A Prototype of My 1830's Stays

Ah, my first corseting venture outside the 1850-1870 time frame.  It was an interesting experience but it is now over and I learned a lot.   Next time, I'm going to have a much easier time.

Previous posts in the 1830's series:
Introduction
1830's Shifts
1830's Petticoats
1830's Bustle
1830's Bonnet

And now we're at the stays.  I always swore I wouldn't do any era without a front opening corset busk but here we are.  And honestly, it's not so bad.  I can still dress myself.  It just takes a little know how.

Looking at original stays, I was a little concerned.  They were so... long.  With narrow hips.  My hips are anything but narrow! I have a natural 15" hip spring (the difference between waist measurement and hip measurement) and a 20" corseted hip spring.  How on earth was anything that would fit my waist even go over my hips??

Unknown collection, 1830's

Kent State University Museum, 1830's

Los Angeles County Museum, 1830's-1840's

Seriously.  There was no way my body was going to do that.  However, looking at paintings and drawings, one can clearly see a defined hip spring in several individuals.

Le matin by Numa Bassaget (1830)

Unknown collection, unknown date

The Stay-lace, engraved by Alfred Leon Lemercier, 1830's

That gave me hope that I could possibly achieve this look with my body.

I really wanted a Redthreaded pattern but as my hips, waist, and bust are all vastly different sizes on their charts, I would have to purchase 3 patterns at $20/pattern to get it to work for me as Redthreaded sells individually sized patterns.  That wasn't quite worth it. I ended up purchasing the Past Patterns 1830's corset pattern.

The pattern maker mentioned that coutil wasn't used for corsets yet in the 1830's which was a nice little note as I was planning on purchasing coutil.  I took one of the pattern's suggestions and purchased white cotton sateen for $9/yard (including shipping).  I also bought some size 00 grommets from Gold Star Tools at the suggestion of Mrs. Clark of the Sewing Academy and her blog post on corsetry supplies.  My pattern mentioned that metal grommets were patented in 1823 and that either metal or hand sewn are appropriate for the 1830's.  I opted for metal.

I used more cotton sateen to line my corset and the boning is a mixture of German plastic whalebone and cording.  There is, however, a strip of metal boning on either side of the grommets for more stability in the back.  In the front, there is a pocket for a wooden busk, which my dad ended up making for me.  I can leave it in or take it out if I'm doing more manual labor and need more freedom of motion.

The laces are just shoelaces from Walmart.  I meant to do spiral lacing but forgot to offset the grommets when putting them in.  My next plan was fan lacing but that was not cooperating.  This was the only version of lacing that worked with this corset.

Unfortunately even though I took very detailed measurements the corset turned out about 2-3 sizes too large.  It meets in the back and isn't quite tight enough for my liking.  I took in 2" at the sides to make it fit a little better. I made the entire corset by machine as I really didn't want to do all that work and not know if it fit or not.  Now that I know what to do to make it fit, the next corset will be hand done.

Enjoy!

An 1850's Straw Bonnet

1850's events are few and far between, but I felt the need for a straw bonnet for pre-war events.  I have my gray silk bonnet, but having a second bonnet makes sure that I have a bonnet that coordinates with each 1850's dress.

I bought the form from Timely Tresses-it is the 1850's flared brim Lavina Ruth.  Here it is:

I lined her in cotton organdy and then put in some cotton tulle as a cap frill.  I used 4" moire ribbon for the curtain and matching ties that are 3" wide.

Then it was time for trimmings.  I didn't do much-just used some of the 3" moire ribbon to make a sash and bow across the top and then added some lavender rose sprays at the side.

Enjoy!

The Fashion of Parasols

*This is a very informal study done in a couple of hours.  It does not account for all the nuances of fashion such as geographical area, social economic status, among other indicators of fashion.  However, I do want to show some evidence against the whole 'I have stuff from 20 years ago in my closet so I can wear 1840's accessories and 1850's dresses' or 'I don't wear fashionable clothes now so I can wear older stuff then', etc.  Compared with other sources such as diaries, newspaper adds, and store ledgers, it paints a more complete picture.  More to come.*

So dating parasols is all well and good, however, how does one actually know what parasols were used in the early 1860's?  Were people generally up to date on the latest parasol styles, or would one still see 1840's parasols in use in 1862?  Or something in between?

Let's start with dating.  The easiest way is to look at fashion plates.  Here's some with parasols.

1860.  The fringe that was popular in the 1850's is already gone.
We can't see the top side of parasol, but with no fringe, it's either plain
or has ruffles.  White lining seen.

1861.  Pink and white striped parasol.  No fringe or ruffles.
White lining.

1864.  No trim, just white lining showing on open parasol.
No trim on blue parasol except for fabric design.

1865.  Plain parasol.  Long finial.

1860.  Teal parasol with ruffles and white lace hanging down.
Doesn't appear to be lined.

1860.  Small white parasol with ruffles and a bow at top.
Long stick finial.

1861.  Light colored parasol trimmed with a ruffle.
Doesn't appear to be lined.

1861.  Purple ruffle is seen.  Parasol is lined in white.

1864.  Design is either small fringe or a fabric feature.
Long finial.

1865.  Small fringe; design on fabric.

1865.  Green parasol-possible slight fringe.  White lining.

1865.  Ruffles and lace.  Finials are shorter and have shapes on the ends.

1865.  Plain parasols with long finials.
One has short fringe the other has no trim.

Okay.  So a sweeping generalization of 1860's parasols has mostly plain and any trimmings are either fabric designs or ruffles until 1864 when you start seeing some very short fringe again.

What do 1850's parasols look like?  Let's start with 1850-1855.

1851.  Long finial, plain parasol.

1853.  Pink parasol, unlined, no trim.

1853. Long finial, blue silk, no trim.

1854.  Pagoda shape, pink parasol, short fringe, long finial.

1855.  Long finial with fringe.

1856.  Blue parasol with fringe.

Early 1850's parasols show long, often ornate finials with no or short fringe.  Later in the decade, we start seeing fringe that gets steadily longer.  The finials post 1854 are shorter, often with a bone ring through them.  Handles 1850-1854 show a small bone knob at the end, later hook handles come in.

Okay, now that we know what both 1850's and 1860's parasols look like, let's look at a collection of CDVs that show parasols and see how fashionable the parasols are based on the clothes people are wearing.

1860-1863 based on hair and bonnet.
Parasol shows a long finial and no trim.

1860-1863 based on bonnet and hair.
Parasol is plain and seems to have a long finial.  

1861-1863.  Plain parasol with no trim.

1860-1864.  Fashionable swiss waist and hat with veil.
Parasol is larger-probably a walking parasol.
No trim with long finial.

1860ish.  Older woman.
Parasol is a larger walking parasol with long finial and no fringe.

1865-1866.  Woman is very fashionable and appears to have a
very fashionable non-folding parasol that came in
from 1865-1868.

1864-1865.  No fringe and long finial.

1866.  No trim and medium length finial

1862-1864 based on sleeve and skirt shape.  Can't tell what's going on
with the parasol and whether the trim is fringe or lace.
If lace, perfectly fashionable.  If fringe, about 5 years out of date.

1860.  Lace parasol.

1862-1864.  Ruffled parasol with long finial.

1858-1864 (I'm terrible at dating kids).  No fringe, small parasol.

1862-1864.  Ruffled parasol with long finial.

1862-1864.  No trim, long finial.

1860-1862.  Older woman, re-worked fan front bodice.
Parasol is 1856-1860.  Possibly up to 6 years old.

1865-1866.  Parasol is either right on with fashion or
like 10 years out of date.
Based on her very fashionable skirt and bodice shape,
I'm going with newer parasol.

1860-1862.  Ruffled parasol, unknown finial length.

1860-1862.  Striped fabric, no trim, long finial.

1863-1865.  Plain parasol, long finial.

1864.  Blue parasol with no fringe, no lining, and long finial.

1860-1862.  Ruffled parasol with short finial.

1864-1866.  Given the very small size of parasol with the feather/fur trim,
this is an ultra fashionable parasol.

1865-1866.  No trim, long finial.

1860-1861.  Parasol from 1856-1860.  Up to 5 years from make,
possibly brand new.  Fringe and short finial.

1864.  Shaped finial with lace trimming.

1868-1869.  Possible small fringe, small finial.
Typical of late 1860's parasols.

1860-1863.  Small plain parasol with small finial,
telescoping handle.

1864-1865.  Plain parasol with bone-ended handle.  Bone rib-tips.
Not sure on the date of this parasol as I haven't seen many like it.

1860.  Small green parasol very typical with fringe.
No more than 2 years from make.

1860.  Plain parasol with long finial.

Let's look at some 1850's images with parasols!

ca 1855.  Parasol has a short finial with a ring.
Possible short fringe.

1851-1854.  Long ornate finial dates to the same.

1855-1860.  Finial is small with a small finial.

1850-1855.  Long ornate finial with no trim.

1848-1852.  Short fringe.

1851.  Parasol from 1850-1853 based on handle; medium long fringe.

1850-1855.  Ornate long finial.

1855-1858.  Long fringe, short finial.

1850-1856.  Short fringe.

1850-1856.  Hooked bone handle.

Okay.  So it looks like most people, even older women, are using parasols no more than 2 or 3 years from the date of make.  The oldest possible parasol from our photographic study possibly could be 6 years, and another 5 years but more than likely they aren't so old.  From our small 40 image study, plain parasols seem to be the most popular in the 1860's and age doesn't seem to be a factor into having a fashionable parasol.  All the people in the 1850's images show very fashionable parasols-the two iffy ones come from the 1860's.

Based on this informal study, one can in good conscience state that IF an 1850's parasol was used in the 1860's, it would be a rare occurrence indeed.  More than likely, you would have a new parasol at least every 3 years.  As a living historian, I need to be conscious of this and use a parasol that was close in manufacture date from event date.  If I as a living historian do not own a parasol that fits these requirements, it is probably better to do without than to give the impression that out-of-date parasols were acceptable.

Enjoy!