Fashions – 1841

A hand-colored fashion plate from 1841 illustrates elegant early Victorian daytime attire for women in an outdoor garden setting. The scene features four women engaging in social leisure activities. On the far left, a woman stands in a green and black plaid dress with a matching fringed pelerine shawl, holding a small parasol and wearing a straw bonnet with a long turquoise ribbon. Seated next to her, a second woman in a cream dress with a delicate lace collar and a floral cap looks down at an open book or print.

In the center, a third woman stands wearing a vibrant turquoise plaid gown with dropped shoulders, showing a small object to her companion. On the right, the fourth woman sits dressed in a silver-grey gown with wide lace lapels and a prominent blue silk waist ribbon, wearing a lace cap with blue ribbons. The lower right corner displays the handwritten year 1841.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges