All posts filed under: Rate the dress

Tea Gown, House of Worth (French, 1858—1956), ca. 1910, French, silk, rhinestones, metal, Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2009.300.3277

Rate the Dress: a Worth tea gown for the wealthiest woman

I gave you an extra few days for Rate the Dress, because last week’s was so late. And I’m still feeling very rushed and busy, so have picked a Rate the Dress that’s all about relaxing, albeit in the poshest way possible. Last Week: an 1860s fancy dress Last week’s Rate the dress was fancy in a different way to this weeks: fancy dress, rather than fancy, fancy. But what we could see of the trim and construction was also quite fancy: indicating a very well made, high quality item, for a client with money to spend on a one-off costume. But that didn’t translate to likes: the ratings were all over the place, from 2 to 10. The final result? The Total: 6.4 out of 10 Personally, I have a sneaking suspicion it would have rated much higher if we could have seen how it was worn: fully accessorised and styled. This week: a tea gown by the House of Worth Tea gowns were always status symbols: the Victorian & Edwardian versions of designer jeans …

Fancy Dress, 1850s, NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b17567042

Rate the Dress: a fancy dress in search of accessories

Published by The Dreamstress

Apologies for the rather delayed Rate the Dress. We just had a three day weekend for Labour Day, and my internal calendar is completely confused. On top of that, it’s the busiest time of year at work: the major show of the year + prepping for graduation + interviewing candidates for next year, all in a three week period! And if that wasn’t enough excitment, it’s a very important year in the Baha’i Faith: 200 years since the birth of the Bab. There have been nonstop commemorations and celebrations, and I’ve been dashing from work to receptions at Parliament one day, and then dashing home to do flower arranging for another event the next… I really wanted to have a fancy dress for this week’s Rate the Dress, and this was the most striking example I could find that hasn’t been featured before. It is missing something though… Last Week: a 1920s child’s frock You found last week’s hand painted frock utterly charming. If there was any tiny fly in the ointment it was …

Child's 'Dainty Blossom' Ensemble, Daisy Stanford, Hand-painted silk, c. 1925, FIDM, 2003.5.24A-C

Rate the Dress: a 1920s Fairytale

Published by The Dreamstress

This week’s Rate the Dress is very on-theme for the seasons here in New Zealand. Spring is in full swing, daffodils abound, and the first butterflies are out. So I’ve picked a frock with daffodils and butterflies, perfect for frolicking through meadows of blossoming bulbs. Maybe next week I’ll pick something very autumnal, for those of you in the Northern Hemisphere! Last Week: a ca. 1880 afternoon ensemble The ratings for last week’s dress were pretty clearly divided into three camps. Quite a lot of you thought the muted colours and single tonal range balanced the excessive details nicely, resulting in a good, but not great dress. And some of you thought that more is more is more is fabulous, and gave it a perfect (or nearly so) score. And then, there were those who thought the dress was just awful, resulting in an extremely unusual proportion of 3s and 4s! The end result? The Total: 6.9 out of 10 An average which accurately represents the opinion of exactly one of the raters! This week: a …