American Fashions – Winter 1877

Five women are depicted in a ballroom. The woman on the far left wears her hair up, dressed with pink plumes. She wears pearl earrings, and a black choker. Her dress is pink with a v-neck and three-quarter sleeves. There are bows on her sleeves and down the front of her dress. Her underskirt is pleated at the hem and the overskirt is turned up to show a floral pattern. Her accessories include white gloves and a white fan, and one shoe peeps out, showing a rosette.

The woman next to her wears her hair decorated with white ribbon and flowers, and a curled lock hanging down at the back. Her dress is white with a v-neck and three-quarter sleeves, trimmed with pleated ruffles. She has bows on her sleeves and her skirt is draped up at the back, and has a small train. The different layers of her skirt have fringe at the hems. Her accessories include pendant pearl earrings, a gold bracelet,and a gold fan. The woman in the back wears her hair dressed back in a soft roll at her neck, and adorned with pink and yellow flowers. Her dress has an off the shoulder neckline with short sleeves.

There are pink and yellow flower garlands at the neck and on the skirt. The skirt has eyelet ruffles and draping. Her accessories include pendant earrings, a necklace with pendant beads, white gloves, a gold bracelet, and a black fan. The woman next to her wears her hair in two ringlets hanging down at the back, with yellow plumes. Her dress is yellow and black and has an off the shoulder neckline, and short sleeves. She has yellow bows at her shoulders and yellow piping on her black bodice, in a ribbed design that emphasizes the fitted bodice. Her skirt is yellow draping with black lace trimming, and rows of vertical yellow bands at the hem. Her accessories include a gold bracelet and a yellow fan. The woman on the far right wears her hair up in rolls, with two ringlets hanging at the back, and decorated with a single red flower.

Her dress is black with a decollete neck and short sleeves. The back yoke of her bodice is multicolored plaid with blue, red, yellow, and white with fringe on the hem. The same plaid is wrapped around her skirt and tied in back, around her knees. The plaid has floral bands in the pattern, and is reminiscent of a fine shawl with a fringed hem. Her accessories include white gloves, earrings, gold bracelets on both arms, and a black fan. Lightly sketched in the background are red and white striped draperies, and a potted palm.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges