The Historical Sew Fortnightly Challenge #15 is our first colour challenge* for the year, and I’m easing you into it slowly, picking a colour that has lots of options for really easy makes (you can never have too many chemises…) and has appeared in every possible period.
White has carried many connotations as a colour, from defining culture and social boundaries in Ancient Egypt (only foreigners and those connected to the afterlife wore colour), to denoting status (white was often an expensive colour to produce and maintain), to implying purity, or simply cleanliness.
For this challenge ‘white’ is defined as anything in the white family – from brightest white, through to ivory and cream and all the shades between.
Whether you make a simple chemise or an elaborate ballgown, your garment should be predominantly white, though it may have touches of other colours.
Here are some of my favourite white garments, from the sublime to the ridiculous. I’ve posted a lot of fabulously over the top garments, but, of course, little accessories and undergarments are also an option. For more inspiration, check out my ‘White’ pinterest page.
OK, so the early 17th century silhouette is a bit odd, but oh, the fabric of this dress! Swoon…
Elizabeth Vernon, Countess of Southampton (1572-1655), circa 1603
And how utterly sweet is this:
Portrait of a Lady, thought to be the Hon. Anne, eldest daughter of Sir Jacob de Bouverie, 1st Viscount Folkestone ca. 1740-45 Bartholomew Dandridge
This fabric is another swoon moment. It’s so fabulous, and so strikingly modern:
Mantua, English from French fabric, 1755-1760 from fabric woven between 1753-1755, Silk, silver-gilt thread, linen thread, silk thread, hand-sewn, V&A
And I know I just showed it, but I still love this outfit:
Interior with three men, seated woman and a dog, Venceslao Verlin, 1768
And I adore Regency whites (or creams) in all possible forms:
White mull dress, American, early 19th c, MFA Boston, 53.206
And add this to the list of stunning mid-19th century dresses made from sublime 18th century fabric:
Dress, 1840’s, the embroidery dates from the second half of the 18th century, Digitalt Museum
The great thing about white is that it makes other colours look fabulous, and other colours looks make white look fabulous. Also, this pleating? Fabulous.
Girl’s Formal Evening Dress with Sash. Charles Frederick Worth, Paris, 1867, Royal Ontario Museum
See? Doesn’t have to be super, super white to count:
Evening dress, 1891—92, British, Silk, Metropolitan Museum of Art
I ‘curated’ (oh ghastly internet phrasing, though using it for this post is considerably less ridiculous than some usages I have seen) this post, and then realised that all my garments got progressively less formal as I got closer to the present. Case in point:
Woman’s Suit, 1913-14, Silk, FIDM Museum
And then, the least formal off all, wide-legged white ’30s trousers:
Dutch couple on the beach, 1930s
*The next colour-themed challenge will probably be a little more challenging, as not everyone likes the same colours, but hopefully everyone will treat it as a challenge and find some way to work the colour into their historical wardrobe.
