I truly never know what you will make of a dress!  I thought that last week’s sheer red aerophane number would be just too wacky.  The 1820s are such a wacky era to start with, and this was a particularly out-there example.  But, while it only managed one 10, the overall reaction was very enthusiastic.  A few of you couldn’t get past the part where our modern mind screams ‘but her undergarments are showing!’ (trust me, that’s not how it would have been seen in period – I think I’m clearly due up to do a whole post about that!), but despite that (I know, it is so hard to stop looking at things from a modern perspective, and try to imagine it in period, I catch myself doing it all the time – like the way I hate fringe ) it came in at an eminently respectable (heh heh) 7.8 out of 10. This week I’m staying within the same general colour scheme, and sticking to a fabric with a similar shot effect. …

I missed Rate the Dress last week due to my brain switching into complete holiday mode, but at least I left you on a high note!  Peter de Kempeneers 16th century Italian noblewoman in blue-green was almost universally popular – but only almost, because there is always one or two who don’t like something!  Because of the only almost, our noblewoman came in at 8.3 out of 10. I’m feeling quite grey this week, so picked a dress to match: This circa 1880 evening dress from Czechia an unusual grey, and tonally, reminds me of the last Rate the Dress.  It features the (relatively) figure hugging natural form silhouette of the late 1870s and early 1880s.  The body conscious silhouette is emphasized by a curvaceous cream panel, beating  2011’s illusion dress trend by over a 130 years! Curve conscious it may be, but the curves are definitely Victorian: with full hips, and back emphasis that would have been supported by a small bustle. What do you think? Can grey be good? Rate the Dress on …