Edwardian Day Dress with updates in the mid 20th C

From the seller:

ANTIQUE DRESS VICTORIAN c1900 FANCY SHEER TEA SUMMER GARDEN DAY DRESS GOWN


Presenting a Victorian off white light weight sheer batiste cotton tea gown garden summer dress dating to the late 19thc early 1900's. One piece in construction.
Back button and hook and eye closure, lovely machine lace neckline and with a stand-up stayed high neck lace
 collar, stays in bodice, pintucks galore on sleeves and neck.   
The front bodice has a off white light ecru machine embroidered lace front that extends down skirt front center to the hem line. with long curved lace sleeves. Accented at waist with 2 large rosettes.


The bodice back has a extensive hook/eye closure.
 Skirt has hook and eye closure at back. Dress has a full silk lining that has shredded. Skirt has a small train in back.



Condition:  In good antique condition with age related flaws.  Small oxidation storage spot in front of dress by rosettes.   Overall the dress has a few pin size oxidation spots scattered about. These will all soak out with its first soak. There is NO underarm discoloration.  Silk lining is in poor shredding unstable condition.  With some loose hook and eyes in back closure.
This dress has very few imperfections consistent with it's age.


 
MEASUREMENTS

 BODICE: Bust 30",
Waist 23",
Sleeve length 23",
Across back of shoulders 13",
Neck circumference 11"
Front length from shoulder to hem 56", Back length from shoulder to hem 66", .

A lovely addition to one's collection. Would make a wonderful romantic wedding dress.


From Me:

NoNoNoNoNo! We do not wear antique clothing unless you like destroying old things, ruining the possibilities of learning from them for future generations, and you like being pretty much in naked ruins in an hour.

The rosettes threw me off on this dress - I believe they were placed there much later in the mid 20th c to cover up the spots; ie, they didn't cause the spots. I almost thought it was a remake until I saw the back detail and realized that it was just the rosettes that had been placed on the dress, not the entire dress being constructed of older pieces later on.

1909 Fashion Plate

That being said, I do think this was an early Edwardian that was remade at the end of the Edwardian era to follow the latest fashions. The sleeve puffs are just a bit too 1902/1903 versus the 1909 sleeves. Being remade would also explain some of the weirdness of the trim not exactly meeting up. The skirt had a lot of it's fullness taken out. It also might have been remade for a teenager from one of her mom's old dresses.

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!

Late 1930's Dress with Silver Dots

From the seller:

Item specifics

Brand: Hilman?
Waist Size: 25
Original/Reproduction: Original
Hip Size: 36
Size (Women's): XS/S
Chest Size: 30
Size Type: Regular
Shoulder to Shoulder: n/a
Color: ivory and silver
Waist to Hem: 39
Decade: 1910s
Shoulder to Hem: 54
Material: silk
Country/Region of Manufacture: Unknown
UPC: Does not apply

This is such a lovely (and tiny!) dress from the 1910s.  It was just beautifully made, perhaps by someone named "Hilman," or at least that is what I think it says in pencil inside the grosgrain waist (see last photo).
I've had this dress for decades and did manage to wear it once, with the help of a very restrictive corset.  It is so pretty on, though the linings are pulling apart.  The outer layers--an ivory lawn (I think) with silver metal dots, is in good shape.  The petals it forms, and the silver silk ribbon trim are amazing.  Then there is an outer vest, of more "petals," and the sleeves have the same design but smaller, giving their edges a zig-zag appearance.
This is wearable as is, if you don't mind the chiffon and silk lining being torn, or you could have this replaced by a good seamstress.
There are worn areas across the bust, where the silver metal dots are worn off.
There is some light discoloration from age in areas, but mostly it is on the layers beneath the lawn outer layer and hard to see (unless you aim a flash at it, as my photos show).

From Me:


Based on the sizing, this was one tiny woman if it wasn't for a young girl. The lamè bow and bais tape are a pretty good indication that this is 1930's. The puffy short sleeves and the cut of the skirt also indicators of the date of the dress. As this collection of movie gowns from 1937 shows, high waist lines were in along with short, puffed, sleeves.

1937 Fashion Catalog

And yes, bows on the front of the dress were a thing as well.

Edwardian Lawn Dress

From the seller:

This is an antique ladies Edwardian lingerie dress.

This dress is white cotton and lace.

22" waist
36" chest diameter
52" long

This dress is in "as found" condition--it has a couple of small yellow stains but it has not been cleaned or pressed.

It does have some wear: there is deterioration on the top of one shoulder;
it has two repairs (one is under the right arm, the other is under the left chest ruffle);
it also has one small 1/4" hole on the bottom and a 1" tear in the lace along the bottom edge;

Still a really beautiful display piece that should clean up nicely.


From Me:

I'm pretty sure this was for a teenager based on the length and waist size. It reminds me a lot of this dress from 1905 due to the way the blouse is trimmed:

1905 dress

Child's Edwardian Insertion Lace Dress

From the seller:

This is a darling, sheer, lightweight Edwardian girls dress. In a Gibson Girl style, it has a high collar, yoke at the neck, exaggerated "pouffed" silhouette at the front.
The waist is dropped, the skirt is flared, both skirt and yoke are scalloped and decorated with floral embroidery. The yoke also has a couple of rows of French knots.
There are embroidered and lace inserts, it buttons at the back.
It's 22 3/4" long, in front. it's 25 1/2" at the waist, 27" at the bust, without expanding the pleating. The waist needs a ribbon or belt for a finished look.
Very good condition, with a small tear just below the opening in back, below the waist. I don't see any other holes or other damage. C1905.
International bidders might be charged VAT, customs, postal or delivery duties, in addition to my own shipping charges. Please contact your post or customs office if you have questions about these charges.

From Me:

Gibson Girl refers to the ladies of the Turn of the Century who perfected the messy bun - mostly in their 20's. The exaggerated poof is called a pigeon front.

1905 Fashion Plate

Notice the young girl the upper left corner of the fashion plate.  The style of dress is very similar to the extant one.