The Making of the Silhouette

The silhouette story of fashion history is one of extremes; hoop skirts in the 1860s that reach momentous widths, bustles in the 1880s that jutted out behind the fashionable like dislocated humps, and sleeves in the 1890s that made the shoulders of the tiniest women look like those of football players. In the 19th century, fashions were varied and differed drastically from one from one decade to the next. Clothing valiantly played its part but the undergarments, or foundations, were the architecture that created those spectacular silhouettes. Foundations: The Making of the Silhouette, offers an uninterrupted look at the undergarments that shaped the past.