1832 Ladies Riding Habits. Grey and Blue with Bouffant, or puffed, sleeves and matching hats. via La Mode.
Definition Bouffant: Type of sleeve that fits close to the body at the shoulder and the lower edge and is wider in the middle, forming a round shape. Popular in the Romantic Era, or from 1815-1840 ca.
1845 Woman’s Dress, Probably Made In England. Silk Taffeta and glazed linen plain weave. via Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California, USA. collections.lacma.org
1810-1850 ca. Cotton Corset With Whalebone Busk, American. Straps tie at the front. Center front has a busk Chanel to insert a whalebone to keep the corset stiff and in place. There is extra stitching on the corset to give more shape and extra reinforcing to keep the corset upright and the dress worn over it smooth and flat. Marking stamped on the lining, ‘Jane Laney’ and Mrs. Bishop, Corset Maker, 108 Hudson St., New. York, USA. via Metropolitan Museum New York City, U.S.A. metmuseum.org
Surviving stays, or corsets as they became to be called in the nineteenth century, show that both longline and shorter corsets were worn and that they were made of cotton, silk and sateen. A lot of these corsets were front fastening, plus many were laced at both the front and the back so our aristocratic fictional heroines could indeed dress and undress themselves without the assistance of a maid.
Definition Busk: Central panel in a corset to give it extra shape. Made from wood, bone which was usually whalebone, ivory, and in the latter 1800s from metal.
1830s Lady In A Corset At Her Dressing Table. Fashion Plate via Modes de Paris.
Romantic Era women’s corsets supported plus fitted well to give a fashionable silhouette. Becoming a fashion item, rather than simply hidden underclothing. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveCorsetBook18
1820-1840 ca. Reticule, Or Purse, France. Bag of plain weave white moiré silk embroidered in colored silks using satin, stem, knot and couching stitches. Shape is five-sided, flat, with a scalloped top. Borders of flower wreaths. Embroidered on one side with a greyhound and with a long-tailed bird on the other. Worked as two separate panels, joined. Lined in pale blue taffeta. Blue and white silk cord. via Cooper Hewitt, New York City, USA. collection.cooperhewitt.org
Definition Reticule: Bag or purse, often with a drawstring to pull closed and usually made of cloth or covered cardboard and often decorated with beading or embroidery. A reticule, or purse, or handbag, was usually carried by a woman during the Regency period to carry all their daily necessities. Earlier, women used pockets that tied at the waistline and were hidden in the folds of their skirts. Empire style, or early 1800s, high-waisted dresses made it impossible to either sewn in a pocket or to tie on a pocket. So women began carrying small, decorated bags called Reticules, or ridicules, which generally pulled close at the top with a drawstring. http://books2read.com/suziloveReticules
1840s Woman’s Shoes or Slippers, Probably United States. Square toes, silk satin, sueded leather, linen, and kid leather. via Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California, USA. collections.lacma.org Shoes in the early 1800s were flat or low heeled and occasionally decorated with a bow or floral embellishments. From the 1820s onwards, square toes became fashionable.
1810–1850 ca. Corset, American or European. Front lacing, extra wide straps for under a square neckline dress. via Metropolitan Museum, N.Y.C., U.S.A. metmuseum.org
Surviving stays, or corsets as they became to be called in the nineteenth century, show that both longline and shorter corsets were worn and that they were made of cotton, silk and sateen. A lot of these corsets were front fastening, plus many were laced at both the front and the back so our aristocratic fictional heroines could indeed dress and undress themselves without the assistance of a maid.
Corsets 1810-1830 History Notes Book 17 This book shows how corsets changed to fit well under clothing, give maximum support and comfort. Corsets pushed up breasts and showed off the bust line beneath a square-cut and low-cut neckline as in the early 1800s, or Regency years. Jane Austen and her female and friends wore these corsets. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveCorsetBook17
1845-1865 ca. Black Faille Evening Slippers, French. Designed By Melnotte for Department Store J. Petit. Black slippers, which went with anything, were an essential for mid 1800s fashionable ladies. Generally made of satin so dull faille fabric is unusual so possibly for mourning. Label written largely in French of London shop, exclusive agent, plus other fashionable imported Parisian accessories. via Metropolitan Museum, NYC, U.S.A. metmuseum.org
1820-1840 ca. Hand-Embroidered Wedding Corset, Connecticut, USA. Ivory cotton covered with hand embroidery, including love birds on hearts, front pocket for busk, eyelets for back lacing. Trapunto (to embroider) cording decorates and shapes corset. The back closure has ivory eyelets for the lacing. The center-front has a pocket panel for inserting a busk. Trapunto (to embroider) shapes the corset by outlining the design with two or more rows of running stitches and then padding from the underside which gives a raised effect.The technique was always considered very elegant. Trapunto first appeared in 14th century Sicily and was widely adopted for clothing in Tudor England, and then brought to America by the new settlers. In addition to the cording, the corset is totally covered with hand-embroidered flowers and there are two embroidered love birds on hearts at the center-front. Above the birds is a section of trapunto work. via Vintage Textiles