Historic Color Combos: Green and Pink
June 6, 2012
Pink and Green Dresses and Gowns
Robe à la Française, circa 1770
Corset, late 18th century
American Evening Dress, circa 1845
American Afternoon Dress, circa 1865
(this gown’s unusual bodice reminds me of a 1950s bikini!)
Maison Manchon Roland Two-Piece Afternoon Dress, circa 1895
Worth Evening Ensemble (includes shoes, alt. bodice, etc.), 1893
Worth Floral Evening Gown, circa 1897
Worth Evening Gown, circa 1900
Myrbor Evening Dress, circa 1926
*
Pink and Green Accessories
Infant Stockings, circa 1650-1750
Lady’s Bag, late 18th century
Lady’s Shoes, circa 1780-1800
Day-to-Night Earrings, circa 1830
Silk Slipper, circa 1850
Lady’s Day Gloves, circa 1885-95
Pink and green have many different shades like rose, salmon, and magenta or sage, Kelly, and olive. Some shades blur the borders between colors, like terracotta (pink and orange) or teal (green and blue). Which way these “half-way shades” turn often depends on the fabric type and the surrounding colors. That’s why it is important to experiment with color, to learn its tricks and subtleties. You get to play Goldilocks…trying out all the possibilities in order to find the one that’s just right!
Click here to discover more Historic Color Combos!
As with all my articles, all of the images in this article are either linked to larger versions, articles explaining them, or other fact-filled sites to help you explore, so please feel free to check them out!
The Aristocat
Old Rags
My Daguerreotype Boyfriend
Futility Closet
Dames a la Mode
Anticostume
The Broke Costumer
The Vault
American Duchess
The Thread-Headed Snippet
Hats from History
Daily Reenactor
Locks of Elegance
Romantic History
Historical Sewing
Tea-Drunk Tailor
Past Imperfect
All The Pretty Dresses
The Bohemian Belle
Madame Isis' Toilette
June 6, 2012 at 2:11 PM
I love the idea of analyzing colors for historical clothing. Where do you get your great images? I would love to know the source of the Lady’s bag late 18th Century. Cheers.
June 6, 2012 at 4:47 PM
Most of the images I find in the online collections of major museums. If you click on the pictures, they are all linked to the museum webpage from whence I found them. The easiest museum websites to navigate are the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the Museum of Fine Art in Boston. Unfortunately, very few museum websites categorize by color (so far the only one with color keywords is the MFA), so you will have to comb through the costume collections with an eagle’s eye!
Another great costuming website that does costume analytics is American Duchess (americanduchess.blogspot.com). She covers many 18th century color trends and how to style them.
June 6, 2012 at 5:54 PM
Oh! I love those gloves! I have never seen a pair that lace up with buttons like that!
And I also like the Worth gowns…
I love your posts!
June 7, 2012 at 2:20 PM
They are really unusual, especially since they are so brightly colored. They must have been owned by a very interesting lady! :)