Fashions and Bonnets – Winter 1837

The woman on the left wears a green dress with full skirts, a diagonal line of buttons that runs from collar to hem, and fitted sleeves with three tiers of ruffles above the elbow. The dress has a high white lace collar, and the woman wears white gloves and green shoes. Her yellow bonnet has a deep, upturned brim trimmed with yellow bows and pink rosebuds. Yellow bows and a large yellow plume trim the crown. The woman wears a pale brown fur boa and holds a white handkerchief.

Her companion to the right wears a brown dress with full, bell-shaped skirts and a white collar edged in lace. A line of pleated decoration runs down the skirt, with two matching lines running over the bodice from the shoulders and ending at the waistline which is finished with a brown sash. The sleeves have three tiers of brown ruffles above the elbow, then bell out to the forearm. They are fitted below to the wrist; the cuffs are trimmed in white lace. The woman wears white gloves and shoes and carries a white handkerchief in her right hand. Her green bonnet is trimmed with bows and a large green plume at the crown.

It ties under the chin and has a deep, upturned brim trimmed with pink rosebuds. These two women stand indoors. A third woman is pictured above them. She wears a blue-gray off-the-shoulder dress with full skirts and a wrapped, sweetheart bodice. Her sleeves are fitted, but decorated with a bow and several ruffles at the elbow.

The woman wears a white turban with a white egret plume, a beaded fillet, a black, beaded necklace with a small black cross, and white gloves. She holds a closed white fan in her right hand, and the lower half of her body is not shown. To the left of this woman is a wide-brimmed, blue-gray hat trimmed with blue-gray ribbons, bows, and white flowers. Below the hat is a white turban adorned with a white egret plume similar to the one worn by the woman in the blue-gray dress.

A yellow bonnet with a deep, upturned brim is in the upper right corner. It is trimmed with yellow bows and a yellow egret plume. The inside is edged with white lace and trimmed with small white flowers. Below this hat is a close-fitting lacy white cap trimmed with sprays of white flowers, lace, and blue ribbons.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges