Wednesday, March 27, 2013

American Civil War Era remade dress







From the seller:

A delightful 1860’s brown cotton print dress that was originally worn by a member of the Comb’s family. The name is hand printed on the inside of the bodice. The fabric has a floral pattern done in shades of copper, blue, white and green. The bodice has bell shaped sleeves. The neckline is piped and the dress is all hand stitched. The bodice is lined with home spun linen and there are no hooks or eyes on the front. The skirt is attached to the waist with cartridge pleating. The skirt is unlined. The dress is in very good and sturdy condition. There is some age discoloration on the inside lining that does not show on the outer fabric. There are period mend gussets under each arm that using the same fabric. There are no holes or splits in the fabric. Bust 35 Waist 32 Skirt length 39 Width at hemline 106.

From Me:

I think this dress was originally made in the l840's based on the shape of the sleeves and the bodice. The bodice was probably just cut at the "new" style waistline towards the end of the war and the skirt re-attached. You can see a similar type sleeve in this fashion plate from 1842. I'm also rather impressed by the size.

1 comment:

  1. I agree; that neckline shape is distinctive. The skirt is also rather skimpy for the 1860s. IIRC, average width is somewhere around 135-150".

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