Wednesday, January 9, 2013

1860's Stunning Dress












From the seller:

This auction is for an amazing original lady's ball gown from the 1860s. From the latter year or so of the Civil War, possibly up to 1870, its fabric is a soft bluish gray silk taffeta called "Moon-On-The-Lake" in fashion journals of the period. The dress is trimmed with Miles of light beige-pink silk taffeta pleats. All the Pleats are stiff-lined with Crinoline or Tarlatan. Additional miles of black silk velvet ribbon further trim the dress. It is fancifully embroidered in a daisy motif. The centers are French Knot embroidery and the petal are Satin Stitch. The sleeves are trimmed to coordinate. The waist and armholes are piped. The bodice closes by lacing in the back. It's skirt has an unusually elegant sweep with large pleats on the hips and cartridge pleats on the back breadths. It closes at left front. A pocket rests in the right side seam. My favorite detail (and this dress IS a favorite of mine!) is the Wonderfully pleated trim on the shoulders. It's strongly reminiscent of Elizabethan styles, in fact the whole dress is! (By the way- do a Google Image search on 1860 dress and this one will be among the first to pop up!)

Condition is structurally good. It is strong enough to be displayed. There is underarm discoloration and resulting fabric destabilization. There are scattered moisture spots on the dress, please see photos for the positions. Also, there is some loose trim. I have shown the dress displayed with a beautiful embroidered wool hooded mantelet which is offered separately.

There have been no conservation techniques applied to this dress, except tacking the trim here and there. Interesting to note. The pleated ruffle on the shoulders was mounted on a former high neckline which was turned down to provide a foundation for the ruffle. This is a period detail indicating the dress was altered from an earlier style and should not be considered a flaw.

Measurements are: The bust is 30 inches & the waist measure 22.5 inches.

Please note: Measurements are approximate and should be taken as maximum. This item is sold AS-IS, so please ask all questions prior to bidding. Payment via PayPal is due within 3 days of auctions end. We have 18 years experience collecting and selling antique & vintage clothing and related items. International Bidders Welcomed! Thanks and Happy Bidding!




From Me:

For those that are staring at this dress going "I know I've seen it somewhere before!" you aren't imagining things. I think this was first up on ebay about a decade ago. It was then put up for sale here. I think we have all been enamored with this dress at some point in time. :-) And it's probably from about 1866.

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