An 1860's Gathered-Front Day Dress: Part Four

Part Four: The Completed Dress

I am very pleased with the results:

Please excuse my awful hair. It needs a trim very badly… Look at the dress not me haha :P

Here I am wearing it over my cage crinoline and two petticoats, and my corset of course. I love the way the skirt hinges out from the waist to help create the bell shape. 

From the back. There is a tiny wrinkle in the bodice that I didn't notice before. I think it's probably caused by the bodice being just a *tiny* bit too long, as well as the way the bones at the back cause the bodice to sit. I'm not too worried though. I need the tiny bit of ease in the back to make my arms and shoulders mobile enough.

Here I am wearing the dress with my under-petticoat, corded petticoat, and two regular petticoats. This would be a look more appropriate to a working class woman. This dress could even portray a slightly earlier impression worn this way.

 This dress is appropriate for a very late 1850's to early 1860's portrayal

I added a collar to finish things off.

And here are a few pictures of the insides of the dress.

The collar is simply whip stitched to the neck opening. Collars were essential for keeping the dress cleaner for a longer time, and therefore made to be easily removed and laundered. As you can imagine, it was-- and still is-- much easier to wash a collar and an apron than the whole dress.

The waistband closes with two sturdy hooks and bars

Showing how the dress closes. The waistband is closed on the right and then the hooks and eyes at the center front. The bodice tends to pull up and show the waistband, so I will probably add another hook to help hold it down.

Incidentally, the skirt is literally holding itself up in this picture :p