Else Schiaparelli was one of the world’s leading Italian fashion designer in the 1920s and 30s. She is known for her Surrealist fashions of the 1930s. She was born on September 10, 1890, in Rome, Italy. Schiaparelli’s fashion design career was early on influenced by Paul Poiret (Couturier) – who was renowned for jettisoning corseted, over-long dresses and promoting styles that gives freedom of movement. Else’s sense of style that targeted the look of fashion in the 1920s and 30s, many of the famous women, including Greta Garbo (American actress). After she relocated and moved to New York, she started to work at a boutique specializing in French fashions, but soon she cultivated her own taste in clothes and accessories. And later on, after she returned to Paris, she soon began designing clothes of her own and opened her own business in 1927.
An image of Else sitting by the window in her own couture house in Paris
“The Bottom” – This dress was made from Else back in the 1940s. This dress resembles the draped pouch at the front of the imperial toga (which is also called the “Sinus.”)
Schiaparelli wasn’t trained with pattern making and clothing construction. Her own method of making most of her works relied on moment and the serendipitous inspirations as the work progressed. This image is Else (herself). She usually draped fabric directly on the body, sometimes using herself as the model.
This is Paul Poiret, was a leading French fashion designer, a master couturier during the first two decades of the 20th center. Schiaparelli was influenced by him how he used styles and his design and enabled the freedom for women to be elegant and sophisticated.
An image of what did women wear in the 1930s.
“pour le Sport.” is a collection which Else expanded the year to include bathing suits, ski-wear, linean dresses in 1927. Her work, later on, were published in Vogue.
Left, is Lili Alvarez, wears a divided skirt by Schiaparelli back in the 1931. On the right, is a 1930 patent illustration that Schiaparelli did. (swimsuit with a built-in bra)
The following two images were Elsa’s first collection of knitwear in 1927 featured sweaters with surrealist trompe L’oecl. Her work really took off with a pattern that gave the impression of a scarf wrapped around the wearer’s neck.
Elsa’s first collection of knitwear in 1927.
Schiaparelli was known for her use of innovative textiles this piece “Evening blouse” was made by Elsa in her winter 1938-39 collection. The materials that she used were silk and metal. She embraced the new technologies and materials using synthetic materials in couture.
“Evening ensemble” was created by Elsa. She used hand-sewn plaited gilt braid on chiffon foundation, lined with silk.
A piece of clothing that Elsa did for the Fall collection back in 1953. She used French materials – Rayon floss, silk, and chiffon.
Fabric in Fashion exhibition at FIT
Materials: Red Silk Faille
Materials: Pink Silk
Schiaparelli uses her ability to drape in deep folds and create such a dramatic folds around the body
Schiaparelli uses textiles to demonstrate how fabric drapes on the body.
Sketch of Schiaparelli’s piece at the Museum at FIT. (Exhibition: Fabric in Fashion)