloured barege, striped with black, are ornamented with two esprits; one over the right ear, that on the other side placed much higher. Another headdress is a toque of rose-coloured satin; the border turned up all round, and the crown formed of rouleaux of satin, en treiliage: six or seven rose-coloured feathers, curled, are placed in bias, from one side of the toque to the other. A dress-hat of tulle, lined with blue satin, is hollowed out in two places to shew the hair; two languettes, placed in these hollows, are turned up, and two bows fasten them, and serve to support two esprit feathers.
They now give the name of beret to almost every kind of turban invented by the milliners, though nothing is more unlike the primitive simplicity of the Bearnese cap, than those preposterously broad coiffures of the present day, which are cut about, and turned all manner oT ways. Some of the newest are of three or four different coloured gauzes jumbled together, with a large bow on the top of the crown; whence depend two long ends, fringed, felling as low as the shoulder. It is not possible to describe all the various sorts of berett. These innovations, however, render them not an unbecoming head-dress, and our fashionables are anxiously looking forward for some more novel changes in this favourite covering for the head.
source: Belle assemblée: or, Court and fashionable magazine, 1826
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| source: "The Ladies' Museum for the Year 1830" |
The beautiful Lady S. M., lately arrived in Paris, and who was on habits of great intimacy with the Orleans family before the downfal of the Bourbon dynasty, lately received a note from one of the young Princesses, requesting her to take coffee at the palace. Lady S. M. accordingly made her toilette in her usual style of magnificence. Her ladyship's hair a la Chinoise, was looped up with diamonds, and the diamond star which blazed on her forehead might have graced the brows of royalty. Her dress corresponded with her superb coiffure, and the genius of Victorine had been exhausted in the execution of a garniture en marabouts, of which each plume was fastened to the gown by a diamond agraffe. Upon entering the Queen's apartment, Lady S. M. found her Majesty seated with her family round a table, stuffing black leather dolls for the amusement of her youngest daughter, lately recovered from the measles. Her Majesty wore a plain black satin gown, and her customary head-dress, a black hat aml feathers. The Princesses wore white muslin frocks and blue sashes. The Due de Nemours was reading a newspaper aloud. Lady S. M. gave one glance at the family party, and another at her own coiffure, and found herself obliged to plead a ball at Lady Granville's as an excuse.
source: Belle assemblée: or, Court and fashionable magazine, 1831
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| source: "The Ladies' Museum for the Year 1830" |
Berets, composed of silver gauze, adorned with feathers, sometimes mixed with small bouquets of silver wheat, are much in favour in full dress, though not so fashionable as head-dresses of hair. The Chinese style is coming much into fashion. One of the prettiest costumes of this kind for social parties, is formed by the hair arranged in the Chinese mode in front, and disposed in two bows behind; the end of one of which falls in a tuft of curls on one side. A single flower placed over the left temple, with its buds and foliage, completes this pretty and original coiffure.
Head-dresses of hair are very fashionable; and, since the weather became warm, the Chinese style has been almost universally adopted; in fact, we see scarcely any thing but that, or the hair a la Madonna, neither of which, and particularly the Chinese style, is becoming to French women. Tortoise-shell combs have almost entirely superseded gold ones. The workmanship of the former is now brought to exquisite perfection. Some represent a basket, from which issue sprigs, forming an aureole. The galleries of others are cut in net work of extraordinary lightness and beauty. We see some also cut in a wreath of leaves; long, detached from each other, and a little arched.
The hair continues to be adorned with flowers; the most fashionable of which are sprigs of rose-buds, of lark-spur, and double hyacinths. A singularly pretty coiffure is composed of a braid of hair arranged on the summit of the head, something in the form of a basket, in which is placed a light bouquet of different flowers.
source: Belle assemblée: or, Court and fashionable magazine, 1831
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Flowers are very much used to decorate bead-dresses of hair, as are also knots of ribbon; these last are sometimes placed so as to surmount the bows of hair on the summit of the head-dress, which gives an extraordinary, and in our opinion, an ungraceful height to the coiffure.
Head-dresses of hair are almost universally adopted in full dress. We observe that at the opera many of the caiffmes are of the half Chinese kind; these are generally ornamented with knots of ribbon only. A very fashionable style of headdress is called the emffitre a, la Flore; the hair is lightly curled on the temples, and divided into two parts behind, one forms a large bow on the summit of the head, the other is plaited and disposed round the bow so as to bear some resemblance to a basket; sprigs of roses, jessamine, etc. are placed in it so as to form an arch over the bow; this style of head-dress is adopted by several very elegant women.
source: The Ladies Pocket Magazine, 18__?
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| Chinese Coiffure ~image source, "The Chataquan, 1896 |
"...this was the German Countess, only just married; the fair bride who was accompanying her husband to the Brazils. She had voted her blushes inconvenient travelling companions, and left them at home. It was a wise forethought; blushes were never intended to display themselves on the crowded deck of a steamboat, under the ultra coiffure a la Chinoise this lady adopted, and which outChinesing the Chinese, reminded one of the very rough and impromptu coiffure bestowed by that untaught, extemporaneous, unintentional, rude hairdresser of a Bluebeard, who seized the locks of shrieking Fatima in his fierce hands, and forthwith strained them up—up—up, so tight and high,— brandishing a scimetar instead of a comb,—that, had her hair been the least inclined to comb off, the tresses would have been all severed from the head, and one should think, the scalp too, before the head itself was severed from the shoulders. Thus did he dress his wife in the most exaggerated tip-top "a la Chinoise" mode..."
source: A visit to Portugal and Madeira, by Lady Emmeline Stuart-Wortley, 1854
The toilettes of the ladies I am not clever enough to describe. They seemed a thought too glaring, perhaps ; and the younger of them have got into a shocking habit of wrenching all their hair to the back of their heads, till the roots start in a manner that must be quite painful. I believe they call this "Coiffure a la Chinoise" (a Chinese head-dress), but it has very much the appearance of the preparation which a determined person might make previous to washing the face when it was excessively dirty—a comparison unfortunately often suggesting itself too naturally.
source: Household Words, by Charles Dickens, 1853
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| apollo's knot coiffure more images can be found here: http://imageworship.blogspot.com/ |
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