Japanese Influences in Dresses

The organic shapes, line quality and Japanese influences of art nouveau were found in women's apparel during that time. In the

1800s, women wore bustle and corsets to alter the look of their physical appearance, but at the turn of the century that started to change. They began to wear looser fitting dresses to create a more gentle curved silhouette. Oscar Wilde noted in a letter that "'the laws of Greek dress' were now being realized in dress that was suspended from the shoulders and relied on the drape and fall of the fabric for the beauty."

At first, Women started to wear looser and simplified dresses to make iteasier to do housework. These looser fitting dresses became to be known as kimono dresses, and that would be popular until the 1920s. The dresses were made from natural materials and may of them were decorated patterns that were inspired from nature.

RG

The Kimono Inspiration: Art and Art-to-Wear in America" by rebecca A. T. Steve

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http://glassoffashion.wordpress.com/page/10/

http://www.wikipedia.com