In 1885, the famous Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde wrote in his essay, “The Philosophy of Dress”:

“Fashion rests upon folly. Art rests upon law. Fashion is ephemeral. Art is eternal.” (Mitchell 87)

Perhaps, then, it would be more accurate to refer to Wilde as an anti-fashion icon. However, the significance of Oscar Wilde as a voice on 1880s fashion and dress cannot be overstated. As one of the leading adherents of the Aesthetic Movement, Wilde made its tenets famous across the Western world. In 1882, he embarked on a lecture tour of the United States, promoting Aestheticism and becoming a nationwide sensation (Lambourne 137). He was so inextricably tied to the movement, that when Gilbert and Sullivan sought to parody Aestheticism in their 1881 operetta, Patience, the leading character was based on Wilde (Tortora 384).

Wilde was keenly aware of the importance of dress in conveying an idea, and he developed his own version of Aesthetic dress (Fig. 1): a velvet suit of knee-breeches and soft jacket, flowing tie, and sometimes a Cavalier inspired cloak and hat (Tortora 384). The look was completed with his long, smoothly curled hairstyle (Lambourne 134-135). He advocated that artistic dress should be taken up by all, and was particularly distressed by the restrictive excesses of women’s fashions. In “Philosophy of Dress,” he argued against the very concept of fashion, writing:

“A fashion is merely a form of ugliness so absolutely unbearable that we have to alter it every six months!” (Mitchell 87)

As with the larger Aesthetic and Rational Dress movements, Wilde’s ideas were not widely accepted. In fact, he was a constant target of ridicule throughout the decade. His strange costumes were cartoonishly replicated across the press (Lambourne 141-142). Nonetheless, his ideas about fashion and dress had an outsized presence in any discussion of dress during the 1880s.

Men’s clothing in the 1880s was marked by a long, slender frame. Suits were cut closer to the body, creating a tall, slim line (Shrimpton 38). The frock coat, featuring a waist seam with a full skirt, remained the most formal daywear in town (Fig. 1) (Cumming 87; Laver 202). The morning coat, a cutaway jacket with a waist seam, was a slightly less formal choice for daywear (Fig. 2). A morning coat was more versatile than the frock coat; it could be quite formal in black and paired with striped trousers, or less formal in a tweed and cut shorter in length (Shrimpton 39). The sack or lounge suit, marked by its relaxed jacket, single or double-breasted, without a waist seam, remained the most informal choice for day (Tortora 401). Figure 3 depicts all three styles.

For evening occasions, a formal tailcoat, with a matching double-breasted evening waistcoat and a white bow tie, was required (Fig. 4). In the 1880s, the notched collar of previous years’ tailcoats were often replaced with a continuous rolled collar faced in satin. A new evening option was introduced in the 1880s; a dress version of the lounge jacket became a less formal evening ensemble worn with black tie. This ensemble became known as a tuxedo in the United States and a dinner jacket in the United Kingdom (Tortora 401-402; Waugh 115).

Throughout the nineteenth century, babies and toddlers of both sexes wore long white dresses (Fig. 1), usually with long sleeves (Paoletti 85; Shrimpton 43). In toddlerhood, color could be introduced and dresses shortened to allow movement (Tortora 405). These dresses were loose and often featured rows of tucks or smocking (Shrimpton 45). Young boys were given their first pair of pants (known as breeching) around the age of five. After this, boys wore suits consisting of short trousers or knickerbockers that buckled at the knee, and a jacket (Fig. 2). The pleated and belted Norfolk jacket was especially fashionable (Fig. 3), alongside blazers and reefers (Tortora 404; Rose 139).

Like the general trend in menswear, boys’ clothing grew quite narrow in the 1880s (Shrimpton 47). The sailor suit, first introduced in the 1840s, became a favorite for boys from about the age of four through early adolescence (Olian vi; Shrimpton 49). The 1880s saw a fad for “Highland dress,” an imitation of the Scottish kilt, among the higher classes (Shrimpton 48). The Aesthetic Movement also exercised influence in boys fashions. The “Little Lord Fauntleroy” suit began to gain favor in 1886; it consisted of a velvet tunic and knickerbockers, flounced shirt, and a wide lace collar (Fig. 4). Named for the eponymous hero of a children’s book, the author claimed his character’s costume was influenced by the Aesthetic dress of Oscar Wilde (Tortora 405).

The introduction of the princess line narrowed girls’ dresses, as it did their mothers’. The 1880s saw girls’ dresses most frequently cut from the shoulder to hem, without a waistline seam, and often featuring a wide sash worn low between the hips and the knee. It was common for the skirt to be pleated (Fig. 5) (Tortora 404). The sash often tied in a pronounced bow in the back, echoing the bustles of adult fashions (Shrimpton 54). Indeed, girls were miniature versions of their mothers, and their dresses could be just as elaborate. While earlier in the decade, the princess line was often cut forgivingly for young girls and may have allowed a child to move, by the middle of the decade, all the restriction endured by adult women was forced onto young girls, as sleeves tightened and the rear projected evermore. The heavy trim seen on their mother’s dresses, frequently weighed down young girls as well. Young girls even wore the tall bonnets and hats then in vogue (Rose 85; Shrimpton 54).

However, some became concerned that these cumbersome fashions were not healthy for young girls. In November 1888, a writer at La Mode Illustreé wrote that a simple tunic-dress, gathered at the neck and tied loosely at the waist, was best for girls aged seven to twelve (Olian iv). The Aesthetic Movement underscored this concern, chiefly through the introduction of “Kate Greenaway” dresses. Greenaway was an Aesthetic Movement illustrator who created many children’s book illustrations featuring young girls in loose, Empire-waist dresses and protective straw bonnets (Fig. 6) (Tortora 404). These dresses, praised by many for their supposed health benefits, saw some favor in the 1880s, a trend that would continue into the 1890s (Mitchell 173).