1859 – Gold silk day dress with floral brocade
While the silhouette of this day dress, its floral brocade, and its use of fringe were fashionable for 1859, its choice of gold silk fabric and naturalistic coloring for the flowers was less so.
Category: garment analysis
1862 – Cream and mint silk day dress
This cream patterned dress trimmed with pleated green ribbons was considered a fashionable garment in 1862 with its full crinoline skirt and simple, but deliberate trimmings.
1863 – Blue silk dress with black floral embroidery
This 1863 dress has a simple and standard silhouette for the period—buttoned bodice, wide sleeves, full skirt—but is made fashionable by the floral embroidery, sash, and “Mexican blue” color.
1865 – Cream silk taffeta evening dress
This charming 1865 cream silk taffeta dress features many design details of fashionable evening looks of the time, like a defined waist and passementerie.
1867 – White piqué afternoon dress with black cording
About the Look This 1867 afternoon dress features a full crinolined skirt in white cotton piqué with black cording running asymmetrically down the left side and forming...
1868 – Green silk day dress
This green silk afternoon dress is made fashionable for a woman in 1868 by its vibrant green color, its high neck and bustled skirt silhouette, and its embellishments of bows, trim, and tasseled fringe.
1870 – Green silk day dress with tassel trim
This green silk day dress, patterned with an abstracted floral design, displays aspects of style associated with the early 1870s. Its bustle silhouette, vibrant hue, and abundance of trimmings all speak to its fashionability and provide an insight into the trends of the year.
1872 – Mon. Vignon, Silk day dress
The early 1870s were characterized by bustles, square necklines, sleeves that flare at the wrist, jacket-style bodices, the appearance of aprons, asymmetry, and flounces, frills, and ruffles. This ca. 1872 silk day dress designed by Mon. Vignon is the perfect example of a fashionable early 1870s garment.
1887-1889 – Jean-Philippe Worth, Evening dress
This silk evening dress draped in lace was designed by Jean-Philippe Worth in 1887-89 and was very fashionable for its time due to his design, color, and stylistic choices.
1953 – Sophie Gimbel, Cocktail Dress
Sophie Gimbel’s black cocktail dress is studded with sequins and rhinestones, which gives the impression that the dress is covered in stars. It reflects the influence of Christian Dior’s “New Look” silhouette and the emergence of cocktail attire in the 1950s.
1973 – Rafael, Denim Leisure Suit
Bill Kaiserman (Rafael) was a retail salesman turned hat maker who influenced that fashion world by introducing the leisure aesthetic to the American fashion market in the early 1970s.
1989 – Nicola Bowery, Ensemble
This ensemble was created by Nicola Bowery out of repurposed Gap denim jacket and Levi’s jeans. During the 1970s and 1980s, Punks and New Romantics would...
Recent Essays
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1880 – Mary Cassatt, Lydia Crocheting in the Garden at MarlyIn 1880-1889, 19th century, artwork analysis
1887-1889 – Jean-Philippe Worth, Evening dressIn 1880-1889, 19th century, garment analysis
1865 – Cream silk taffeta evening dressIn 1860-1869, 19th century, garment analysis