Sketches, original drawings, circa 1915-1925, 1910s-1920s

The bulk of these original drawings are from early 1920s. This part of the collection has several arrangements, by year, season, or type of clothing - such as Evening Wear, Evening Gowns, Theatrical Wear, Wraps and Coats, Pajamas and Negligees, and Wedding Gowns.



2 volumes document lines by year and season (1916, 1917-1918). Sketches rendered in several distinct styles, by multiple artists. Some illustrations very carefully drawn and colored with great attention to detail (most consistent example 1916 sketches), drawings from later period captivate as much for the style of execution as the subject they portray (Theatrical costume). Loose sketches collected into volumes by clothing type make up the bulk of the subseries (fragments of scrapbooks' cover artwork can be seen in 1.3.6).



Drawn on a heavy board in various techniques, predominantly ink, gouache, and watercolor, some accentuated with gold and silver. There are many cases where it is especially difficult to attribute the purpose of the garment, a tea gown or theatrical costume maybe misinterpreted/misattributed, since Lucile designed for themed occasions, theater and revue, where risqué outfits were required; evening gowns designed for the stage actresses may have become part of the evening wear collection.



Most of the loose sketches have rusty staple marks on them.