Petticoat design was also simpler, creating a smooth line from the waist to the hem (see figure 3. 73). However, although the basic shape was simple, the introduction of elaborate decoration in the form of tucks, frills and lace flounces all gave increased width at the hem to support the wide A-line skirts of garments.
Pattern-cutting skills were highly developed by the 1890s. Tailors and dressmakers could produce well-fitting fashionable garments incorporating multiple darts, many panels and draped fabric. The bodice still required several pattern pieces to achieve a smooth fit through the tiny waist, but as the bodice was shorter the shapes of the darts and seams were not so exaggerated (see figure 3. 74). The availability of paper patterns in women’s magazines also enabled home dressmakers to make their own stylish clothing.
Figure 3. 72 Small bustle worn with the shorter corset to support the fabric at the back of skirts 1895–1905. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art/ Art Resource/Scala, Florence.
Figure 3. 73 A-line petticoat from c. 1890 fitting smoothly over the front and flaring out at the back with a frill round the hem. © Leicestershire County Council Museums.
Figure 3. 74 Bodice pattern 1895, showing many panels creating the back and sides and two darts in each front. The centre front and centre back seams are also shaped to create an even closer fit over the bust and through the waist. © Author.
1900–1910
In England the turn of the century marked the beginning of the ‘Edwardian era’ and in France, the ‘Belle Époque’. Elegance defined fashion. The large, cumbersome leg-o-mutton sleeves declined and by 1900 sleeves followed a more natural arm shape (see figure 3. 75). Skirts too became refined, fitting closer to the body from the hips to knee-level and flaring out at the hem. The desire for a small waist remained highly fashionable and at the turn of the century this was greatly enhanced by the introduction of the ‘S-bend’ corset (see figure 3. 77). This was designed to produce a very distinctive silhouette – flat at the waist and hips at the front; the bust pushed forward and lifted; the hips thrust out at the back. The ‘S-bend’ silhouette was popularized by Charles Dana Gibson’s illustrations of the ‘Gibson Girls’. 10 As the decade progressed a new garment appeared, the bust bodice (see figure 3. 78), a precursor of the brassiere (bra). This covered the bust, creating a new bust profile known as the ‘mono bosom’. It was independent of the corset. At the beginning of the century hip pads were worn at the back to enhance the hips of skirts.
For the following decades generic patterns are not illustrated as there were too many variations. Dress History Pattern Books are good sources if you need more information – see the Bibliography.
Figure 3. 75 This fashion plate from 1902 shows the completely different ‘S-bend’ silhouette at the turn of the century. Elaborate hairstyles and hats balanced the fullness at the hem of the skirts. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Woodman Thompson.
Figure 3. 76 Pale yellow silk satin evening dress with oak-leaf embroidery, by Worth, worn by Lady Curzon, 1903. It shows the new ‘S-bend’ profile; with the bust pushed up and forwards at the front and the hips pushed out at the back. © Fashion Museum Bath.
Figure 3. 77 S-bend corset with suspenders, 1902. © Museum of London.
Figure 3. 78 This 1910 white cotton bust bodice shows the relaxed approach to bust support at the beginning of the twentieth century. Less restricting than a full corset, it still gives some support to the bust with curved whalebone strips inserted into the channels over the front and at the back. It helped to create the ‘mono bosom’ effect fashionable at the turn of the century. The Symington Collection © Leicestershire County Council Museums
Figure 3. 79 Hip pad worn at the beginning of the twentieth century. The shape of the hips of skirts was now enhanced by hip pads which emphasized the S-bend silhouette. Metal bustles were no longer worn. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art/Resources/Scala, Florence.
Figure 3. 80 French silk petticoat with narrow hips and hem frill. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Samuel Thorne, 1964.
1910–1920
By 1910 women’s dress was becoming much less exaggerated. The ‘S-shape’ disappeared and was replaced by a more natural, softer silhouette (see figure 3. 81). The amount of fabric in skirts was reduced and they were shortened, once more revealing the feet. The bust was still a prominent feature but emphasis on the hips declined as skirts became slimmer.
The start of the First World War in 1914 changed women’s lives forever and lead to the development of new styles of clothing and underwear. As lifestyles changed and women became more actively involved in ‘war work’, underwear design also had to evolve to meet their needs. An increasing interest in sports like cycling also necessitated less cumbersome underwear. This led to the invention of new lightweight, breathable materials.
The fashionable silhouette in early 1910, was narrow, ankle length and softly tailored (see figures 3. 82 and 3. 83). As women began working in factories simple work-wear and uniforms were needed (see figure 3. 87). Expensive fashionable garments were still made for the elite in society but their shapes too were refined. Less fabric was used but for evening wear, imaginative cutting and the use of elaborate embroidery and multiple textures within a design still produced extremely elegant and stylish garments (see figure 3. 86).
Figure 3. 81 Fashion plate from March 1913 shows the fashionable high waist and narrow skirt seen in female garments from about 1910. © The British Library Board.
Figure 3. 82 Blue woven wool and cream lace dress with silk braid decoration, c. 1911. Although the shape is simple the cut is complex, with several overlapping fastenings. © Fashion Museum Bath.
Figure 3. 83 A similar high-waisted dress c. 1910–12. © The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham, England.
Figure 3. 84 Bust improver, made from lace, satin ribbons and boning with mother-of-pearl buttons, designed to cover the bust above the corset. Dickins and Jones, Great Britain, c. 1910. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
Figure 3. 85 A long skirted, straight front corset from 1910 with a covered wedge busk at the front, steel bones and whaleboning and adjustable suspenders. The corset created a smooth line from under the bust to the hips with the bust unsupported above the top edge. The Symington Collection © Leicestershire County Council Museums.
Figure 3. 86 Evening dress c. 1911–12 with a high waist and narrow skirt. © Getty Images.
Figure 3. 87 Women war workers gauge the thickness of the heads of shells at Royal Shell Factory 3, Woolwich Arsenal, London 1918. © Getty Images.