#15. Vintage Pauline Trigère Fashion Photo Shoot in London

Wearing a vintage Pauline Trigère in London, Photo by Rachel Vogelesien

London,Museum of Natural Hist

Jessica in Pauline Trigere

London Museum of Natural Hist

London, red phone booth

London streets

The main goal of my European trip was to attend one of my favorite designer Alber Elbaz’s memorial exhibition: “Love Brings Love”. For this trip I prepared some vintage Trigère garments for on-location photo shoots in the two cities. The aim was to showcase how Trigère's garments are timeless even long after their original creation date. An interesting fact that came across during my research was that it was not easy to locate Trigère garments. The women owned them treasure the Trigère garments and rarely sell the garments because of their timelessness and enduring quality. During my interview with actress Barbara Feldon, she spoke of a Trigère dress which she absolutely adored. Barbara described that this mossy-green colored dress with little flare at the hem was beautiful and that she wore it often. The dress became thread-bare to the point that a seamstress told her it was too worn-out and beyond repair. Fortunately during my long research journey, I was able to purchase some Trigere garments that were in good condition.

A favorite dress was a green floral jacquard dress which was photographed in front of British Museum of Natural History with the brilliant London based photographer Rachel Vogeleisen. Rachel and I planned out the location and four outfits for this photo shoot. This fit-and-flare sleeveless cocktail dress has a beautiful elongated neckline which extended above the collar bone. The flora brocades are in are in shades of pink, yellow, orange and blue colors spread over green leaflets as back drop. You can view more photos from Rachel's Instagram here. Not only is this an enduring silhouette, but upon close examination, the fabrication was of the highest quality as a trademark Trigère garment. The dress has intricate bound pocket details and is fully lined in black silk organza. I have not yet determine the exact year this dress but my educated guess is it is from the early1950’s due to the silhouette and construction. I hope to find additional supporting materials of the year this dress was created.

In the first shot, I paired the outfit with a beautiful chunky quartz necklace from jewelry designer Jade Chiu, along with her trademark phoenix ring. Dolce and Gabbana sunglasses and Rene Caovilla crystal red high-heel completed this look. This dress is timeless, although it was likely originated over seventy years ago, it makes me feel I can step into any restaurant for an evening out, or go to a fabulous cocktail party in town, even in the year 2024!

The remaining four outfits were each unique and appropriate for a contemporary lifestyle. Strolling along Cromwell Road and its surrounding streets, I aimed to capture the vibrancy and spirit of London. Whether lounging on a park bench with a magazine, boarding a double-decker bus, hurrying to a meeting, or touching up lipstick after lunch, these outfits appeared to be designed for the present day rather than sixty years ago. Which of these photos is your favorite? Visit another photo shoot from Paris here!

June 13, 2022