Hi everyone,
A few days ago, while working in my sewing room, I showed a picture of my bookshelf ALL cleared off and neat as a pin! Linda was the first to ask about the vintage dress displayed on a metal dress form. I thought I’d tell you about it.
It was probably two years ago and we were at a family dinner in a town about an hour from here. After it was over, my hubby’s niece said she had something for me “if” I wanted it. She is a realtor and found this child’s dress in one of the houses she was listing. She told me she immediately thought of me and had saved it for a while in hopes she’d see me. Well, when she showed me this dress, I blurted out, “Oh, of course, I’ll take it!” It was so sweet but was in pretty sad shape. It has age spots and several tears, but I could only think of the little girl, or girls, who had worn it as they were young children. I’d guess it’s probably for a 2 or 3 year old… So what do you think the age of the dress might be… early 1900’s? earlier?
Here are some details about it…
It is completely HAND SEWN… look at these perfectly even stitches…
It’s such a cute style and I bet it was absolutely stunning when it was first made and worn! I didn’t soak it in Biz or Oxy Clean because it’s definitely 100% cotton and I think ironing it would be a nightmare. It didn’t smell; just old and worn out so I left it alone.
The band at the waist has been torn and the trim off the sleeves is coming off. I sometimes wrap them up around the sleeve, but they eventually fall down again…
The lace around the hem is very pretty and I’m sure it was done by hand too… maybe not by the mama who made this, but it looks hand made to me.
The back closes with hooks and loops and the neckline has a casing with a narrow cord made from fabric that can be pulled and the necklline of the dress draws up.
The tucks are so pretty and are so even… it’s hard to imagine how much time was spent on this one little dress!
Well, that’s the story of the sweet dress in my sewing room. Now, wouldn’t it be wonderful if I somehow found a picture of the little girl “Wearing” the dress! That’d be something!
That’s it for me today! Hope you have a wonderful day!
Blessings, Jeanne
Well, last night I did my usual late-Sunday-night thing, and forgot to look at Monday’s blog! Sorry about that, and I’m sorry, too, Jeanne, that you ended up with such a terrible cut on your finger! I know those things take quite a while to heal, so don’t try to rush things. It doesn’t work!
Anne, I’m glad they are getting your meds adjusted; having those serious drops in you blood pressure and dizzy spells is Not fun!!
Those shoes are just darling, and I have sent you an email about which ones I want, if they are still available. We shall see.
Thank you for sharing the story of this precious little dress. Those hand stitched tucks are just wonderful–the hand stitching is perfectly even and straight!
I would say that it’s not lace at the bottom of the dress, but cutwork. It is, indeed, done by hand, and beautifully so! Cutwork is related to drawn thread work, but where the latter only removes threads in one direction (they are drawn out, one at a time…hence, “drawn thread work”), cutwork uses little holes (both warp and weft threads cut out) which are then bound with hand stitches, such as the buttonhole stitch. Cutwork is considered the precursor of lace. (Info from Wikipedia. For more info, go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cutwork )
I have not actually tried cutwork myself (although I do a lot of other embroidery) but received a pair of pillowcases with hand cutwork done by an elderly lady my dad used to call in when she lived in the “old people’s home” years ago (late 60s/early70s). The pillowcases were for my hope chest, and I think her vision had started to fail as the cutwork was probably not as well executed as she used to do. Thus, I have never used them, but kept them as a lovely reminder of that lady, who I probably only met a very few times, but who thought a lot of my dad!
Charlotte, thank you for the info on cutwork. Peyton has a table cloth his grandmother made and it is embroidered in brown cutwork. Now I know something about it, thanks to you.
Hi Sissy, I have a cream dresser scarf my grandmother made, also with brown cutwork.
Thanks for the cutwork information. Good to know.
Thak you Jeanne, for giving us the details and close-ups of that beautiful dress! I cannot imagine the time and expertise it must have taken to make this! Then too, sewn all by hand is something that is rarely, if ever, done today! When you think of all the modern day “helps” we have, like machine attachments, tracing paper, and things even I don’t know, about not being available at the time this dress was made, just makes it so much more valuable!
i love the way you have it dispalyed, and even with some of the trim falling off, it just looks so artistically perfect! After all it IS an old dress, so should look like it!
Thank you so much for showing this!
This dress is beautiful. Yes the stitching is perfect and someone had to learn how to do that. I have a box of things my mother made in school. Her stitching was also perfect. Thank you Charlotte for the explanation about cutwork. It sort of reminds me of the technique of hardanger embroidery, then?
It is a beautiful sunny day today. I am going to go out for a little walk in the fresh air and blue sky, then back to packing, I think I need to call Lupus for pick up too.
Enjoy the day
Wow! I had to take a little trip to the Metropolitan Museum first this morning to see some of the similar dresses to your darling number that they have on display. I used Google Lens on your photo. Perhaps, you can date it by a visit there online? It may be from the 20’s or 30’s or of course older. I had no idea that they had so many vintage dresses online. Fun.
I had an appointment and had filled out everything online before arriving at the DMV yesterday to renew my license and Real ID. We came in the door to find the entry completely filled with people in various lines. There was also a kiosk, and a line there as well. I asked a grumpy person sort of directing traffic which line was for appointments? Without a word, he pointed at a sign. I hadn’t seen the sign as people were standing in front of it. Got into the appointment line and waited. A lady in front of me said that it was her second time in that line as she had to go back to the kiosk to fill out information. I immediately started worrying that I had forgotten something online. We were there about 20 minutes early, and were concerned that our appointment time would be past. Someone behind us in line asked the question to the grumpy man, and he said it didn’t matter. Oh well. After about 20 minutes more and a closed second window for a break, it was our turn. I gave the lady my info and she gave me a piece of paper with a number and letter on it and pointed at the waiting room. What a crock. All that time to only get a waiting room number. Then, fortunately, I had other person with me as we waited and waited and waited. We think the lady who was working both lines may have mixed me up with the non appointment line because, we saw some folks that were behind us in line being called much before us. Finally, after an hour and a half, it was our turn. When they called out G 194, I practically called out Bingo! I gave the woman at the window my signed doctor form for eyes, double checked what I had done online, and wrote a check. Took all of four minutes. Then, off to the photo line. Fortunately, that only had a couple of people waiting, but it increased dramatically by the time it was my turn. They were taking people from my renewal side and the other side for those who had passed their test. The person doing the camera was also monitoring the testing. Really crazy. It was fun to see all of the young kids so excited that they had passed and were going to have a license. Anyway, when we were done, two and a half hours had passed. We walked out the door into pouring rain and near darkness. Crazy place. The traffic was backed up at every intersection, but we maneuvered well and finally made it safely home. What a way to spend an afternoon, NOT.
What a nightmare. Not a fun way to spend the day for sure. I was wondering if I could use a signed form from my eye doctor instead of using that horrible thing they use to check your eyes at the DMV. I never had trouble with it till I got older but the last time I went in person I couldn’t pass the eye test, mainly because the woman kept flipping the switch to light then darker and it was causing me great stress. Finally she gave up and said “lady you really need to have your eyes examined” so they put I needed glasses on my license. The machine was the problem since nearly everyone else was having trouble with it also. I always had perfect vision and just needed readers as I got older. I immediately went to the eye doctor because I was worried and she said my eyes were fine. Last year when I went she said they were less fine but still would pass and, except for close-up glasses, I might need something for distance (like a mile down the road). It’s time to go again and I was going to ask her about the signed form thing. Last time I could renew online but the next time I have to go in person and ever after that since after 80 you can’t renew online and I’m getting close to that age.
What a sweet little dress and I was going to comment on the cutwork. My great-aunt learned to do that in school at the early part of the century. She was born in 1901 and my grandmother in 1903. hence my love of the Edwardian era. We have some examples of her handwork tucked into the cedar chest carefully wrapped in acid free paper. I will try to dig through it sometime soon and share. My grandmother learned it as well.
I’d love to see the cutwork you have in the cedar chest. Sounds so interesting.
I have been derelict in keeping up with the blog the last two days because, and I hang my head in shame, I’m just now getting my Christmas decorations down. I always leave them up through Epiphany but really do try to get them down before Candlemas. I almost made that this year. I’m really struggling because everything in the garage is so dusty and I’m allergic to dust. I have a box of masks I used when I mowed the lawn but didn’t think to don one of them. Too late now but I hope I remember for next time.
So glad George is doing well and sorry about your finger Jeanne. Thanks for the wonderful information on the little dress. We had a neighbor once who was a young mother. She didn’t have a sewing machine so she hand stitched curtains and clothes for her daughter. In addition to my mother’s machine we had one my grandmother had electrified from a treadle. It had no reverse on it but I used it for quite a while and it sewed well. We gave that to her and she was over the moon.
I used to work with a lady that did cutwork embroidery on her clothes even making a pair of matching boots one time using cutwork on the leather.
This looks like it might be a chemise..??? To be worn under a dress? They wore so many undergarments back then. It’s really a work of art!
Oh Jeanne! That dress is LOVELY! I love antique clothing!! Yes, it probably would be a pain to iron, but on the other hand, LOTS of the sewing you do IS a LOT of work. Like those leather shoes!! Which are also lovely! I would love to see it post a good soak and ironing!! Good to hear your hubby is doing okay.