Thursday, March 31, 2016

Killer 1920's Pink Dress













From the seller:

DESCRIPTION: Gorgeous 20s flapper dress in a very pretty rosy pink silk crepe chiffon. The dress is in 3 pieces and would need to be sewn back together, but all pieces are here and in good condition. skirt slip has gold metal metallic lace trim. Bodice has a slip top with metallic lace. There are 2 skirt pieces, each in a half circle shape. Each piece has a scalloped edge with glass beads and rhinestones. Also has painted velvet baskets of flowers with a beaded bow. connected by a border of beaded flowers. The beading is SOOO pretty and multi colored with such pretty shading.

Bust: 33"

Waist: 28"

Hips: 38"

Length Neck to Waist: 13.5"

Length Waist to Hem: 25"

CONDITION: good. The dress is in pieces but could either be sewn back together or you could use all othe wonderful parts and pieces for other projects. Area under arms beginning to shatter. 1 of the skirt pieces has a split area on the edge measuring about 8x4". A couple of small holes in the slip/skirt. Please use the zoom function to check the details of the garment.


From Me:

There is no way this could be sewn back together unless you stabilized the heck out of it - the fabric would disintegrate in seconds. Still, this is a gorgeous dress. It even has a basket on it for Easter. ;-)

Natural Form Era White Dress










From the seller:

A striking 1912 Edwardian cream colored silk faille wedding dress. The dress yoke is decorated with a

ruched beige silk chiffon insert. The yoke, front of dress and hemline are trimmed with beige lace. The dress is fully lined with cotton and has a cotton and has a cotton and lace trimmed dust ruffle. The dress has a front hook and eye closure. It is in very good and sturdy condition. There is no underarm discoloration and no splits or holes. There are two circles age marks on the bodice lining that do not show on the silk fabric. There is one small pea size age spot on the hemline and a small area of light soiling on the back train. Bust 32 Waist 22 Shoulders 14 Front length 53 Back Length 60.


From Me:

I have no clue why the seller thinks this is a Teen's era dress. The sleeve shape, the neckline, and princess seams, even the shaping on the back - it's all very, very Natural Form.

George Hamilton Barrable's A Song Without Words circa 1880

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Teen's Era Black Dress


From the seller:

HERE IS AN AMAZING TRUE VINTAGE LONG BLACK EDWARDIAN DRESS CIRCA 1915 - THE DRESS IS BLACK AND HAS A SHAWL COLLAR AND PRETTY BLACK AND WHITE GLASS BUTTON DETAIL ON FRONT AND SLEEVES .NO MAJOR DEFECTS - A COUPLE OF TINY PINHOLES AND A LOOSE SEAM ON THE UNDERARM THAT IS AN EASY FIX. NOT BAD FOR 100 YEARS OLD! SNAPS AT SIDE OF BODICE PIECE AND AT WAIST, BUILT N BELT CLOSES AT SIDE WITH HOOK AND EYE. I AM NOT AN EXPERT ON FABRICS, BUT I BELEVE THIS IS A LIGHWEIGHT WOOL. PLEASE REFER TO MEASUREMENTS FOR TRUE SIZING. PROBABLY FITS A MODERN MEDIUM, BUT ALWAYS REFER TO THE MEASUREMENTS. ALL MEASUREMENTS TAKEN LAID FLAT FROM THE FRONT.

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER - 16 INCHES

ARMPIT TO ARMPIT - 18 INCHES

ACROSS WAIST - 14 INCHES

OPEN HIPS

SLEEVES (ARMPIT TO FOLDED CUFF) - 16 INCHES

SLEEVES (SHOULDER SEAM TO FOLDED CUFF)-22 INCHES

TOP OF SHOULDER TO BOTTOM HEM - 52 INCHES


From Me:

We do not wear antique clothing. We do not wear antique clothing. We do not wear antique clothing.

As human beings, we sweat, have oils all over our skins (scratch the top of your nose some time to see how much oil you have on your skin), and we move even when we think we aren't moving. All these things deteriorate the cloth. For something that probably hasn't been even touched much for nearly 100 years to go from being in a trunk to being moved around, manipulated, and shown out in the light, guess what happens to it? It gets destroyed pretty quickly even when you think you are being careful. Now, imagine sitting up, moving about in your chair, or even typing - you move all the time. Your clothing needs to move with you. 100 year old cloth can't move like 5 year old cloth - just like a 100 year old person can't move like a 5 year old person. Time destroys all things.

Okay, so...teens era. The Edwardian Era ended when King Edward died in 1910. Some people - even historians- include up to the start of WWI, which is fine. However, WWI is 1914 so...yeah.

Fashion 1919

Fashion plate above is from 1919. Notice the gray dress in the upper left.

Victorian Dress Remade into the Edwardian Style







From the seller:

A fetching 1912 Edwardian plum satin Edwardian dress. The neck area and sleeve cuss are made of net lace with bands of terra-cotta silk. The insert is also trimmed with beige and terra-cotta braiding. The front of the dress is trimmed with the same braiding. The dress is unlined and has a side hook and eye closure. It is in good condition. There is no underarm discoloration and no age marks. The spot on the back of the dress is from the camera flash and is not present on the dress. There is a loose seam and a ½ inch split near one armscye. There are two breaks in the lace near the seams. Bust30 Waist 23 Shoulders 14 Length 55.

From Me:

This dress just looked wrong and it took me forever to figure out why! It's because it's a very well retailored Natural Form Dress!


1880 Fashion Plate


See the polka dots, second from the left? That's probably pretty close to what this originally looked like. The sleeves on the extant dress are more like the ones on the green evening dress (second from the right) but minus the frilly cuffs.   The sleeve shape has not been changed.   The skirt hasn't been played with much either.  Really, all they did is recut the neckline and add some pretty striped fabric to the neck and cuffs.  They also added the embroidery.

September 1909 Fashion

Above is a fashion plate from 1909 - or the look the person that re-made this dress was going for.

August 1909 Fashion

This one is also from 1909 - notice some of the details on the yellow dress. This is what happens when you go through Mom's closet. :-)

Sweet 1920's Dress with Big Flowers on the hip











From the seller:

DATING TO THE 1920’S

FASHIONED OF A SHEER BROWN SILK CHIFFON

METALLIC GOLD LAME AND BROWN CORD LACE TRIMS BOTH FRONT AND REAR AS WELL AS THE SKIRTING AND THE BOTTOM OF THE SLEEVES

PLEATS ON THE SLEEVES

THE DROP WAIST IS BELTED IN CHIFFON, SIDE TRIMMED IN IRIDESCENT COLORED SILK FLORALS

THE DRESS WAS ORIGINALLY FULLY LINED IN A YELLOW SILK CHIFFON, THE SKIRTING INTERIOR REMAINS, I PERSONALLY WOULD REMOVE

THERE ARE SOME SMALL PULLS OF WEAR SEEN ABOVE THE FLORALS AS PICTURED, MINOR EDGE WEARS TO THE FLORALS SEEN

THE LACE HAS SOME SMALL BREAKS ON EITHER SIDE OF THE SHOULDERS, BOTH IN THE FRONT AS WELL AS THE REAR AS PICTURED, RESTORABLE WITH CARE

REMAINS STRONG AND FULLY WEARABLE ONCE REPAIRS ARE MADE





MEASUREMENTS IN INCHES:
CHEST: 36
WAIST: 34
LENGTH: 44
SHOULDERS: 16
SLEEVE: 23


From Me:

1921 Fashion Plate


I can't decide if I really like this or not. I love the use of lace and trims and the sleeves but the color just looks off to me. Maybe it's just faded and that's why I'm hung up on the color? Not sure

Regency Era Stays













From the seller:

Early Bodice from Central Europe

Late 18th early 19th century

Central Europe - Bohemia (?)

Amazing fully boned semi-rigid body with the inscription "24491 pure and in Prague 18.. Deep brown Damask, whale's baleen whale (?) and piped edge of kid skin cream. Partially covered with Brocade with Gold Ribbon. Lacing on the front eyelets and transverse bracket using two buttons. Cream linen lining. Very good condition of conservation.

Dimensions: height 25 cm, height 34 cm, bust 83 cm behind front.

Positive points:

Very beautiful piece of the civil suit by the end of the 18th century and in good condition considering its age. Structure and impeccable condition!

Negative Points:

A slight patina is present. The lining is dusty and has small spots by location. Otherwise good condition no hole or accident!

More information to http://villa-rosemaine.com/bourse/pieces/corps-balein%C3%A9-deurope-centrale-18e



From Me:

There is a lot going for the 18th century date besides the shape. Yes, this is a folk bodice style - however, there is the fabric. The trim is nearly sterotypical for the 18th century. You can see a similar but wider one on this men's outfit at the Kyoto Costume Institute and a similar one fore sale here. The style of trim also shows up here in this painting, this painting shows scalloped edges<\a>, this is a redone pillow made with 18th century fabric and trims, more scalloped gold trim, and here. Actually, this style gold trim on vestments is very, very popular in the 18th century.

The fabric too is very 18th century. I wish I could remember the museum I was at where I saw a similar print to this but in green. It was in the past few months which means it was either somewhere in DC or in NYC.... If anyone finds it, let me know.

The back tabs are done in a different fabric, meaning they would have been hidden - again, very 1790's. Also, it looks like a museum previously dated this to the 18th century based on the writing on the inside... So, 1790's it is!