Antique French Work Wear and Clothing
I have a large and diverse collection of antique and vintage French clothing and work wear! From elegant gowns, blouses and slips to heavy plaids and bleu de travail pants, jackets and everything in between!
A Brief History of These Garments
The majority of the clothing I carry is vintage French work wear and within that category I have a large collection of French bleu de travaille garments. These textiles were used throughout the French countryside and are still being used today! The standard uniform of a laborer or farmer in France in the late 19th and early 20th century would have been one of these blue denim jackets and pants with a work shirt underneath. These garments are of beautiful quality and some of the most interesting worker's blues show the signs of time and use, with patches, mends and fading. All of my other antique garments provide some history where possible in their descriptions, along with their materials, dates and condition.
Qualities of These Textiles
French vintage work wear tends to be made of very sturdy stuff! Often these pieces are made of heavy cotton, linen or blue dyed denim (from Nîmes, France). However, I have many stunning and unique garments that use wool, satin, silk and rayon. I never alter any of these textiles, leaving them in as found condition. Often I find these pieces in used or timeworn condition. They sometimes have fabulous hand stitched patches, darns and mends! Other times I find these garments with the original store tags still attached, completely unused! There are many wonderful finds I have for you to browse in my online stores. Please get in touch if you are looking for something specific!
Uses
Most of my clothing collection is still begging to be worn. The quality of these antique garments is beyond compare! They are also wonderful displayed! I love to hang one of our white nightgowns or work shirts on the back of a door… they make beautiful accent pieces! Some of our pieces even deserve framing. They also make fabulous costumes or props for theater, films, reenactments or dress-up parties! When wearing one of these unique garments, be prepared to be stopped in the streets and asked repeatedly “Where did you get that?!”, as I have been told this happens to many of my customers!