"Si Jolie!" fashion exhibit explores Paris - cleveland.com

Si Jolie! New fashion exhibit explores Paris-Cleveland relationship in high style (photos)

Laura DeMarco, The Plain Dealer

Si Jolie! New fashion exhibit explores Paris-Cleveland relationship in high style (photos)

CLEVELAND, Ohio –  Adella Prentiss was just 20 when she packed her Louis Vuitton trunk to visit Paris with her mother, Ellen, in 1890.  

In them, she placed her nightdresses and wrappers and stockings and six shirts and four long skirts, making sure to leave plenty of room for the voyage home.  No doubt, her trunks were much fuller then.

Plain Dealer Historical Photograph Collection: Musee d'Orsay in Paris

The Prentiss women were two of many Clevelanders packing light for Paris in the fin de siècle era … so that they could fill their trunks with French fashions to bring home.

The women’s packing list and trunk are just a few of the captivating items on display at the new “Si Jolie! French Fashion” in Cleveland exhibit at the Cleveland History Center. 

WRHS/Cleveland History Center: Evening Dress, ca. 1900. Jeanne Paquin

“We wanted to do a pretty show, but much more than that,” says Patty Edmonson, Curator of Costume and Textiles, Cleveland History Center.

“It was inspired by our collection; all the clothing is from there. The early French dresses were an inspiration. Many people don’t know about how much Paris influenced Clevelanders, and inspired them to travel.”

Plain Dealer Historical Photograph Collection: Higbee's 1931

Covering more than a century of Cleveland history and French fashion, the fascinating exhibit in the Chisholm Halle Costume Wing showcases how Clevelanders have been global citizens since the 1870s, with high style. It highlights how Parisian fashion motivated Clevelanders to travel, influenced local fashion and inspired the golden age of Cleveland department stores and boutiques. 

WRHS/Cleveland History Center: Evening Gown, ca. 1940. Attributed to Elsa Schiaparelli

Culled from the Western Reserve’s collection, pieces in the show range from the 1870s to today, and include Hermès, Yves Saint Laurent, Elsa Schiaparelli, Louis Vuitton, Chanel and several items from the “golden age of Dior,” the 1950s. It features gowns, days dresses, opera coats, undergarments, suits, peignoir, (tiny) shoes, traveling cases and scarves. There are outfits from prominent Clevelanders including Helen Cowles, Anna Chandler, Nellie Wade, Mary Bolton and Greta Millikin. 

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