22.00 USD
The Blanchisserie "where our shirts were made white and smooth by the pretty blanchisseuses singing all day over their work;" wrote expat art student William Chambers Morrow, author of the wonderful journal, "Bohemian Paris of Today," 1899. Below is a link to his book, where you can enjoy it online, or put it on your book tablet at no cost whatsoever :)
https://archive.org/details/bohemianparisto00cucugoog
And what were these blanchisseuses singing? Why naturally, the songs made popular in the "caf conc" (the cafe concerts) where they were sung by the very beauties whose images we sell here in our shop, of course.
We do specialize in fantasy, here at Red Poulaine. It's true! Theatrical fantasy, even, and sometimes, perhaps, a little phantasy too, though seldom. Every now and then, though, we need to ground ourselves a bit with a few RPPCs (Real Photo Post Cards), in order to get a glimpse of what life offstage was like.
After all, if you ever find the absolutely right pair of silver slippers, and tapping them together three times, saying, "There's no place like Belle Epoque Paris, there's no place like Belle Epoque Paris, there's no..." and Poof! you arrive there, you had better have an idea of what it was like, non? Today we are going to feature four RPPCs from France, picturing real people, who worked, or patronized businesses in those bygone times.
This one, of a laundry, but particularly of a laundry specializing in making things white again, pictures probably the women who owned the business, and the women who worked there.
Wonderful image, and let's not forget the doggies! Every business kept a dog in those days. Dogs chased out the rats! But these dogs, though probably working dogs, were obviously loved :)
And what of the humble blanchisseuse? Was her life one long baneful humdrum? Well, according to William Chambers Morrow, the above author, it was not. He recounts a visit he and a friend paid to a local caf conc, where everyone was dressed to the nines and having a fine old time, and who did he run into there? None other than one of his favorite blanchisseuses, robed in her finery, and with her beau, who though he wore no cuffs, sported a silk cravat! Ah, Paris in the Quartier Latin. "There's no place like..."
A really wonderful card in very nice condition. Please examine our high res scans for detail.
Postage is for first class shipping in a secure photo mailer, and we happily combine shipping on all paper goods. If you purchase two cards, we will refund the postage on the second card, and when you purchase three or more cards from us at the same time, your shipping will be entirely free, except for international orders which, because of sudden increases in international shipping rates will still be charged one card's shipping fees on orders of three or more.
And please come visit our blog at:
redpoulaine.blogspot.com
where we post biographical and historical tidbits, images of cards and photographs for sale, some already sold but remembered fondly, related images of historical interest and sometimes even images of items that have not yet arrived in the shop, but that are expected to arrive soon, as well as coupon codes, links to other related sites, and more!