Sometimes we get so wrapped up in constructing a dress that we fail to see how the final product will look on a live person. Early in 2024, I began construction of a simple 1880s day dress that I created to be used as part of our film wardrobe and finally, it was used in a production of the short film, “The Seamstress” which should be released sometime in 2025. Below are some views of the final dress:
And some construction views:
In a previous post, we looked at a paisley house dress/tea gown from the mid-1890s and noted that the paisley shawls that were a staple of 1850s-60s fashion would up being re-purposed into dresses during the 1870s, 80s, and even 90s. Here’s one such example with this c. 1885-89 tea gown.
Tea Gown, c. 1885-1889; Kent State University Museum; 1995.017.0016
Although the design makes it look like there’s a robe over a separate under-dress, it’s really all a one-piece construction.
And the back is pretty incredible:
Of course, without physically inspecting it, it’s difficult to tell how exactly the paisley shawl might have been incorporated (or if a shawl was actually used versus yardage) but it is somewhat logical given the extensive use of a solid color as an underlayer. The investigation continues… 😎
Fall is definitely here, even in Southern California and that means the heat has backed off, the days are growing shorter, and the light is definitely different. It also means that we’re working on more projects (no swimming pool to distract us). For me, I’ve been going back and forth between a Mid-1880s dress and a men’s suit. I’ve been pretty bad with the progress pictures but here’s a couple from my work on the suit pants.
Chalking out some lining pieces…
And finished the right and left pocket layouts…they’re quire elaborate. Now to mount them to the right and left front pant pieces… 🙂 And here’s some pictures of the work I did on the vest…
The vest lapels. Lots of pad stitching going on and it will only get worse with the coat. The outcome is really nice but it really takes a toll on my fingers.
Right front side of the vest. There’s more to follow and I’ll try to get some more pictures so everything is a but more coherent. 🙂
Mid 1890s styles are very easy to spot with their gigot sleeves and multi-gore skirts. We came across this circa 1895 dinner dress dress on the Augusta Auctions website, one of our go-to dress source outside of museums.
Augusta Auctions
This is an interesting dress in that it utilizes a two-tone color effect, pairing a pea green (medium green) colored skirt and bodice trim with gold-colored sleeves and under-bodice. There’s a definite floral theme running through this with floral embroidery on the skirt as well part of the front bodice. Here’s some more views:
Here are some closer views of the bodice and sleeves. The sleeves are interesting in that the gold-colored fabric has a subtle floral pattern that complements the other floral elements found on the skirt and bodice.
The pea green fashion fabric appears to be made of a silk taffeta with a dull finish that acts as a nice contrasting texture to the gold silk sating of the sleeves.
The sleeve fabric appears to be a silk satin with an embroidered floral design.
And finally, here’s the decorative effect on the skirt itself:
The skirt is also finished off by a back of ruching running along the hemline.
Overall, this dinner dress is elegant but not overdone and definitely sets a level of elegance that might not be on the level worn by one of the 400 but is still up there. Interestingly enough, this dress was made in Boston and while it borrows many French design elements, it’s also restrained. We love the dress!
The use of creases in men’s pants has always been an interesting topic and especially since there’s been very little hard information. Beyond the common idea that creases were “invented” by King Edward, there’s been little hard information. Until now. In this interesting blog post, the staff of the FIDM Museum has attempted to bring some clarity to his issue. Enjoy!