English Fashions – 1863

There are five women and a little girl depicted outside a ballroom. The woman on the left wears her hair in waves accented with a gold hairpiece or ribbon around the back. Her dress is a dark blue with a jewel neck and long sleeves. There are black stripes and black triangles around the neck, ends of the sleeves, and hem of the skirt.

In front of her is a little girl carrying a basket of flowers. Her hair is in a snood with a pink band and a pink bow. Her jumper dress has pink straps and a black on gray tattersall plaid skirt, which is full and reaches just below her knees. There is pink trim on the hem and pink bands down the skirt at intervals from the waist. Her white shirt has long sleeves and a narrow ruffled collar with a pink bow tie. She wears pink boots.

Next to her, the woman wears her hair back in a bun, dressed with deep rose pink ribbons in a classical style. Her shirt is white with a narrow collar and long sleeves and a pink bow tie. The yoke and cuffs have lace and tucks. From her bust to her hips she has a rose pink midpiece with buttons down the center front, a scalloped hem, and white lace edging. Her skirt is gray with a stripes and arches of black trimming the hem. Her accessories are pendant earrings.

The woman next to her wears her hair decorated with rows of small light blue flowers. Her dress is off the shoulder and white with dots. Around the neck are blue flowers and the ribbon tied around her waist is blue. Her accessories include a flower patterned necklace and a gold bracelet on each arm.

The woman next to her wears her hair with ringlets in the back and two bands in a classical style. Her dress has a jewel neck and long sleeves. The dress has white, yellow, and red stripes. The stripes are diagonal on her sleeves and skirt, but horizontal on her bodice. Patterns made of white and black bands decorate the hem, the cuffs, and the bodice, with gold rosettes on the skirt, the cuffs, and the upper sleeves.

She wears gold pendant earrings. The woman on the right wears her hair back, held with a gold hair comb. Her dress is off the shoulder with capped short sleeves. It is green with white detailing on the bodice and hem. The details on the bottom of the skirt look like white pickets. Under her dress she wears a white blouse with a jewel neckline and long full sleeves.

All the skirts are very wide; it is the height of the crinoline fashion. In the background, through a curtained arch, a crowd of guests is lightly sketched, including two gentlemen.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges