Enchanted Serenity of Period Films: House of Worth

Charles Frederick Worth is widely considered to be the father of haute couture. Born in England in 1825, he moved to Paris in 1845 and after working as an assistant draper for over 10 years, he established the HOUSE OF WORTH in 1858. Jean-Philippe Worth began as an assistant to his father, Charles Frederick Worth, in 1875. Gradually he was allowed to create his own designs and when his father died in 1895, he became the lead designer for the house. Jean-Charles Worth joined the House of Worth around 1910 and became chief designer after World War I when his uncle, Jean-Philippe Worth, retired. The great fashion dynasty finally came to an end in 1952 when Charles Frederick Worth's great-grandson, Jean-Charles, retired from the family business.

Coronation of Empress Elisabeth of Austria in 1867, 2nd and 3rd photos of replica gown

1880-82 Metropolitan Museum

1887 Metropolitan Museum

1888 Russian Court Dress

1890 ballgown

1898-1900 Jean-Phillipe Worth

1903 Lady Curzon wore peacock gown at Durbar in Delhi celebrating the coronation
of King Edward VII & Queen Alexandra as Emperor & Empress of India.

1881 V&A Museum

1910 tea gown worn by J.P. Morgan's wife

Below are a sampling of the creations from the House of Worth,
along with a slideshow of 150 photos

1867 / 1872 / 1885

1887,1892 / 1893 / 1894

1896 / 1898 / 1900

1900 / 1905 / 1910

View dresses on Flickr

8 comments:

EmilyMarch 27, 2011 at 12:53 AM
Such beautiful clothing! How I wish we had such a sense of real fashion nowadays. It's a real shame not to be able to wear lovely things without getting funny looks from other people.
AnonymousMarch 27, 2011 at 4:56 PM
Stunning dresses!
Thanks for sharing!
Max CaliforniaMarch 27, 2011 at 7:39 PM
these are amazing! I remember studying about Worth during fashion history. Love this! It's a goldmine!
CharleybrownMarch 27, 2011 at 8:54 PM
Emily, I'm encouraged by how vintage fashion seems to be more in style. I would hope that people would admire it and not roll their eyes!

Anon and Max,
Glad to share them! I only became aware of Worth a couple of months ago and was amazed at how many of his dresses popped up in museums, etc. Seems there isn't another designer who is as prolific as he was!
FairiesNestMarch 28, 2011 at 11:17 AM
Such beautiful dresses...wiping drool off my keyboard now..;)
UnknownMarch 28, 2011 at 3:38 PM
I want them alllllll!!!
Joseph HiseyAugust 3, 2011 at 6:47 PM
A friend just told me about your site. Love it! Thanks so much. My love of history and costuming started when I was 14 and I saw Gone With The Wind for the first time. It made a huge impact on the direction of my life.
CharleybrownAugust 3, 2011 at 10:01 PM
@Material World
Thanks! Welcome! I find it so easy to get lost once I start looking at period fashion photos from over the years.