Hey you, how are you?
I hope this blog post finds you well! I am very excited to share a brief history of these pants called Culottes; pronounced "ku-lo-ts". This is a type of pant I never knew I'd enjoy wearing or if they would even look good on me. So happy I made this purchase! Here's a little fashion history of these super chic and comfy pants.
Culottes History and Evolution
Renaissance (1500s)- Upper class Men during this era wore breeches which translates to Culottes. However during that time, culottes were pants for men that were more tight fitting and ended just slightly below the knee and buckled or belted around the waist.
French Revolution (1700s)- These type of pants were mostly worn by those with wealth and it was so often that it became of symbol of upper class. Wearing these pants identified who were the wealthy versus regular people of society.
“ The drama surrounding culottes only intensified as they made the transition from a symbol of male wealth into a freeing, feminist garment for women. This version, a skirt split into pants, is much more in line with what we know culottes as today.”
Victorian Era- Women started to become more active in sports such as cycling, horseback riding, and playing tennis for example. It's very hard to do these activities with a skirt! Which is why the use of the Culottes was eventually permissible to use for woman who were only involved in these professional activities. Not as an everyday wear. The french word culottes were referred to as woman pants.
“The bifurcated skirts of the Victorian era were originally created as garments that would give the illusion of wearing a long skirt while enabling women to straddle a horse instead of riding sidesaddle. ”
Thank You Elsa Schiaparelli!
Elsa Schiaparelli was the first woman, bold and brave, to come out wearing culottes as part of her daily wardrobe. She did not hide the fact that they were indeed pants for women! Her pants were called "manly with hints of lesbianism" according to British Press (can you believe this!?). Wearing these pants caught on, and got so much worse that women in Paris were arrested for wearing culottes (oh my how we have evolved..).
I am wearing culottes on my blog today (and you can catch me wearing them this Summer)! In my perspective, they are chic and comfy and perfect for Summer!
Here are some way to wear Culottes
Work- wear some dressy culottes (fancier fabric that are not jeans or chambray material) with a dress shirt for work and heels.
Winter with a dress- Google this! You can also wear a dress over culottes for winter with boots to give this a whole new look!
Laid back/casual look-wear these culottes with sandals and a basic tee to keep cool for the Spring or Summer.
Fashion tip!: I advise for you to wear a more tight fitting shirt or blouse considering the pants are loose around the legs. This will give the overall look a good balance. If you don't want to show your arms, throw over a cardigan or vest of some sort :)
Shop the Look!
I hope you enjoyed this little twist to today's blog and have a new appreciation for these pants! Hasta Luego! (until the next time!)
Information gathered by: https://startupfashion.com/fashion-archives-history-of-culottes/