Fashions and Bonnets – Autumn 1837

The woman on the left wears a pink, off-the-shoulder dress with full skirts and a fitted bodice. Her skirts are trimmed with swags of pink, and she wears a pink bow at the waist. Two, white, lace ruffles edge the neck, and the sleeves puff above the elbow, have a ruffled flounce over the elbow, and are fitted from elbow to wrist. The woman wears white shoes, stockings, and gloves, and holds a large, closed, white fan in her right hand. Her white bonnet ties under the chin and has a deep brim trimmed with sprays of white flowers and edged with ruffles.

The woman on the right wears a white dress with full skirts, sheer, full sleeves, and a low, scooping neck. The skirts are edged at the hem with a deep lace flounce. The blue overdress has short, puffed sleeves and calf-length skirts and is held closed over the white dress with a tassled, blue, cord belt. The over-dress is edged with floral patterns and has blue bows at the shoulders. The woman wears a white bonnet with a very long, multi-colored plume and a lacy, blue-and-white ruff. The two women stand in front of a mantelpiece or cabinet; the woman on the left leans her elbow on it.

A third woman is pictured above the others. She wears a pale olive dress with a belt at the waist and a high, simple neck. The sleeves are long and fitted, with patterned cuffs and a second, loose, hanging sleeve. The woman wears a fringed, olive shawl and an olive poke bonnet trimmed with bows and ruffles and lined in pale yellow. Only the upper half of the woman is shown. A white poke bonnet trimmed with white bows, ribbons, and a pink flower is in the upper left of the image.

Below it is a blue poke bonnet with an upturned brim edged with white ruffles. The bonnet has a rear ruffle, sprays of blue flowers, and a blue bow under the chin. In the upper right corner is a pink bonnet with a ruffled brim trimmed with pink bows. The bodice of a green dress is drawn below. The dress has a belt at the waist, with a diamond shaped buckle, a divided overskirt, and tiered, flounced sleeves. A double-tiered, short, white lace collar forms a V over the dress and has a green bow at the center front.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges