Anne of Green Gables would love this dress

From the seller:

Treat yourself 

to this astonishing *rare* plum silk dress  c. 1890-1900 

...love the blue chiffon collar & 'cuffs'...with tiny white roses 

Due to it's vibrant colors & whimsical feel, it might have been for an adolescent girl 

In overall * good * condition

Plum silk fabric is strong...the lining of the skirt IS shredding [ pic 10, 11]
There are scattered stains [ most prominent R. side front skirt [ pic 7 ]
A few pinholes...some fading of the midnight blue trim, R. sleeve only [ pic 8 ] 
some underarm discoloration [ doesn't show when on ]

I have never seen a dress like it **  worth the TLC !

Measurements [ lying flat ] 

underarm-underarm: 17"  waist: 14"   length: 43" 

Enjoy !  

From Me:

The bust is 34" with a 28" waist - not bad! Given the overall length, I agree that this was for a teenager and not a grown woman. I absolutely adore the colors. As for the decade, it's interesting. The dress looks like it was remade from a much older style. If you look at the inside upper collar, you can see the hand stitching pretty easily. The sleeve style, once you take away the blue lace, is dead on for the 1830's. The waist seems more 1830's too. It's the addition of the lace and a few other changes that make it more late 1890's. I can see a young girl taking her grandma's dress and remaking it for a party - think Anne of Green Gables taking one of Marilla and Matthew's Mom's dresses to remake with "puff" sleeves using left over lace from one of Diana's dresses.

I'm thinking something more like this originally but with a higher neckline (like this one that someone in the 1890's added lace to and called it a day.

And yes, I'm back from Pennsic. ...However, I'm moving! So, until the end of the year, things will be...hectic to say the least!