It’s Friday and that means the weekend and relaxation and noting says relaxation like a tea gown! 🙂 Here’s one interesting example from circa 1891-1893:
This gown is constructed from a crimson silk velvet trimmed with black chiffon on the front, upper sleeves, and cuffs. Running along the bottom is a white cotton dust ruffle. Here’s a couple more views:
Tea Gown c. 1891-1893; Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow
The white backdrop shows off the dress nicely and one can get a really good look at the fashion fabric. Here’s a close-up of the dust ruffle:
This is an excellent view of the hem and one can see a white cotton ruffled dust ruffle that’s just a bit longer than the rest of the dress. Next, there’s a red knife pleated inner layer, probably made from some sort of polished cotton or sateen followed by the velvet fashion fabric.1The museum description was short on specifics so this is just speculation on our part. In terms of silhouette, it’s relatively straight with no train, reflecting the more casual nature of the tea gown style. This gown reads “luxury” and is an interesting example of one of the many forms that a tea gown could take during the 1880s/90s. More to come so stay tuned! 🙂