On rue de Seine

Just a few blocks from the Galerie-musée Baccarat is the Musée Brignole-Galliera where we saw the Jeanne Lanvin exhibition.   There were so many beautiful gowns on display but the lighting did not allow us to capture well on camera.  All but the ivory gown you see here are very early pieces from her collection.  They were beautiful for their time but very simple looking styles for today….the later designs are breathtakingly beautiful and I would love to be able to show them all so you could see.

Madame was known for her overstitching which transformed fabrics into works of art. She used the most delicate silks and luxurious satin. There is a gold coat in the exhibition that is so extraordinary – yards and yards of overstitching – perhaps you can find the image on line. Not only were her designs feminine, I think when a woman put on a Lanvin gown she would have been completely comfortable because it hung or draped so perfectly on her body. And she would have certainly felt very beautiful.

Women of all ages were at the exhibition. Students sketching. Older women pausing for long periods of time….made me wonder if perhaps they were thinking of their younger days and the evenings they wore beautiful gowns….