...With a Side of Polonaise!!!

Okay, so Polonaise sounds like Mayonnaise, but it isn't edible. Instead, you wear it. Recollections sums its history up best when they note "The Polonaise is a coat-like dress, originally worn by Polish women, and was very popular in the 1770’s and 1780’s. It is a fitted bodice with a full skirt attached. Generally left open at the front, the skirt is gathered up to the waist on either side of the back, creating three distinct drapes of fabric." The style is a play on the peasant style. So, essentially, it lets upperclass ladies pretend they're roughing it.

The easiest way to understand what a polonaise is is to see it, and if you look at the picture to the right, you see a perfect example. The white jacket-top is a polonaise. It comes to a very slight bustle in the back for some, but most have one even hem and do not gather to accentuate...curves. As you can see, it does simulate a peasant woman's dress in a way, having the two side gathers, leaving an open view of the underskirt. Of course, this is all done in the nice high-fashion of the time, leaving no room for thoughts that this might be anything less than the clothing of the high and mighty. It does look rather nice, though. This black and white one makes me think of a riding dress, for some reason.

Polonaise are often made of the same fabric or color as the skirt, creating a nice walking suit effect. This green suit, from Recollections, is incredibly sophisticated, charming and lovely. It is one of my personal favorites. Long, long ago, this picture introduced me to both Recollections and polonaise jackets. Someone had used this picture to illustrate some point on an Internet forum. I have since forgotten what the point was, but I remembered this picture. A lot of designs have come and gone since then, but this green suit is still there. I think the reason why I like it, and polonaise in general, is because they are so feminine. Not a glitzy, pink feminine, but a sophisticated, professional feminine. 

I think we need a revival of polonaise suits, redone to be more appropriate to everyday life. 'Nuff said.