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Paul Poiret: The King of Fashion
(hold on tight this ones long)
(hold on tight this ones long)
Poiret is known as the King of Fashion as he radically changed the way women dressed in the 20th century. He played a huge role in the birth of modern fashion photography and illustration as well as becoming the first first designer to really turn his house into a lifestyle brand
Poiret was born on April 20th 1879 in Paris. His family were the owners of a thriving Parisian textile business. He grew up in a bustling Paris, during the time of the building of the Eiffel Tower, three world fairs, and the test drives of the first automobile.
Poiret wasn’t the best student and got most of his education outside of school. He studied paintings and sculptures at the Louvre and spent his nights at the Comedy Francais. This birthed his love for art and theater at an early age.
Poiret’s father apprenticed him to an umbrella manufacturer. His boss gave him the lowest task to break his pride, that job- sweeping the floors and stopping up the holes in umbrellas. He collected scraps of the silks for umbrellas and took them home to create miniature dresses.
It was at this time Poiret also started designing on paper. Madame Cherie was the first to purchase Poiret’s designs, soon after the House of Worth, and Jacques Doucet followed. It was Doucet who gave the 19 year old Poiret a job as the head of his tailoring department.
Poiret later got fired after Doucet found out Poiret was stealing designs for his girlfriend at the time, an American actress, and got the pieces made with a different tailor at a cheaper price. But this wasn’t the end for Poiret as he later got a job at the House of Worth.
This is where Poiret started to experiment with non-western silhouettes in his work, which did not fall well with the clientele at Worth. (A Russian Princess called his work “A horror”) His time at Worth would soon come to an end.
At Worth he created the style of coat which he called “Confucius” would later become the foundation of his collections. And in 1903 Poiret opened his own shop claiming “In a month I was known.”
In the early years he stuck to more mainstream silhouettes, corseted waists and wide sweeping skirts. This all changed when he married his childhood friend Denise Boulet. She became his biggest model and muse.
“My wife, Denise, was my inspiration for my dress theories,” Poiret told Vogue magazine in 1913, “It was she who inspired me to preach and follow the creed of simplicity… She is the expression of all my convictions. Slim, dark, uncorested, untouched by paint or powder…
untrammeled by high heels, pointed shoes, or tight gloves.”
Poiret didn’t know how to sew, so he draped directly on the body creating extremely simplified lines inspired by non western ways of dress.
Poiret didn’t know how to sew, so he draped directly on the body creating extremely simplified lines inspired by non western ways of dress.
The hobble skirt was a skirt so fitted to the legs that women could not take a full stride, many women even wore hobble garders to restrict the legs movement and also to ensure that their skirt would not rip. “I freed the bust but I shackled the legs”
The Jupe Culottes consisted of either pants concealed by an over skirt or harem pants like draping that gave the effect of a skirt.
These two trends were birthed by Poiret.
These two trends were birthed by Poiret.
Poiret became the first fashion designer to develop a holistic brand when he expanded to cosmetics, fragrances, and interior design. In 1911 Poiret became the first designer to integrate perfume into his fashion label with the perfume Rosine named after his first daughter.
Poiret was called to arms in the early days of WWI. “I am going to join my regiment, France needs men today not artists.” Poiret later admitted he played a very mediocre role in the war as he was a regimental tailor and never saw the front lines.
After the war Poiret threw himself into his work, especially after the death of his oldest daughter Rosine and his youngest son Gaspar. He was determined to restore his brand to the pre-war glamour that it once was.
Poiret refused to adapt to the needs of the modern woman who wanted more practical clothing but still remained chic. With the rise of Chanel, Poiret’s shine as a fashion powerhouse faded. But this was not the only cause of his fall.
Pre-War Poiret threw some of the most extravagant parties (his most famous one was called “The Thousand and Two Nights”) Paris had ever seen and had a love for spending money. His post-war spending increased while his earnings decreased, which was part of his demise.
In 1919 he invested in a nightclub which was a total disaster. Poiret lost $500,000 which is about $7 million today. In his later years he was forced to sell his mansion and downgrade to a smaller home, sell his art collection, and even the entities to 2 of his companies.
In 1928 him and Desnise divorced after 22 years of marriage. The stock market crash of 1929 was the final straw for Poiret, he was forced to shut his doors.
Poiret struggled financially in his final years due to his lavish spending, anytime he had a little bit of money he would just spend it. Poiret died on the 30th April 1944 at the age of 65.
“Among the appellations with which it pleases people to describe me, there is one that always amuses me. It is one of ‘King of Fashion’, no title is better suited to flatter a man’s spirit over all the more because the king of fashion reigns not only over one people,
but of all peoples, over the whole world, and over sovereigns themselves.”
To finish off this thread I want to say Paul Poiret wrote an autobiography called “The King of Fashion” remember to take everything with a grain of salt because this fashion mogul sure did love to exaggerate.
