All posts about Womens fashion, clothing, dresses, shorts and so on.
1920s By the 1920s the cut of women’s garments was at its simplest for many years. Waists were low, or ignored. Skirts were shorter, ending above the ankle at the beginning of the decade, below the knee in the mid-1920s and then lowering again at the end of the decade to between the calf and…
CHANELThere is an affinity between the resort town of Deauville and the House of Chanel.This was where Coco Chanel launched her millinery business in 1912, and where actress Anouk Aimée brought her own Chanel bag onto the Un Homme et Une Fille (1966) set one day, immortalising it in the annals of cinema. Thus, Virginie…
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….
1880–1890 As the bodice continued to lengthen, eventually joining with the skirt, the bustle gradually disappeared and by the end of the 1870s, fashionable garments were tightly fitted and slim-line, with narrow skirts often with a low train at the back. This style with no waist seam is known as the ‘princess dress’ (see figure…
1860–1870 In the 1860s bodices were generally short, ending at the natural waistline or slightly higher. The wide crinoline skirts subtly evolved with more fabric being pushed to the back. The front waist of skirts was flatter with excess fabric either being folded into large pleats or cut away, creating an A-line shaped front panel….
The lengthening of the bodice led to corset manufacture becoming more complicated with an increasing number of separate panels. Stitched seams were no longer sufficient to control the body shape and ‘whale bones’6 were inserted over seams or stitched into channels to sculpt the body. A straight busk continued to be inserted into the centre…
1820–1830 Long corsets with shoulder straps continued to be worn throughout the 1820s but gradually additional panels were added over the hips giving a much more clearly defined waist (see figure 3. 22). Garment bodices also began to lengthen, positioning the waist lower at the midriff position but still well above the natural waistline. Three…
In the early eighteenth century, garments required only simple pattern pieces to achieve a smooth fit over the stays. The bodice and skirt were often cut in a continuous piece with pleats rather than seams used to shape the bodice (see figure 3. 6). Using fewer, hand-stitched seams enabled expensive fabrics to be unpicked and…
Garment Cut and Its Relationship to Underwear T he method outlined in this chapter will help you to collate information in a comprehensive and easy-to-follow way, regardless of the date of the garment. By gathering information from multiple sources and disciplines you will build the clearest possible idea of the shape of support needed to…
Technical developments and dressmaking techniques An understanding of the technical developments in garment production is useful when collating information to provide an approximate date for a garment. In order to do this a detailed comparison between the cut and construction of the garment and known developments in pattern making and stitching techniques will be needed….