Fashion Accessories
Jewelry
Lover’s Eye Brooches
Portrait miniatures mounted as brooches, pendants, or lockets were very popular items of jewelry during the 18th century. Toward the end of the century, an unusual variation became fashionable: the eye brooch, or lover's... Read More →
Georgian Mourning Brooches
Morbid symbols of death, such as skeletons, skulls, and coffins continued to be used in English mourning jewelry well into the 18th century, but by the second half of the century had become less common and were replaced by images of sorrow.... Read More →
Fans
Ivory Brisé Fan with Painted Vignettes
This ivory brisé fan, c1810-1820, is composed of pierced sticks and guards, threaded with a white silk ribbon, and held together by a steel rivet and mother-of-pearl washers.... Read More →
Brisé Fans, Overview
The second most common type of folding fan is the brisé fan, consisting only of decorative sticks with no pleated leaf. The sticks are typically carved or pierced, and held together by a ribbon which is either glued to each stick or threaded through pierced openings at the top of the... Read More →
Purses & Reticules
Knitted and Netted Purses
Netting was a popular pastime from the mid-18th century through the early 19th century, and was practiced by both men and women. Whereas men generally worked on utilitarian nets for use in fishing, hunting, or gardening, the favorite object for women was the netted purse.... Read More →
Beaded Sovereign Purses
These tiny, flat coin purses — called sovereign purses in England — were often kept inside the larger reticule, or hung from a chatelaine. They were sometimes pretty enough to double as an evening... Read More →
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