While it’s well known that 1890’s fashion influenced Aloha wear, it may not be as well known that Hawai’i was all the rage in the 1890s. Hālau hula and ‘hula’ troupes toured America and Europe in the wake of Kalākaua’s 1881 world tour…
This dress is an interesting example of a change in Victorian dress etiquette. In the 1870s and 80s a gown would either have an exposed neck and chest and short sleeves, OR a high neck and long sleeves. In the early 1890s you start to see formal garments, like this dress, which pair a high neck and covered chest with shorter sleeves.
This week’s Rate the Dress is a tea gown in the aesthetic style which combines the comfort and (relative) ease of wear that was originally supposed to be the point of a tea gown, with the luxurious fabrics and whimsical use of trim and design features that came to be the defining characteristic of a tea gown.
