Fashion Fun... Up to Date or a Little Behind the Times?

The other morning I woke up late (as usual) and the rest of the family was already busy with morning things while I was still in my room reading my Bible. I was reading in the Gospel of John when my mom knocked, entered, and said, "This is something that belonged to Grandma Jeannie; I thought you might like to look through it." And with that, she lay this on my desk:

Hee-hee!

The Delineator

A Journal fo Fashion Culture and Fine Arts

Published by the Butterick Publishing Co. (Limited,) London & New York.

July, 1892.

Price. 15 Cents

I assure you, I did finish my quiet time before I started looking through the book! Believe me! But I'll admit it was a little tempting, that ancient brown book next to me. ;-)

The fashion magazine reminds me of Laura Ingalls talking about the Godey's Lady Book.

"Bishop sleeves are favored for gowns of thin, soft materials; but when thick or less flexible fabrics are made up, double or leg-o'-mutton sleeves are preferred, if becoming.

Russian blouses, with or without skirts, are more elegant than ever and enjoy a corresponding increase of popularity..."

Pages and pages follow, with descriptions and pictures of the latest styles of the year. A lot of them look a little hot for July, I think...

Left: "Ladies' Greek Costume, with Train (Perforated fro round length). (Known as the hypatia gown.) (Copyright.)

Right: "Ladies' Corselet Princess Costume, with Demi-Train (Perforated for slight train). (Copyright.)

And let's not forget the latest and greatest accesories...

Fashionable Hats...Scarves...Neck-Ruchings....Beads...

Wild, eh? :-D But as Jo says, "Let us be fashionable or die!"

Over 50 pages of almost purely dresses and descriptions-- some are a little scary, but many are breath-takingly beautiful. Why do people look "wierd" if they wear beautiful clothes nowadays? :-(

I should love to post more pictures of my favorite dresses but it might make the post too long, as I still have more to address...

The second magazine my mom brought in for me, missing a cover, terribly stained with age, and dating July, 1905.

The year of EXTREME! I think the dresses would be beautiful if the models didn't look so strange... I have never seen a person shaped like that, waist cincher or no waist cincher!

There are some very nice dresses, however, several of which remind me of something Anne or Diana might wear in Anne of Avonlea.

Tired of the hideously immodest swimwear you can get at the store? Looking for something a little more modest? Try...

"Ladies' or Misses' Tucked Bathing Costume: consisting of a Blouse, in Shirt-Waist Style, with High Neck, or with Open Neck and Removable Shield, and Full-Length of Puffed Sleeves; Knickerbockers, with Band or Frill Finish; and a Five-Gored Skirt; the Blouse Being Attached to the Knickerbockers or Skirt. (Known as the Shirt-Waist Bathing Suit.)

"The bathing costume may be as tasteful and stylish as any frock in the wardrobe, and the new designs are very tempting..." :-)

Following this page are some very pretty summer outfits that look very Anne-ish (but with 1/4 size waist than she has :-P )

Then there is a section called "The Dressmaker"; in this edition of the magazine, the topic is "Making and Finishing a Bathing Suit." It gives some instructions and tips for making your own bathing suit... of course, it references a pattern (#8235) which I doubt anyone has a copy of...

Well, mean me has shown you all this just to say, "No, I am not selling them on E-Bay". I'll be Mr. Krook from Bleak House: "I keep 'em all!" :-)

Actually, I wish I could share all the pages with you but that might be very boring for some of my readers. Eventually I would like to make a dress similar to one of these styles. My mom has a dress that belonged to my great-great-grandma Jeannie (real name: Eugenia) O'Conner (afterwards: Lobdell), dating from somewhere during that time period, which I would love to recreate after I have learned how to draft patterns from existing garments. :-)

It's fun. :-)