Lady Violette

Here is one of several of the beautiful decorated versions of this finished shawl style that I showed over the last two weeks. This one is decorated with a white silk flower corsage.

To create this basic tie and style Tricia used a white raw silk oblong scarf/shawl measuring 72″ long by 20″ wide ~ not counting the fringe on each end which is a nice extra touch and measures about two extra inches long on each end.

We have experimented and discovered that a pashima or a silk scarf of this approximate size will also work for this shawl tying/styling technique. You can use a solid color as we have done here, or an all over small print.

The longer the shawl is the more you will have to work with as you create your drape. We recommend the longer versus the shorter versions of these shawls for ease and success in creating this style.

 

 

To Begin:

1) Drape the shawl over shoulders with Right side of scarf longer than the Left side ~ as in picture 1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2) Bring the shorter Left side of shawl across your body ~ as in picture  #2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3) Drape it over allowing it to rest on your Right shoulder  ~ as in picture #3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4) Pick up lower Right longer end of shawl in your Right hand and bring it up across the center front of your body to the center of your neckline ~ as in picture #4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5) Then tuck it under your neckline and ~ placing your Right hand up under the shawl from below, take hold of the tail and pull it down and through the center front with your Right hand, ~ while taking the upper Left shorter end of shawl (that was resting on your Right shoulder) in your Left hand and pulling it upward ~ thus making a large soft center front knot ~ as in picture #5

Begin to pull on the two ends of the shawl simultaneously, creating a custom fitted shawl around your shoulders, thus preventing the shawl from slipping throughout the day.

As Tricia says, “A custom fit is a marvelous thing, Darling!”

We all agree with that, don’t we?

 

 

 

 

 

6) Tuck Left upper end end behind your Right shoulder and spread the shawl out styling it attractively at both top and bottom. This is very elegant and attractive just like this! You can wear it plain and simply like this, unadorned ~ as in picture #6.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

or,

For added interest you can decorate this beautiful basic shawl shawl tie with a silk flower corsage, a brooch, a shawl clip, a hair accessory used as a scarf clip or anything else you can think of as Tricia demonstrated in several earlier blog posts. The styling possibilities are almost endless once your imagination sets in! I really encourage you to experiment!

Be sure to visit international scarf and accessories stylist Tricia James at her website scarfgenie.com to see other interesting scarves, scarf styling options and products she has to offer.

And come back to this blog, Ladyviolette,com often because I will be posting many more shawls and scarves and ideas on how to wear them on a regular basis.

I am a great admirer of shawls and scarves and feel they add amazing elegance and options to women’s wardrobes. A scarf can be a beautiful and unique personal statement and the way one wears it is certainly one of the loveliest of feminine art forms.  I am personally committed to demonstrating this and to finding out more about how to style and wear them successfully again. I say again because I think they were worn much more in elegant previous eras and I feel it is time to bring them back, research how they were worn in the past and learn how to tie and style them once again for our enjoyment in the present ~ here and now!

Additionally there are so many new contemporary ways to wear them.  And, luckily, I have my friend,  the modern current day scarf specialist, Tricia James to collaborate with me on this project!

Tricia brings her own artistic ability to styling and tying scarves and shawls along with 20 years past experience traveling around the world while training and working with her mentor Isabella Gardener. I will interview Tricia soon and post her incredibly interesting and exotic back ground story on this blog…

I also plan and look forward to sharing some amazing examples of vintage scarves and shawls I have collected with you here in the near future. Watch for this!

And, if you have historical information to add please share it with us as well. We would love to hear from you! After all, isn’t that is what the web is for?