Sunday, July 25, 2010

Maison Rouff



A very old postcard, not at all in good condition, but with a wealth of information after a ltttle research. The ladies are standing in front of the French fashion house, Maison Rouff. Beautifully made clothes and soft furnishings from this store are now sought after collectables. César Ritz chose Rouff for table cloths etc. when he opened his first hotels.

I have no idea why the ladies were showing off their lovely parasols like that. Click on the image to get a more detailed view of their clothes.

11 comments:

Jackie said...

Reminds me of some of the pretty fashion postcards from Harrods that my Grandma showed me when I was small. Many of those had parasols, I suppose to keep the sun of their fair skin? I know my Mum always carried one in Summer, scared the African sun might tan her face LOL.

Dru Marland said...

My grandmother explained that if you are being attacked by a cow or possibly bull, and have no other means of escape, you should level your brolly in its direction and flap it open and shut repeatedly, calling "Hup! Hup!". Perhaps this is a training session for just such a contingency.

Anji said...

Jackie: No sun glasses in those days!

Dru: Poor cows, in my experience they are usually curious.

A Lady's Life said...

The umbrellas are beautiful as are the hats :)

Travels with Teddy said...

Hello, I am doing my Master's Research on the early years of Maison Rouff. Does anyone have any information about this fashion house? Is this postcard for sale? I would love to include it in my thesis!
Thanks, Barbara

Anji said...

Teddy: I'm afraid that I sold the postcard, quite quickly. If you want to click on the image and copy it, you're very welcome. I found this picture too, but I expect that you already have it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:House_of_Rouff_woman%27s_dress_c._1897.jpg

A Lady's Life: Yes, I wouldn't mind one for myself.

lavinia doyne-ditmas said...

Hi re blog Travels with Teddy Anji visit headtotoefashionart.com via google search page designers under Maggy Rouff it gives history of all known facts on the house of Rouff. Lavinia

Anji said...

Lavinia: Thanks for the info, I'll try to pass it on to Teddy. I get quite a few searches here so I'm sure that your information will prove useful in the future.

lavinia doyne-ditmas said...

Hi,Anji, Have a look at www.headtotoefashionart.com, go to the Maggy Rouff page under famous designers. There you will find all the current information on the House of Rouff. It is rather complicated and needs much further research. Best wishes, Lavinia Doyne-Ditmas

lavinia doyne-ditmas said...

Hi, Anji,Many thanks for your reply. Do you possibly know the date of The postcard picture of the House of Rouff ? Any information would be very helpful. Best Wishes, Lavinia Doyne-Ditmas.

Anji said...

Lavinia: I'm afraid that I sold the postcard not long after I featured it here. I remember that we weren't even sure where the store was. I imagine that there were no clues on the back of the card as I didn't scan it

We don't really keep much in the way of records of cards that have been sold. We've got 5200 postcards online at the moment - so you can imagine over the years how it is impossible to keep records.

I'm sorry I can't be of more help on this.

There are a couple of postcards of La Belle Jardinière in the store at the moment that you might like to see; They have non-divided backs which makes them pre 1903:

http://cgi.ebay.fr/LOT-2-CPA-lithographie-mode-1815-1900-Souvenir-de-Belle-Jardiniere-PARIS-75-/330852026010?pt=FR_JG_Collections_Cartes_postales&hash=item4d0851469a