All posts filed under: 19th Century

Rate the Dress: Ecru, black and gold in the 1850s

I was expecting that last week’s JP Worth dress might not be the most popular garment ever with you, dear readers, but I certainly didn’t anticipate the level of loathing and revulsion in your reaction! Everything came under fire at some point or another: the lace (old rugby socks), the silhouette (matronly and frumpy), the colours (Halloween-y and clashing), but most of all the bows! Only two of you actually liked it, and even those two thought it needed improving. Poor JP’s creation received the lowest rating ever: a 3.3 out of 10. And that’s not even counting the three people who tried to rate it a 0 out of 10 (I moved their rating up to one, because zero is not a number, and it’s not on the rating scale). On the bright side, the unfortunate frock did spark the most entertaining comment thread ever! On reviewing my ‘Rate the Dress’ selections, I realised I have rather ignored the 1850s. I suspect it is because most 1850s dresses look like most other 1850s …

Rate the Dress: blue plaid in 1878

Published by The Dreamstress

Last week’s 186os child’s party frock created the usual divisions I’ve come to expect with historical children’s clothes: some of you liked it for a child, many of you thought it would be much better on an adult, many of you wanted it for yourself, and a few of you questioned if it was appropriate for a child. But overall, you liked it, and it rated an 8.6 out of 10. I agree, but only if you take off that hideous overskirt. With the overskirt my vote is only 4 out of 10! For this week’s rate the dress my jumping off point is last week’s poll which asked you what your favourite fabric colour was. An overwhelmingly large percentage of you said blue (25 out of 52, compared to 11 out of 52, for green, the next runner up). Now I want to know if this abstract liking of blue fabric translates into liking an actual garment, or at least helps you to like it more. So I present this blue trimmed blue tartan …

Madame Ornata as Aline

Published by The Dreamstress

For our last photoshoot Madame Ornata borrowed my ‘By the Seashore’ ensemble and went as Aline. It’s fun to see the ensemble on someone else, and it fits Madame O better than I because the skirt is a bit short on me. And she got to try out the new bonnet!