Cinderella: Part III

Having looked at the five characters present in the film's opening and established the period as mid- 19th century (with the exception of Lady Tremaine), I now want to move on to Cinderella's peasant dress and determine how accurate a depiction it is of French Victorian peasant clothing.

Ahhhhhhhh, who doesn't love the bubble scene.  Here is some of the reference I was able to find:

Cinderella wears a simple shift in muted colors.  Based on these images, that seems appropriate. She wears a handkerchief similar to the girl in the first photo. The shape of her hair, however, seems a little more 1940s than 1840's:

Like the girl's in the paintings, the bodice of Cinderella's dress is in two pieces, a chemise and what looks like some kind of vest.  One thing that is somewhat interesting it that Cinderella's apron differs from some of the aprons we see.  Whilst Cinderella's ties at the waist and hang most the length of the dress, the several of the girls in the paintings wears aprons that bunch in places. Does anyone know what this style is, or is it just a regular apron tied up? I'd love to know!

Cinderella: Part II

As promised, today's post will look at Cinderella's father and Lady Tremaine.  Having established that the film's opening takes place between the years 1850 and 1860, I began to delve into source material from the period.
Beginning with his top half, Cinderella's father is wearing brown, single-breasted tails with a low-cut teal vest.  Whilst researching, I came across information suggesting that men's suits from the period were most commonly black.  It was thought that avoiding ornamentation and gaudy patterns allowed the women's dresses to stand out.  After repeatedly striking out, I began to suspect that the animator took certain liberties with regards to color.  After all, black is less interesting, and would cause the lines of the outfit to blend together.  Then, I found this:

1840s suit on display at LA Country Museum of Art.

Single breasted brown tails with gold buttons and wide lapels!  It's uncanny!  This suit is from the 1840's, slightly earlier than the period previously established, but totally believable that he would still wear an older suit he had (whilst the children's dresses are more stylish since they would have been new).  Vests were a must during this century, and existed in almost every cut and style:

From the 1840's to 1860's, brightly colored men's vests experienced popularity, so the teal vest is in keeping with the period.  I love that it compliments young Cinderella's vest!  A cravat was a must for mid-century gentleman, and they were made of black or colored fabric.  Like the vest they were tied every which way:

A set of instructions regarding cravat-tieing.

A photo from the period.

Trousers from the period were slim and expertly tailored:

Father could have done with a stove-pipe!  This fashion plate shows men sporting mutton chops and mustaches, like the character.  If they weren't wearing hats, you would see that their hair is allowed to grow a little long and worn with minimal styling:

What a dreamboat!

Lady Tremaine proves much trickier.  She wears an Edwardian high-necked day dress that gives her an hourglass shape.  It has long sleeves, reaches the ground and has leg-of-mutton sleeves.  The dress is made with a v-shaped waistline.

Up until this point,  the character's costumes have been, for the most part, historically accurate, albeit caricatured somewhat in order to serve the story.  I did not find this to be the case when researching the influences of Lady Tremaine's day gown.

Whilst the girl's dresses very clearly fit in the early Crinoline period, Tremaine's gown does not.  Thus I began researching the Romantic period, which precedes the Crinoline period.

The most distinguishing feature of the gown are the leg-of-mutton, or gigot, sleeves.  These were popular during the romantic period.  Thus, I assumed, like the others, that all the other characteristics of the getup would fall right into the period, as had happened with the other characters.  Nope.  The more images I looked at, the less I saw of what I was looking for.  I saw pages and pages of this:

And this:

And this:

Ok. So the last one fits, kinda, but for the most part, the gigot sleeves from the period were much larger than Tremaine's and gathered up and down the arm with bows and ribbons.  I could not find one image that reference either a high neck or v-shaped waist (neckline's were primarily boat shaped and waistlines were straight across the natural waistline).  Whilst Tremaine's gown does give her an hourglass figure, it is not as exaggerated as dresses from the Romantic period.

Which leads to the question:  What period does Tremaine belong in.

There is one other period in which the leg-of-mutton sleeve experienced popularity: the Gay 90's.  Here is some reference from the period:

Need I say more? I think it's clear that Tremaine's dress is much more reminiscent of the 1890's than the 1830's.  The question is... why?  Perhaps the animator thought the fashion from the Romantic period too sweet (think Jane Austen), but wanted to retain at least the most distinguishing feature from the period (the leg-of-mutton).  Whilst not historically accurate, I'm inclined to agree.

Cinderella: Part I

It is commonly accepted that Cinderella is based on the German folk story, Aschenputtel, recorded by the brothers Grimm. This is, however, only partly true.  The story exists in several forms, with the Disney version containing elements closer to the French version of the story, Cinderillon.

Illustration of Aschenputtel by Oliver Herford.

Cendrillon Illustration by Gustav Dore

It is in the French version in which Cinderella's travel party consists of transfigured animals and a pumpkin. In addition, it is only in this version that the slipper in question is glass (in Aschenputtel, Cinderella's slippers are silk).

Although this observation does not concretely verify that Disney's Cinderella takes place in France, it does support the supposition. In addition, several of the players have characteristically French names… Drizella, Jaques, Anastasia, Lady Tremaine.  Thus, I explored the costumes in the film under the assumption that the dress would particularly reflect French trends of the period.

The film opens to Cinderella and her father watering a horse by a fountain while her Stepmother and daughters watch from a window.

Based solely on the shape of the three girl's skirts, the film can instantly be placed in the crinoline period, spanning the years from 1850-1869.  Upon observing that they all boast a perfect bell-shape, the period is narrowed further to early crinoline (the bell shape gave way to a more ovular shape later in the period).  

The attention to detail here is both lovely and accurate. First, the three girls sport skirts that begin at their true waistline and are much shorter than what a grown woman would have worn, leaving Anastasia's pantalettes peaking from under her skirt!  These characteristics are in keeping with reference from the period.  It looks rather funny and sets the tone for the step-sisters to be seen as little fools.

The bright colors, ruffling, and bows are not inaccurate, especially given that the French were far more indulgent when it came to decorative elements, although the colors have been intensified:

American dress from the period.

Painting of Empress Eugenie surrounded by her ladies in waiting.

This lovely painting showcases not only French indulgence in fabric and decorative elements, but also a sampling of hairstyles that were fashionable at the time.  Their ringlets are worn loose about their shoulders in keeping with the period, however, Drizella's gigantic bow is a liberty taken by the character animator, again, in order to establish the step-sisters as silly little girls.

This post went a little long, so I will touch on Cinderella's father and stepmother in my next post. Just for fun, look what I came across while researching!:

It's kind of like that time Disney flattened all the princesses' features and lightened their skins to make them look EXACTLY THE SAME:

Why do the princesses need to look like they all go to the same high school?  WHY DO THEY NEED TO STAND NEXT TO EACH OTHER EVER? THEY EXIST IN DIFFERENT WORLDS!?! Woof.  That's a post in and of itself.

Pre-show.

Before diving right into full blown posting, it seems like a good idea to introduce myself to anyone that might be reading, or who might come across this blog once it's evolved into the detailed, thorough, and widely-read blog it is going to become!

My name is Aithne.  I am a Disney-loving DIY-doing indoor horticulture-ing mistress of the… day-time! For I am tired very often!  For those dolla bills, I play with tools and wood for Urban Outfitters.  I have a background in theater production from my college days, most specifically in costume design.

My love for Disney began when my boyfriend and I visited the Walt Disney World Resort in May 2012.  I had visited the Magic Kingdom and Epcot for a day here and there when I was young, but they had made little lasting impression. I hardly remember those visits.  This time was different.  From the moment we arrived I was enamored with every aspect of the parks.  There was something different here, something substantial.  The attention to detail and commitment to storytelling was evident and served to weave magic throughout our stay.  By the time we left, I was fascinated and needed more.

I started reading everything I could get my hands on.  Biographies about Walt's life, articles about Michael Eisner. books written by Imagineers, documentaries, podcasts.  I realized there is a whole wide world out there of intense Disney fans!

As I have worked my way through the animated classics, my theater background has prompted me to ask several questions. When did this take place?  Where?  Why are characters designed the way they are?  How historically accurate are they?  These are the questions that fascinate me.

I supposed at this point the question becomes, 'What makes me qualified to comment on Disney costume design???', to which I would reply, 'Hey buddy, it's a free country ain't it?!'.  Just kidding.  The answer, really, is nothing.  I am no more than a besotted fan looking to combine personal interests and prevent my mind from turning to mush in the twilight of my 20-something years!

Well, here goes nothing, I hope someone eventually reads this crap! <3

OH! and check out my Disney/instant photography fan tumblr… all photos taken by your truly:
www.instantdisney.tumblr.com