Kendra

Website

Kendra has been a fixture in the online costuming world since the late 1990s. Her website, Démodé Couture, is one of the most well-known online resources for historical costumers. In the summer of 2014, she published a book on 18th-century wig and hair styling. Kendra is a librarian at a university, specializing in history and fashion. She’s also an academic, with several articles on fashion history published in research journals.

Latest

Woman Crush Wednesday16

WCW: Sophie Okonedo

By Kendra on August 26, 2020

Sophie Okonedo is an incredibly talented British actress who also happens to be stunningly beautiful. She broke out with her role in (modern... Read more →

Portrait of Madame du Barry by François-Hubert Drouais, 1770, Museo del Prado

Eighteenth CenturyWoman Crush Wednesday19

WCW: Madame du Barry

By Kendra on August 19, 2020

Jeanne Bécu, Comtesse du Barry (1743-93) gets a LOT of filmic love! This 18th-century mistress of Louis XV came from the working classes, so I think... Read more →

18th-Century QuestEighteenth Century11

18th Century Quest: A Royal Affair (2012)

By Kendra on August 18, 2020

I remember having mixed feelings about A Royal Affair (2012) back when it came out, and found it hard to bring myself to rewatch it given it features... Read more →

Frock Flicks GuideScreen QueensSixteenth Century35

Frock Flicks Guide to Catherine of Aragon on Screen

By Kendra on August 14, 2020

When we were just starting this blog, I wrote a post ranking screen portrayals of Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536), queen of England, first wife of... Read more →

Twentieth Century1

Patreon Post Unlocked: Titanic (1997) Corsetry: Historically Accurate?

By Kendra on August 6, 2020

So I was noodling around YouTube as one does, and I discovered that Glamour magazine has hired a fashion historian named Raissa Bretaña to create... Read more →

Upcoming Movie News43

Historical Costume Movie/TV Trailers: Quarantine Edition

By Kendra on August 4, 2020

We’re always trying to track what historical costume movies and TV shows are coming up. I always feel like we’ve Just Posted one of these, and... Read more →

Twentieth Century

TBT: A Room With a View (1986)

By Kendra on July 30, 2020

Is A Room With a View (1986) the best costume movie of all time? There's a darn good chance that it is. It's certainly in my personal top 5, and I... Read more →

Throwback ThursdayTwentieth Century7

TBT: Rosewood (1997)

By Kendra on July 23, 2020

I wasn't sure what to expect from Rosewood (1997), a film directed by John Singleton about the 1923 Rosewood massacre, since there aren't many... Read more →

Nineteenth CenturyThrowback Thursday13

TBT: Suez (1938)

By Kendra on July 16, 2020

The only reason I decided to watch Suez (1938) was because of the gorgeous images of the costumes worn by Loretta Young as Empress Eugenie. I had a... Read more →

Frock Flicks Guide15

How Contemporary Hairstyles Affect Historical Costume Movies: The 1950s

By Kendra on June 29, 2020

There are lots of movies that aim for a historical aesthetic when it comes to hairstyles and others where it’s a mishmash. But it seems to me that... Read more →