The Appearance and Reappearance of the Leg-of-Mutton Sleeve: An Analysis of the Power of the Fashion Press
Brynnea Irvine
Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice
About this Item
- Title
- The Appearance and Reappearance of the Leg-of-Mutton Sleeve: An Analysis of the Power of the Fashion Press
- Contributor Names
-
Irvine, Brynnea (Author)
-
Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York. Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice (Degree granting institution)
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Font, Lourdes M. (Thesis advisor)
- Date
- 2021
- Degree Information
- M.A. Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York 2021.
- Department: Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice.
- Advisors: Font, Lourdes. Committee members: Magali Berthon; Sarah Byrd; Nancy Robertson; Denyse Montegut.
- Abstract
- Fashions of the past are so evocative of their time that it is fairly easy for a fashion historian to look at an extant garment and determine its date. Certain elements of fashion, however, come back into style over and over again, year after year. One such element is the leg-of-mutton, or gigot, sleeve. First worn by women during the Romantic era of the 1820s and '30s who were inspired by Renaissance paintings, the voluminous sleeve would go on to reappear throughout the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries. The leg-of-mutton sleeve defined the fashionable silhouette of the 1890s, only to return in the 1930s, during the immediate postwar period in the mid-1940s and into the early '50s, the 1980s, and 2010s as one of many options. Each time the extravagant sleeves came back into fashion, they were re-imagined to appeal to the woman of that era. Even though every time they returned they were slightly different, and even though fashion change certainly isn't logical, every reappearance of the sleeve was marked by strikingly similar conditions. This research suggests that the leg-of-mutton sleeve has appeared repeatedly for three main reasons: nostalgia for the past, reaction against the present, and its effect on the silhouette.During the periods of their popularity, writing about gigot sleeves changed. Nineteenth-century fashion periodicals were often judgmental and disapproving of the prevailing modes, whereas twentieth and twenty-first-century magazines encouraged readers to try new styles. This research elucidates the role of the fashion press as disseminators rather than instigators of fashion. As time went on, the press recognized that its true purpose was to circulate changes decided upon by those in charge of the fashion cycle. It was fashionable society and fashion designers, rather than the press, who brought about the appearance and reappearance of the leg-of-mutton sleeve.
- Rights
- In Copyright
- The copyright for this work is held by its author/creator(s). Usage of this material beyond what is permitted by copyright law must first be cleared with the rights-holder(s). This work has been made available online by the Fashion Institute of Technology Gladys Marcus Library strictly for research and educational purposes. If you are the copyright holder for this work and have any objections to this work being made available online, please notify us immediately at [email protected].
- This item must not be sold to any third party vendors.
- Identifier
- FIT Repository ID: etd_000866
- pqdiss: 28540752
- ISBN: 9798505542385
- Language
- eng
- Publisher
- Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
Citation
Irvine, B. (2021). The Appearance and Reappearance of the Leg-of-Mutton Sleeve: An Analysis of the Power of the Fashion Press [Master's thesis, Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York]. FIT Institutional Repository. https://institutionalrepository.fitnyc.edu/item/3916
Irvine, Brynnea. The Appearance and Reappearance of the Leg-of-Mutton Sleeve: An Analysis of the Power of the Fashion Press. 2021. Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York, Master's thesis. FIT Digital Repository, https://institutionalrepository.fitnyc.edu/item/3916
Irvine, Brynnea. "The Appearance and Reappearance of the Leg-of-Mutton Sleeve: An Analysis of the Power of the Fashion Press." Master's thesis, Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York, 2021. https://institutionalrepository.fitnyc.edu/item/3916