Dress thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Dress

c1930 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Little girl's dress of unlined cotton lawn printed with a design of stylized flowers and foliage in green and blue on a white ground. The dress has a round neck with a turn-down collar of white lawn, and puffed sleeves gathered into a frill beneath a self fabric band above the hem. The fullness of the dress is pleated into the neck and a shoulder panel at each side, and hand hemmed, and the garment fastens at the back of the bodice with five pairs of bound buttons and stitched loops. The upper part of the dress is decorated with hand embroidery in powder blue and olive green threads: each of the four points of the collar is worked with a design of scrolling lines and geometric shapes, repeated on the two shoulder panels (which are top-stitched in blue); the chest and back of the dress are smocked in blue and green using stem stitch, cable stitch, diamond stitch and wave stitch. The neck front is finished with a further two bound buttons, and the sleeve bands with cable stitch and diamond stitch.


Object details

Category
Object type
Materials and techniques
Hand-embroidered cotton lawn
Brief description
Little girl's smocked dress of printed lawn by Liberty & Co; UK, c1930
Physical description
Little girl's dress of unlined cotton lawn printed with a design of stylized flowers and foliage in green and blue on a white ground. The dress has a round neck with a turn-down collar of white lawn, and puffed sleeves gathered into a frill beneath a self fabric band above the hem. The fullness of the dress is pleated into the neck and a shoulder panel at each side, and hand hemmed, and the garment fastens at the back of the bodice with five pairs of bound buttons and stitched loops. The upper part of the dress is decorated with hand embroidery in powder blue and olive green threads: each of the four points of the collar is worked with a design of scrolling lines and geometric shapes, repeated on the two shoulder panels (which are top-stitched in blue); the chest and back of the dress are smocked in blue and green using stem stitch, cable stitch, diamond stitch and wave stitch. The neck front is finished with a further two bound buttons, and the sleeve bands with cable stitch and diamond stitch.
Dimensions
  • Centre back length: 68.3cm
Production typeReady to wear
Marks and inscriptions
LIBERTY & CO/ REGENT ST, LONDON (Maker's identification; Back opening of dress (true left side); stitching; thread)
Object history
Thought to have been worn by the donor, J Webster, but no further information available
Production
Reason For Production: Retail
Subjects depicted
Collection
Accession number
B.300-1996

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Record createdApril 2, 2003
Record URL
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