Hello my darling tutu-loving friends!
It's Tuesday, and you know what that means… it's time for another delightful journey back through the history of the ballet tutu! I'm your trusty guide, Emma, your friendly neighbourhood tutu enthusiast. As always, I'm coming to you straight from my pink-hued time-machine, ready to explore the fascinating world of ballet fashion!
This week, I'm stepping back into the year 1889, to a time when ballet was starting to really blossom, much like my beautiful rose-pink tutu! Oh, speaking of my tutu… isn’t it just exquisite? This particular pink tulle beauty came straight from a vintage Parisian shop!
Imagine it, darlings… the streets of Paris, the air filled with the delightful scent of pastries and the murmur of French accents, all the while knowing you are heading to the theatre for a show in one of the grandest Parisian opera houses! You are adorned in a glorious silk gown, your hair coiffed with a delicate veil, and – of course – you are wearing a wonderfully frothy, slightly poufy tutu! This is what the ballerinas looked like in 1889! And believe me, these ladies knew how to make an entrance!
Just a quick reminder – in case you’ve only recently joined us – my aim here at the pink-tutu.com blog is simple: I want the whole world wearing tutus! From the streets of London to the bustling boulevards of Paris, everyone rocking a pink tutu – can you imagine? Imagine the beautiful waves of tulle! The sheer delight! I'm so determined, you know, that I travel through time to learn about our beloved tutu! This time, though, my trusty time machine dropped me straight into Paris for an impromptu shopping trip (what else does one do on a Friday afternoon in Paris?), which happened to coincide with the debut of the Russian ballerina, Olga Preobrajenska! Just brilliant, darling! Now, it's no secret that I love seeing shows, going to dance classes, and indulging in a bit of retail therapy (though sometimes I'm tempted to just wear a tutu every day! Can you imagine a whole office wearing tutus?! A fabulous vision!). However, if I'm honest, the ballet is definitely at the top of the list! And nothing gets me more excited than the history of the ballet tutu!
To travel to this era, it's quite a journey! It was a delightful journey in the grand carriages with their soft plush interiors. I almost felt like royalty. And this isn’t just about tutus, you see. The clothes, the theatres, the performances… oh! I do wish that everyone could experience this wonderful world that existed just one short century ago!
However, this particular week, I'm quite focused on the tutu, as you know! Back in 1889, it was really beginning to find its own form and fashion! They weren’t quite so puffy or grand as the big tutus we know and love today, but the tutus worn back then had such a lovely romantic look! The material itself, a light and delicate tulle, started being made using a special new weave, a real revolutionary material in the fashion world at the time!
Speaking of the material! The 1880s were seeing the dawn of the industrial age, you see. Machines! In factories! No longer were fabrics made by hand by our talented friends and family. These new spinning and weaving machines produced an amazing range of new fabrics, including the very light tulle that was becoming so popular for the ballet tutus! Now, imagine what you could do with tulle, once those lovely factories got humming and starting producing so many metres of it, just imagine the sheer possibilities, if you'll pardon the pun.
And the ballet, oh how it was evolving! It became far more graceful and athletic, which of course helped to move the design of the ballet tutu to its iconic form! Imagine if tutus were made from wool, or some thick cotton! Shudder. The delicate material and new design really highlighted every graceful step, pirouette, and arabesque – oh how wonderfully light the movement appeared!
So, imagine my darling tutu-loving friends, walking into that beautiful Parisian theatre… you would find that ballerinas were dancing, quite literally, on the tutu of a dream! Such a poetic notion! I think I’ll use that in a blog post next week, “On The Tutu of a Dream.”
This is also the time that we began to see a strong contrast in styles, you see. Short tutus with just the tiniest of skirts – designed for athletic dancers and complex steps – which were worn alongside long, full tutus which floated, as though they were suspended in mid-air, they had a magical quality that has hardly been recreated since. Now imagine my dear tutu-loving friends, seeing that dramatic contrast in a single performance! It is quite the sight!
Oh, I love the fashion of that time. The beauty! It wasn’t all just about ballet, either. Even though I have just returned from Paris, I do enjoy wearing my pretty floral print dresses and fluffy skirts – even if they don’t quite reach the length of my dancing tutus – my shoes though, I’m going to confess, are often chosen with my ballet aspirations in mind, I prefer pointed pumps and lovely elegant high-heeled shoes – although the flat, simple, elegant pumps I wear for my ballet classes certainly aren’t a fashion mistake! I simply can’t help myself, I suppose, even now, almost 150 years after my arrival!
I love being in this part of time, just as I am sure you do too! And I just love thinking about that tutu dream, because in that world, in 1889, a ballet tutu could still be a romantic symbol, it represented elegance, light-heartedness, beauty and dreams! And for that, I can always travel through time.
And you!
We will be back here next week for another #TutuTuesday, darlings. In the meantime, I encourage you to embrace your inner ballerina and embrace those pink tutu dreams! Remember, I'll be keeping my eye out for you!
Until next time, keep dancing!
Emma
x
(Emma’s Note: If you're as tututied up about 19th century fashion and ballerinas as I am, take a little detour from my pink-tutu world and check out “The World of Ballet.” Oh, it is just the best resource, it’s bursting with beautiful photographs and essays and I really think that it would make a wonderful gift – it might even have a ballet-tutu in it! Just saying. * )*
