19th Century Ladies Clothing & Garments

Chemise: A woman's one piece undergarment.
Corset: A stiffened undergarment worn for support or to give shape to the waist and hips.
Petticoat: A skirt worn under a dress.

Pantalettes were the undermost garment a Lady would wear. Unlike the plain knee length drawers, the pantalette was longer in its leg length reaching passed the knee. It was decorated with tucks and flounces. They were made from Silk or Linen.

Another undergarment worn was the a chimise pronounced "shimmy". This was a loose undergarment that reached below the knees. It had a drawstring on the neckline and a button on the drawers. The chemise was calf lengthed and often had embroidered hems.

Next was the corset. She would put the corset on over the chemise. The corset itself had many designs. It was designed to give shape to the hips and waist. And to lift the bust area with support. It may have been a simple design with a little embroidery and lace. It tied in the back.

She then put on the petticoat. How many petticoats she wore was often determined by the temperature and the season. If it was summer she may only wear one. But in the bitter cold temperatures of winter many women wore five or six petticoats under their dresses.

In the mid 1850's the hoops became popular to wear. After having put on the chemise, corset, and petticoat the 19th century lady would put on the hoop skirt. Some of the these were made with thin steel wire and other materials. Over the hoop she would wear her finest petticoat with pretty lace and embroidery on the hem. Finally, after layering herself with the undergarments she would then put on the dress. And last but not least, a lady always wore her gloves and her bonnet.

The diagram to the left shows the increasing relative skirt length with the increasing of age. This was thought proper for young girls as they approached womanhood. Most children were allowed to wear clothing that came just below the knee. But as they progressed in age so did the length of their clothes.

These are color plates depicting styles of ladies dresses from the middle of the 19th century. As they often revealed stylish clothing not everyone could keep up with the latest fashion. These were more of what women of that era wished to be wearing rather than what they were wearing.

Actually, women of that era were much like women of today. Always looking for the newest fashion at an affordable price.

It wasn't until later in the 19th century that dyes for clothing were richened and clothes tailor made. Ladies were able to get less expensive replicas of designer dresses made. To the left another color plate of a fashion made to advertise for women's latest fashions.

Ladies experienced many health problems associated to the corset. It was not so much the design as it was women's desire's to be thinner than they really were. Ladies started wearing the corset at a young age, while they were yet teenagers and still developing and growing. The corset tightly squeezed the inner organs together. This caused some problems in childbirth. Others included digestive problems. Their stomach did not digest food the way it should and women died because of complications during childbirth. This was a tendancy with women who attempted to get their waists as small as they could.





Mourning Apparel

To pay proper respect to the deceased in one's family a Lady would get out her black crepe dress. This was worn during mourning which could be twelve to eighteen months. Dull black gloves were worn as well in first mourning. Later on, during the mourning period, the lady could wear black silk, granadine and other, more elegant, materials instead of crepe. It was considered honorable and proper to follow this dress code when in mourning.

19th Century Boys and Mens fashions

The Fauntleroy suit for boys became the style during Victoria's reign. It's most distinguishable characteristics was marked by a detailed lace collar with a smock that hung down passed the knee. Black stockings were worn with this outfit and later white would be worn. Fautleroy suits, pants and jackets, were made of velvet and silk and had embroidery. Silk was used in these costumes for sashes, cuffs and collars. One of the most popular accessory worn with these suits was the endearing sailor hat. At first, the idea of boys wearing velvet, silk and lace was hard for many to accept but this style became popular anyhow. As time passed simpler and plainer versions of this suit was worn. Of course, not all boys dressed this way. Farmers sons dressed in country fashions.

Buster Brown suits were worn between the ages of 5 and 8 and sometimes at older ages. This style became popular near the end of the Victorian Era. The smock-like suit had a short smock and bloomer pants above the knee with long stockings. The short pants were shorter than that of the Fauntleroy Suits. Large bows were often worn with these suits.

A gentleman was always seen wearing the best attire. With his wool evening tail coat or Double breasted suit he wore his charming top hat. The suits sported wide lapels during the early Victorian Period. White shirts were worn with the stiffened collars high about the neck during the 1830's. It wasn't until 1840 that men wore their collars down. Shirts were made of linen or muslin. A roll collar vest went over the shirt. It was made of either wool, linen, muslin or silk.

Court dressing was a formal style of dressing for men. But, later in the mid 1800's, country dress became a more comfortable style of clothing. The wardrobe consisted of a short-tailed jacket, riding hat (top hat), vest and boots. This outfit could be worn when riding horseback. Top hats were worn with formal and country suits. In any case, country suits were easier wear for men of that time.