Edwardian Dress

Note that the chemise should be laced and appliqued as the corset went to underbust level. The chemise thus had that  hang-on look, straps and overall ’lacy’ ‘drapy’ look. And this shows how the corset’s function was to ‘fit’ or ‘tighten’ the waist to hip. The corset seems to then push up the bust. Still the purpose of this note is that the chemise and drawers were main garments in a way that the corset wasn’t. The corset was an add-on ; it was put on around the body and tightened thus.   Here is a simple illustration by me ; It is not particularly illustrative but it aims to show how the corset here reached underbust level. It is difficult to generalise whether this was always the case.

Edwardian Wear

An interesting note about late Victorian dress and its effect on later dress is the way that underwear gained special importance as an item of dress. And there is the chemise part of the underwear and the drawers too! I think that lingerie began to be developed as a specific area in the late Victorian and Edwardian period and it is strange perhaps to still talk about the chemise and drawers as the main underclothes. Still they were the main underwear and most people wore them. Combos too were beginning to be popular and in widespread use.

I would like to write about men’s underclothes and the developments in their wear. For one thing, the use of the flat front in trousers was something that gradually became widespread throughout the nineteenth century and certainly was in use in the late Victorian period. Anyway tailoring as an important discipline was gradually succumbing to industrialisation. One can imagine how specific industrial methods were established to make all items of dress. These notes contain reference to various events influencing dress such as industrialisation but the main object of interest is the exact nature of clothes in the late Victorian and Edwardian period.

Specialisation seems to be important. See how the corset with its specific methods of construction and its use of a specific fabric as well as lining is obviously so different to the cotton chemise re: fabric and construction beneath. Some images of drawers too have that silky look and with the chemise and corset, you can perhaps imagine the different materials and fabrics and then one hasn’t got to the bodice itself ! It is the same with men. Remember the glamorous silk waistcoats that men wore in the mid Victorian period. Glamorous silks came from the East and Victorian men were keen to use these silks for their waistcoats. This is an interesting point.

Still the different materials and contrasts in materials seen with the corset and the chemise/drawers could lead to the development of new and sophisticated items of underwear. As said it is known that lingerie began to be developed as a specialised form of clothing in the early twentieth century. Remember too the analysis of the corset and how it affected the physical form. The corset has a natural look and one can imagine how the Victorians and Edwardians would think it natural for the body to be supported and shaped. The chemise and drawers were put on and then the body needed to be shaped and thus there was the corset! Still if the corset was used in early Edwardian times, one has to remember the developing views of the Victorians re: the corset and whether it was good for the body. What could replace it? Maybe one needed to get rid of all the layers i.e. the chemise and the drawers. Anyway you could make the chemise into a specialised item of wear e.g vest. The combo could be developed into a slip or maybe pyjamas. The corset, the aim of which was to shape the body, could be done away with. If the bust needed support, there was the brassiere and if you really wanted shape at the waist and hips, specialised items of dress could be developed e.g. the girdle.

http://pineapplesoup.deviantart.com/art/Edwardian-78990859

Victorian, Edwardian Dress

One of the interesting things about Late Victorian/Edwardian wear is a demarcation or line between bodice and skirt. Maybe one can feel the increasing industrialisation and commercialisation of garment-making and the nature of production in general. An interesting concept of fit is important. Maybe ornament and decoration were important in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century but with industrialisation rules and fit were important. Body dimensions and an exact analysis of the human body were perhaps important too.The nature of drawers is interesting and you can imagine the need for elasticity around the waist for better fit. Certainly, this wasn’t the impetus for the development of elasticity in clothing and stretch too but there was a need for comfort in the wearing of garments/clothes. Comfort is an important concept and perhaps one can see how important this concept was in late Victorian (nineteenth century) and Edwardian (early twentieth century). This was the era too when questions were being asked about the physical effects of corset-wearing. This was the time too of the development of new items of wear e.g. the brassiere but more interestingly, it is the time too when one developed clothes for one’s own comfort e.g. the development of underwear in general for men as well as women. Certainly drawers may not have been overtly ‘comfortable’ and combos were developed too at this time ( a combination of chemise and drawers). There were early forms of lingerie too at this time. Still the term ‘comfortable’ has been mentioned again. What is ‘comfort’ in clothing? The concept of comfort in clothes is important and this is a concept which may be important in the development of clothing at this time. What is comfort? Does comfort mean better fit re: clothing. Yes fit is important for comfort but there are probably other things too.

 http://pineapplesoup.deviantart.com/art/NoteonEdwardianDress-78986085

Edwardian Dress

The first item to be worn in late Victorian/Edwardian dress are the drawers. Towards the end of the Victorian Age, combos or a combination of drawers and chemise were in use but this article can’t say anything about their popularity. In some way the various layers of clothing used by the Victorians and Edwardians says something about the nature of clothing. Clothing is natural and different eras have different instincts as regards clothing. ‘Instincts’ might be a good word. The Victorians used drawers and chemise and it is wrong perhaps to say they had an ‘instinct’ towards these items. However they did have an instinct towards the corset and the corset seemed to be something natural and ‘instinctive’ for them. The corset, worn over the chemise, fitted the body. Maybe the words ‘fit’ and ‘mould’ are wrong. Still ‘fit’ might be a better term to use than ‘mould’. After the flowing chemise and drawers, there was a need for the chemise to be fitted in at the bust area and the corset was needed for this. The Victorians too obviously had certain views about the human body and its make-up and this pertained to men and women. The correct body silhouette was required for women and the corset was important for this. Re: men, there were also views as regards the correct masculine silhouette and the correct manly look. In a simplistic way, think moustaches, think formal wear. (This article is an introduction to the Victorian/Edwardian world). Thus as a whole, the human body was viewed in a certain way. The corset in this way was thus important in this respect. However if you look at ordinary dress and see how the corset was used, you can perhaps glean how natural the corset was. Not only was it necessary as regards a body support but also it was a necessary part of clothing. This leads perhaps to the question of the purpose of the chemise. Still one can think about ‘whys’ and ‘wherefores’. It is important to note too that drawers came in two form, open and closed as per the crotch. This is an interesting fact and it is interesting too as regards the development of underclothes as well as pants/trousers.The exact form of the corset is important. It is apparent that as an item of underclothes, the corset was not seen. Thus it was important to hold the body and support it. Because the corset was worn over the chemise, the necessity of creating full cups for the bust may not have been always important. After the chemise was the petticoat and the petticoat in itself was important. It could be embroidered and laced and in this way, the pettticoat was obviously a more important item in certain respects than the chemise/drawers. In the late Victorian age, the petticoat began at waist level. This is interesting in the sense that if the corset was hip length, the petticoat covered the corset from above the hip. Then after this was the corset cover. The corset cover is what it is; it covers the corset. The corset had the important function of shaping the upper body but this corset needed to be covered. The corset cover was the first real outer item of clothing. It covered the shoulders too and it was a complete item of clothing for the bodice. A collar and some design interest was important. It seemed to be a sleeveless item. The corset cover could still be considered an item of underclothes because after the corset cover, the bustle was put on. Thus the bustle would add to the fullness of the skirt as well as the earlier petticoat. After this was the underskirt and then the actual skirt. Then for the top, there was a full-sleeved bodice with certain decorative and design interest. The fabric was also important. Then in the late Victorian and Edwardian age, another item could be donned over the bodice and this was the capelet. In a way, the capelet completed the overall look.

Article for DeviantArt

These notes are collected from this blog and put into article form:

In some way, the corset was just one item of dress for the late Victorian and Edwardian woman and its importance may be over-stated. If one looks at some stylish but unpretentious corsets, one can perhaps glean better how corsets were above all an item of dress and not meant to be overtly stylish. In this way, perhaps, what was more important was the construction. The corset was meant to go over the hips and thus garters could be attached. The fact that garters could be attached or that they were part of the corset says something about the corset itself. The corset was a ‘full’ item of dress from the chest line to over the hips. The moulding and shape of the corset at the hips is interesting too.

And the corset was meant to accentuate the waist but also then to cover the hips in a suitable way. Perhaps then one can say that what lay behind all this ‘dress’ was the ideal silhouette i.e. the suitable waist to hip proportions. Still one can analyse corsets and dress in this way. The aim of this blog was meant to be different. It was to look at Edwardian and Victorian dress and look at certain elements and what added to the ’style of dress’ and thus one can say how the corset covered and stretched to the hip in a significant way. The added elements of garters is important to mention. The corset lost its popularity as an item of dress. And the reason for this might not be totally related to a new body silhouette but to other elements such as the general shape of Edwardian corsets; the hip line, the use of garters, the use of the chemise.

There is certainly a ‘drapiness’ about Edwardian Dress. There is a silhouette in my blog of an Edwardian wedding dress and there is noticeable ‘drapiness‘. It is interesting to ask if such drapiness can be done now. There is a whole Edwardian look! The hair and the hat styles are important. Mention has been made of the chemise and corset but can you imagine a corset being worn under the wedding outfit? Yes and also…there is no noticeable waist to hip ratio. This silhouette would be late Victorian/ Edwardian and one can see a certain flowing style emerging. There is a natural look that not even the corset could prevent and it is known that the corset was used as an undergarment. Still you can say then that the corset was above all an undergarment used to tighten up the underclothes and possible give shape to the body itself. Maybe it’s use developed into giving shape to the body but not obviously distorting the body. It is the body that is important and not specific ratios such as waist to hip. When you see the corset going over the hip and then with its garters, there can be a naturalness to the look, a naturalness to the corset. The corset, was it really something natural after all? A natural item of dress? A natural piece of apparel for the undergarments.

JPeterman Nightshirt

This is a link to a Jpeterman Marie Antoinette themed nightshirt.  As stated, it is pure pima cotton. It is simple with no

embroidery or lace.

http://jpeterman.com/product~cat~110206~sku~WSL%201019.asp

Womens Clothes

http://www.ushist.com/wardrobe/lfhp_ladies_bloomers-pantaloons-split-drawers.htm

 This latter link gives a description of drawers or pantaloons. This link refers to the Civil War/Victorian period. Note that this page says that the both legs were sewn to the waist band.  It is stated that in USA, drawers were long to 1863 and then shortened drawers were introduced.  Ankle- length drawers are considered long. Short drawers were made to below the knee cap. One can notice from my own sketch that the drawers here would be short. Still this sketch aims to capture a silhouette from late-Victorian to Edwardian and some form of shortened drawers may be natural. Still remember that the combo was introduced in the late Victorian age. One can perhaps assume that a combo aimed to cover a large part of the body perhaps to ankle length. Still it is possible some combos were just below the knee. These are thoughts and I will give information on this aspect of clothing in the Late Victorian/Edwardian period.

Edwardian/Late Victorian Dress

One of the interesting things about a woman’s late victorian silhouette is the use of drawers. Thee length of the drawers impacts on the length of the skirt but this is obvious. And thus the body was fully clothed, one can say. The same can be said for the man and I hope to write blog entries on men’s fashion. There was also a naturalness about the late victorian and edwardian look and this helps in understanding that there was alot of progress made in inventing new types of body supports/apparel such as brassieres. In some way the real underclothes for the woman was the chemise and drawers and what the corset did was support the upper body and it is the importance of upper body support for the bust which finally pushed forward the invention of the brassiere. This is one opinion. I might change this opinion myself. It’s a thought. That’s what a blog is.

Thus there is a need for definite information. One of the first items of dress are the drawers. The drawers were below waist obviously.

The chemise and drawers were combined into an item of clothing called the combo. In this sketch, the aim is to draw the drawers and i drew a simple bodice. At the beginning of the Edwardian era, the combo was in existence and this was the chemise and drawers in one. Note then that the drawers weren’t necessarily pants. The exact nature of drawers and whether they were pants or a type of slip is important. I hope to write entries on this area of late Victorian and Edwardian dress inter alia.

Edwardian Dress

There is certainly a drapiness about Edwardian Dress. The silhouette above is of an edwardian wedding dress and there is noticeable drapiness. It is interesting to ask if such drapiness can be done now. There is a whole Edwardian look. The hair and the hat styles are important. Mention has been made of the chemise and corset but can you imagine a corset being worn under the wedding outfit? Yes and also…there is no noticeable waist to hip ratio. This silhouette would be late Victorian/ Edwardian and one can see a certain flowing style emerging. There is a natural look that not even the corset could prevent and it is known that the corset was used as an undergarment. Still you can say then that the corset was above all an undergarment used to tighten up the underclothes and possible give shape to the body itself. Maybe it’s use developed into giving shape to the body but not obviously distorting the body. It is the body that is important and not specific ratios such as waist to hip. When you see the corset going over the hip and then with its garters, there can be a naturalness to the look, a naturalness to the corset. The corset, was it really something natural after all? A natural item of dress? A natural piece of apparel for the undergarments. Here is a silhouette of a wedding garment of this period anyway.

Sketch For Edwardiana