Lesson – Friday 13th 2013
In this lesson we discussed the design and market influences of the 19th century. Woman who could afford it had to look their best at every point during the day whenever they had the slightest chance of being seen by anyone. The Gentleman dressed their ladies in the best of clothes to show of how wealthy he was and to show everyone that he was able to afford the best of clothing. The woman had to change their outfits up to 6 times a day. A trend that was very fashionable in the 19th century was the s shape this became very fashionable in the Edwardian era. The S shape is the fullness of the bust which was known as the pigeon breast with a small waist and rounded hips and to help get this shape they would use a corset made out of whale bone. Some woman even had some of their ribs removed simply to have this desired figure. France had a major impact on fashion and how woman wanted to look. A woman had to have her full body covered as it was disrespectful not to. The ladies wore a dress with a long, tight, pointed bodice and a full skirt which was supported by petticoats. The dresses had long tight sleeves. The lady would wear a shawl and carried a parasol. The parasol remained fashionable through most of the 19th century. All clothing had to be handmade as sewing machines weren’t invented till later on in the 19th century. The woman who made the dress had to be highly skilled and they were not expected to marry unlike the rest of the woman population in Britain at the time. As they didn’t have machines they stuck to the natural fabrics such as cotton and silk.
