The last Rate the Dress was rather frilly and, well…pink.  To balance it, this week’s Rate the Dress is significantly more restrained, both in colour and silhouette.  However, it still has lots of interesting details for you to consider. A warning in advance.  I have absolutely zero brainpower this week.  It’s all been diverted to the final push of preparation for Costume Showcase – the biggest event of the year for the Toi Whakaari Costume Construction course.  I’ve solved last minute fitting and construction problems until all I do is come home and gibber in the bath until bedtime. So please excuse any wild misidentifications of techniques.  My brain has been doing marathons and is liable to trip over invisible stairs! Last week:  a pinked, pink, embroidered 1840s dress Positive comments for last week’s dress, but not brilliant.  Quite a few of you felt that the two halves of the dress didn’t quite match: the bodice was lovely, but needed an equally ruffly berthe to match the skirt. The Total: 8.3 out of 10 Sweet …

Late 1870s fashion is rarely subtle, and this end-of-the-first-bustle-era reception dress, in vivid sapphire blue satin and black and ivory floral brocading, combines the era’s love of the still-relatively-new aniline dyes and lavish textural trim.

This week’s 1869 Rate the Dress is a great example of the crinoline era transition to the first bustle era, not only in its silhouette, but also in its cut and trim.