Dress consisting of a bodice and skirt of wool trimmed with machine-made lace, France, ca. 1897

Dress consisting of a bodice and skirt of lilac, white and black tartan wool cloth.

Waist-length bodice designed to suggest a bolero jacket, to which is applied bands of black silk braid edged with black and white fringe, and worn over a slightly draped high-collared blouse front with a wide square yoke extending to epaulettes of white machine-made lace. The sleeves are long and tight with a slightly puffed and tucked sleeve-head. Narrow bands of tucked yellow ribbon are applied to the lace collar and cuffs. There are traces of a wide, draped heliotrope silk sash. The bodice is mounted on and fastens over a front-fastening cotton lining, and boned at the main seams.

The skirt fits closely and is made from two cross-cut main panels, with a double box pleat at the centre back held with internal stays of black ribbon. It is pierced out at the back hem and faced round the bottom with lilac silk.

Given by Mrs A. Perrot

This dress was worn by the mother of the donor and is said to have been bought in Paris. It was probably ready-made. Boleros and figure-moulding, flared skirts were very fashionable at the time. The Queen showed examples with epaulettes, blouse fronts and pointed belts (2 April 1895). Another magazine illustrated a similar example: 'The newest bell skirts are absolutely without fullness at the top….It fits closely over the hips and begins to form a series of fluted pleats a little above the knee' ('Our Lessons in Dressmaking', Myra's Journal, 80, 1 April 1894).

The soft colours of this dress anticipate the pastel shades of the early 20th century.

T.139&A-1961