Underwear

Chemises

Chemises were short-sleeved, loose, shift-like garments which often had gussets at the armhole to help absorb perspiration and typically required regular laundering. Women often had several, often more, chemises than dresses.

Drawers

Drawers typically consisted of two legs independently attached to the waistband. The bottom of the legs were sometimes decorated with flat tucks or openwork embroidery sewn relatively flat to the hem. Older and more conservative women typically wore mid-calf length drawers and younger, fashionable women wore shorter drawers.

Corsets

During this period, corsets were lightly boned and did not need to be too tightly laced as the wide skirt accentuated the waist making it appear smaller.

Stockings

Stockings were often decorated with various "clockwork" designs and were generally thigh-high and knitted with wool. Fashionable women sometimes wore silk stockings. Coloured stockings, sometimes with horizontal stripes, were also fashionable in this period.

Crinolines

Crinolines and corded petticoats worn under the skirt determined the shape and size of the skirt. These consisted of hoops of stiff materials inserted or woven into petticoat-like garments that hold the skirt shape without having to wear multiple heavy, cumbersome petticoats. The crinoline was invented in 1856.

A Tip – to keep crinolines and petticoats white, buy some clothing starch (from Boots the Chemist) and follow the instructions to mix up some into a liquid/paste and then put it in to the conditioning rinse on your washing machine when you wash them. Then if the crinoline/ petticoat gets muddy, etc., the next time they are washed they should come up white (or their natural colour).

Next: Daywear

[Article by Cassandra]