Quaintrelle

A quaintrelle is a woman who emphasizes a life of passion expressed through personal style, leisurely pastimes, charm, and cultivation of life’s pleasures. Quaintrelles are not female dandies; rather, they share the same philosophical underpinnings of dandies, developed within feminine nature and styles.

Historically in the 1810’s, females with dandy attributes where called "dandyess" or "dandizettes". As dandy became a descriptor applied exclusively to men starting in the latter half of the 19th century, quaintrelle then became the word applied to females. As females continued to gain independence during the 20th century, they were less reliant upon the dandy attribute to describe themselves, able to branch out upon their own unique vocabulary.

Etymology

Quaintrelle is often noted as an obscure word. The "New English Dictionary on Historical Principals" defines quaintrelle as, “a finely-dressed woman.” The "1911 Encyclopedia Britannica" traces the stem "quaint" to “an adjective unusual or fanciful, often applied to things with a sense of old-fashioned charm prettiness.”

Famous Quaintrelles

There are no universally agreed upon quaintrelles. Possible quaintrelles include Lady Blessington, Marchesa Casati, CZ Guess, Coco Chanel, and Marlene Dietrich.