Tinsel print showing Mrs. W. Lacy as Titania in Madame Vestris's production of Shakespeare's <i>Midsummer Night's Dream</i> at the Theatre Royal Covent Garden, 16 November 1840, starring Madame Vestris as Oberon and John Pritt Harley as Bottom. The scenery was by Thomas and William Grieve and the music was by Mendelssohn.
Tinsel prints were created from etched portraits of theatrical stars in popular roles they played on the London stage. They were hand-painted in watercolour and decorated with scraps of material and tinsel additions. They were popular during the first half of the 19th century and were considered an adult, rather than a child's hobby. By the 1830s it was possible to buy the tinsel, leather and feather ornaments to go with each image.