In May 2012, Karl Lagerfeld staged a cruise fashion show at Versailles featuring Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France and the first style icon in fashion history. It is not known how much the Rococo collection cost the French couturier, but Her Majesty had at her disposal a crowd of servants and an immense budget, which she did not hesitate to spend on entertainment, outfits and milliners.
In the days of Marie Antoinette, a woman was considered an interior decoration and her appearance was supposed to amuse the eyes of those who looked at her. So, Louis XV (grandfather of Louis XVI, husband of Marie Antoinette) was horrified when he learned that the future Queen of France (at that time the young Archduchess of Austria) had no habit of caring for her face and body. He insisted that French hairdressers and outfits be sent to her. As well as a French dentist to correct her crooked teeth and persuade her to brush her teeth more often than she used to.
BLUE WATER
Marie Antoinette successfully mastered the French "science of beauty" and even acquired her own recipes. For example, every morning Her Majesty wiped her face with "pigeon water" (Eau Cosmetique de Pigeon). The recipe for this "royal water" was published in the book "Toilet of health, beauty and fashion" in 1834 (The Toulette of Health, Beauty and Fashion).
“Take one ounce each of water lily, melon, cucumber and lemon juice; bryony, wild chicory, lily flowers, cucumber and beans (each handful); eight stewed pigeons. Combine all ingredients and place in a distiller, adding four ounces of finely crushed lump sugar, one borax drachma, the same amount of camphor, crumbs from three French buns and a pint of white wine. Leave the mixture to infuse for seventeen to eighteen days, and then proceed to distillation, after which you will get "pigeon water", which will improve the condition of your skin."
Then the face was wiped with a pore-tightening tonic called Eau des Charmes and a "whitening" lotion Eau d'Ange. The morning procedure ended with the application of white paint and scented white powder on the face. Eyes were applied with antimony, lipstick was applied to eyebrows, eyelashes and lips, and a large amount of blush was applied to the cheeks.
The Queen also looked after her own hands daily, or rather, nightly. When she went to bed, she put on gloves soaked in almond oil, rose water and wax.
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Not being like most of the courtiers of Versailles (who, if even washed, then very rarely), Marie Antoinette often took a bath, but always wore a flannel shirt to maintain decency. She lathered herself with scented soap (with the addition of bergamot, amber and herbs), rubbed with muslin (muslin) bags filled with bran, while sitting on a large pillow stuffed with pine nuts, flax seeds and sweet almonds.
Perfume subtleties
Perfume was an absolute must at Versailles. Thousands of people lived in the courtyard, and only a few of them took care of their hygiene. The royal court literally stank. In order for the queen's room to smell pleasantly (despite the surrounding odors), there were always vases with fresh flowers and bags of dried herbs and flowers (orange blossom, rose, lavender, lemon, violet) in it. All these scents were present in Her Majesty's perfume. She especially loved the simple aromas of violet and orange blossom.
Dresses for all occasions
Marie Antoinette had a huge collection of clothes. As Queen of France, she couldn't afford to appear in public in the same toilet twice. Court etiquette also required the queen to change into a different dress three times a day. For example, to attend Mass every morning, Marie Antoinette wore a dress made of silk or velvet. Then she changed into a more comfortable dress made of muslin or cotton. Finally, at the end of the day, Her Majesty would choose a luxurious outfit for a ball, dinner, concert or other evening event.
Every summer she ordered 36 new dresses and the same for the winter season. And every week - 4 pairs of new shoes. The Queen also wore scented gloves and required at least 18 pairs at all times.
Rosa Bertin, the milliner of the French queen, claimed that Marie-Antoinette had 12 winter dress dresses, 12 simple dresses and 12 dresses on a frame, which was called "panier" (fr. Panier - "basket") or "figs" (German fischbein - "fish bone, whalebone"). The frame was made of willow or steel rods, or whalebone. Her Majesty wore her fancy dress to card parties and private dinners.
She also wore summer and spring dresses in autumn. At the end of each season, the outfits were changed again, if Her Majesty did not want to leave some of them as they were.
Separately, it should be said about dresses made of muslin and cotton. They were just beginning to come into fashion and were not "updated" every season. They were usually worn for several years.
Huge funds were spent on the Queen's wardrobe. 120 thousand livres in the palace treasury Her Majesty "lowered" only on dresses. Her fondness for Rosa Bertin's dress design (which cost between 1,000 and 8,000 livres for each dress) led to the fact that the budget was often overspending. No wonder Marie Antoinette was nicknamed Madame Deficit.
Chamber: morning ceremony
Every morning after waking up, the head of the royal servant brought Her Majesty the gazette des atours, a large book that collected samples of all the fabrics from which Marie Antoinette's dresses were sewn. She marked with pins the three dresses she intended to wear during the day. The selected outfits were brought to the royal apartments in a basket covered with green cloth.
Only then could Her Majesty begin to dress. The room was filled with courtiers who tried to attract the attention of Marie Antoinette in the hope of becoming her favorite or favorite. In a letter to her mother, she wrote: “At twelve o'clock in the afternoon, the so-called Chamber is held, where everyone who does not belong to the usual circle can come. I put on blush and wash my hands in front of the whole world; men go out, women stay; and then I dress in their presence."
Her Majesty's Dressing Room
The royal collection of clothes fit in three dressing rooms. Outfits lay on shelves or hung in closets. The rooms also had large tables on which dresses were folded to be neatly packed later.
The royal dressing room was open to the public, as were most of Versailles' premises. Any decently dressed visitor could drop in and admire the splendor of the royal attire.
Trendsetter
Marie Antoinette can rightfully be called the legislator of new fashion trends that influenced not only her contemporaries, but also subsequent generations. Here are just a few of Her Majesty's “fashionable inventions”.
Negligee
The queen came up with a white muslin dress that looked more like a nightgown and was called "negligee". At first, this innovation was perceived by the public extremely negatively, but later all the fashionable ladies of the court began to dress in a similar style.
Chokers
Wanting to look young, the queen hid places that betrayed age. Hands were under gloves, and a flabby neck was hidden behind chokers - satin ribbons, embroidered with patterns and stones.
Muly
Marie Antoinette also contributed to the development of shoe fashion. She wore shoes with heels so high that she could only keep herself from falling by leaning on a cane. Later, the shoes were transformed into mules - graceful slippers with low heels with a toe that barely covered the toes.
Men's suits
The Queen, having arrived on the hunt in a camisole and culottes, introduced men's suits and tailcoat jackets into fashion. The girls put on men's hats.
Floral print
During the reign of Marie Antoinette, fabrics with patterns in the form of flowers, bouquets and floral ornaments became popular. Since then, the floral print has come into fashion and is popular to this day.