1904 'Old Rose' Voile Afternoon Gown

This gown was for many years my "signature" piece, a replica constructed almost exactly as it would have been in 1904, down to even the hand-crocheted "dangles" that I custom-dyed to match the burgundy satin contrast.  

As with all historically accurate reproductions that I make, this one was constructed over an early Edwardian style boned foundation/underbodice, over which was mounted a cream coloured satin and lace "plastron" (sleeveless filler) with a high, boned lace collar.  The bolero itself is a separate piece, lined and trimmed to match the skirt (or perhaps it was vice-versa!).  The skirt required over 6 metres of fabric, and includes a drop-skirt lining of rayon taffeta, attached only at the waistband. 

The fabric used was a fine, semi-transparent Swiss cotton voile in a lovely "old rose" colour.   The 1904 fashion sketch shown below, of a gown described as being in old rose coloured voile, formed the basis for this project.  The hat was made by me to match the gown, based on a number of examples of the era. 

This was another project that took dozens of hours of research, experimentation, design and pattern drafting to exactly reproduce the original, and another 80 to 100 hours of actual construction time (including hand-crocheting and dyeing the "dangles", cutting and ruching all the pink chiffon insets, and custom-cutting and top-stitching the many curved appliquéd decorative bands.   The hat was made of ruched cream silk chiffon and burgundy satin, mounted on a large straw base, with fabric roses and ostrich feathers as trim. 

This was one of the most complex and time-consuming replicas I've ever made.   It was a joy to wear, with its grand matching hat, but I've moved on to other projects since, and the gown (and hat) were recently sold.  

The matching 1904 hat: