THE UNFETTERED

Jupes culottes', introduced in 1911, became the subject of much controversy and mirth which lingered into 1912. Made using fluid fabrics, these voluminous, Turkish-style trousers could pass for a skirt until the wearer took a step and the bifurcation was revealed. Sager heightened the absurdity of his 'fashion slave' by depicting her minus the customary over-tunic or narrow skirt and locating her - losing her footing - in the street during daylight hours, when the reality was that the few women who did adopt them wore them in private spaces after dark. The sinuous line and exoticsm of the ensemble are emphasized by the inclusion of the jade-green pouch bag black knotted-cord strap. The restriction of the hobble skirt, another design promoted by Poiret, is also affectionately saitirized by Sager, rendered all the more extreme by the oversized millinery. One figure carries a beaded-fringed pouch bag, the other a metal-framed structured leather handbag, with short handles and metal twist clasps.