Thrifting in 19th Century Paris In the early 19th century, when clothing was self-made, expensive, a

Thrifting in 19th Century Paris

In the early 19th century, when clothing was self-made, expensive, and time-consuming to produce, Parisians could buy their clothing used at Temple Market, one of the first and largest thrift markets in Europe. Opened in 1811, its approximately 11,000 square meters were comprised of an astounding 1,888 shops. Visitors could rummage through everything from barely-worn fine evening dresses to dirty rags contributed by street rag-pickers; from men’s coats and women’s corsets to linens and tablecloths. All manner of Parisians shopped at the Temple. A contemporary writer describes the lure of cheap, well-worn finery to working-class girls:

“chambermaids, maids, cooks, cleaning women…on Sunday, after a week of labor and privation, they have two hours of freedom…they rush to the Temple and buy a five-franc calico peignoir [dressing gown]…or a tulle bonnet with pink ribbons. The poor girl has never had anything so pretty; she runs up her six flights, dresses before a mirror the size of her hand, and as pleased as a great lady goes to a dance hall…” (51).

But customers included wealthy women discreetly shopping for unique accessories - shawls, baubles - to compliment their fine, custom-made outfits. One always had to be careful, however, to inspect the clothing before purchasing it: shopkeepers took advantage of the dark rooms to disguise low-quality garments, and some even went so far as to fill in holes with wax! For more information, check out Philippe Perrot's Fashioning the Bourgeoisie. If you can read French, or are okay with clumsily-translated English, this site has some interesting pictures and a first-hand description of the market.