Robes et Femmes.

In the early years of the twentieth century there was an outpouring of luxury, limited-edition publications which utilised the hand-stencilling technique known as pochoir. This time consuming and very costly technique, which consisted of built-up layers of gouache paint or watercolour, produced some of the most stunning images in fashion history.

One of the most splendid of these was Robes et femmes, illustrated by Enrico Sacchetti. This was a satirical intepretation of the contemporary trends in fashion, which many deemed to be ridiculous and far-fetched. The designs of leading Parisian couturier Paul Poiret appear to have been the main source of parody in Sacchetti's illustrations which depict feathered turbans and wide, hooped tunic dresses, all of which resemble Poiret's Eastern-inspired designs of the time.

Sacchetti (1877-1967) was an illustrator, fashion designer,and caricaturist. He first started to work as an illustrator and caricaturist on the Milanese journals Teatro Illustrato and Verde Azzuro. 1908 to 1911 he lived in Buenos Aires, where he worked as an illustrator for the newspaper El Diario. Later he was in France, where he stayed for three years and was mainly active as a fashion designer.