The Unmentionables of the Civil War Lady

by Denise Weimer

Occasionally, I dress in period costume at historical festivals where I’m selling my books, as I did in this photo, taken at the William Harris Homestead near Monroe, Georgia. Doing so definitely requires extra time—and prevents lifting heavy book boxes and setting up a tent!

What would a middle- or upper-class European or American woman have worn under her dress?

A lady would begin by donning her chemise (if she hadn’t worn it to bed), a full but straight-cut cotton gown with a wide, gathered neckline (often with a ribbon drawstring) and enough sleeves to cushion her underarms. The chemise ended

Chemise

around the knees.

Cotton pantalets were worn under the chemise. The legs were sewn to the waistband but split in the middle for … ahem … trips to the necessary. They were often trimmed with lace or ribbon at the bottom.

Proper ladies also wore an under-hoop petticoat, but most living historians I knew felt the chemise provided enough coverage (yes, I have seen some very unseemly spills on the ballroom floor where the hoop flew all the way up!) and chose to go with only stockings, pantalets, and chemise under the hoop.

Pantalets

Our Civil War lady would put on thigh-high stockings, rolling them down over her garter. Stockings were most often cotton but could be silk or wool. They were also most often ecru-colored but could come in other colors or even striped for the lady with a bit of flair. The garter sits right above the knee. Today these are elastic, but during the period, they might have been crocheted, knitted, or ribbon.

When I was wearing my ankle-high, square-toed leather boots for outside rambles, I’d go ahead and put them on at this point. Otherwise, I’d be facing a merciless struggle trying to get my foot in and lace them up once I was fully clad in corset and hoops. If I was attending an indoor event such as a ball, the slippers could be donned last.

Time for the dreaded corset. The boned, Civil War-era corset was not as long as those that evolved later, coming to a point in the front over the abdomen and raising the bosom in the front. It laced in the back, but if your weight didn’t fluctuate, you got it set and left it, just holding your breath and fastening the hooks in the front. The corset is indeed a necessity if you want to properly fit into a dress sewn from a mid-1800s pattern, especially for full-figured ladies.

A short, cotton corset cover served as a camisole to soften the lines of the corset. (I never wore one of these. It was hot enough dancing in this ensemble in Georgia!)

Finally, we add the hoopskirt itself. The garment consists of rings or rungs sewn into cotton fabric. Most modern hoop rungs are constructed of plastic, making them adjustable for fullness and somewhat collapsible, enabling the wearer to fit through narrow spaces with just a press on either side. To sit down, one merely lifts the back of the skirt from the top just a bit and backs onto the chair. Original hoop rungs were made from whalebone or metal. The garment is tied at the waist with a drawstring or buttoned on a band.

Some hoops had ruffles sewn over them to keep the rungs from being visible once the wearer was dressed, but generally, a lady would add one to three over-hoop petticoats for this purpose. You can guess how many I added. 

Well-trimmed over-hoop petticoat

Our mid-1800s lady is ready to don her dress and venture out! If you’d like to see a video of dressing for the 1860s, here’s my seamstress/living historian friend Marie Walker doing so: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C9vjhG1RVXs. Her blog: https://historicalbelle.wordpress.com/. Photos of chemise, petticoat, and pantalets are also courtesy of Marie.

Represented by Hartline Literary Agency, Denise Weimer holds a journalism degree with a minor in history from Asbury University. She’s a managing editor for the historical imprints of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas and the author of almost a dozen published novels and a number of novellas. A wife and mother of two daughters, she always pauses for coffee, chocolate, and old houses!

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Mentioning the Unmentionables

By Tiffany Amber Stockton


Have you ever wondered how women of the 1800s managed to look they way they did without dry cleaners or department stores? Imagine trying to pull off the wasp waist of the 1950s or the S-curve of 1900 without the proper girdle or corset. Translate this to the 1800's and you can imagine a time when Victoria was the Queen of England instead of a secret place where women shop and men just feel embarrassed. :)

According to Sharon Gooley, expert on antique clothing, the secret to a woman's outfit was not the clothes she wore but what she wore beneath the clothes. A nineteenth century woman often wore multiple layers beneath her frock to achieve the desired silhouette. Often her undergarments alone would weigh 10 pounds or more. No wonder those ladies remained so trim and fit!

Let's examine what a typical woman of the 1800s would wear from the inside out:

Before the layers of undergarments could be piled on, a proper lady would don her chemise. The chemise (later known as a shift) was a garment worn directly over the skin. Looking much like a modern woman's cotton nightgown, the chemise was usually made of white or off white cotton or wool, though chamois was sometimes used in cooler climates. The main purpose of the chemise was to create a layer between the body and the clothing, which was often difficult to keep clean. While the chemise absorbed sweat, the clothing over it would remain dry.

Along with the chemise, some women wore drawers. Starting in about 1840, straightleg drawers were popular. A pair of straightleg drawers were just that: two legs attached to a waistband that either tied or buttoned (sounds a bit drafty to me). Because the ankle was considered a risque body part to expose, these often were long enough to protect the woman's dignity. During the Civil War years, knickerbocker drawers became popular. These were more like the bloomers (though they were not referred to as such by the women of that era) of today though they were much longer and came in close at the knee.

Next came the petticoats - plural. In the 1840s and '50s women would have worn up to 7 at one time to give the desired effect of a full skirt (which gave the waist a smaller appearance). Cording at the hem made petticoats stiffer and, thus, adding to the impression that a woman wore multiple layers of petticoats. When hoop skirts came into vogue, the number of petticoats was greatly reduced, though there were still rarely less than 2 worn at any time. The first petticoat was donned beneath the hoop skirt to cover the limbs (a lady would never refer to them as legs), with a second one placed over the hoops to avoid those embarrassing hoop lines (similar to a modern woman's concern of panty lines).

Layer number 4 is the corset, also in white or off white and stiffened with whale bones in the earlier part of the century and metal in the latter part. Corsets were often donned from the age of 3 or 4 for medical reasons. According to the experts of the day, a corset encouraged good posture and thus good health. Say what you will about what appears to be an instrument of torture, but I once attended an event where participants were encouraged to try on one of these fearsome items. The consensus was this garment provided the dual miracles of a drastically reduced waist and reduced back pain. When one considers the work some women of this century performed, it's no wonder they would need an item for back support. The fact that it gave them back their figures and turned the gentlemen's heads was, no doubt, a bonus.

And lest you think of Scarlett O'Hara's tight lacing as the norm, doctors actually warned women about the dangers of lacing one's corset too snugly. In reality, a properly fitted corset should support the back and bust while allowing the wearer to breathe normally. The stories you hear about ladies passing out or unable to sit down for fear of crushing their ribs meant the lady wasn't wearing her corset properly. And should a woman feel her bust a bit inadequate, the 19th century version of the Wonderbra was available in something called an artificial bust enhancer which was tucked into the corset in the proper place (no explanation necessary, I'm sure).

Atop the corset came a corset cover, again of simple construction and generally modest fabric. Its purpose was, as with the hoop skirt, to avoid having the lines of the corset show. This sleeveless garment usually slipped over the corset and chemise and buttoned or tied in the front. For those of you who are counting, this is layer number 5 (number 6 if you've chosen a bust enhancer as a part of your wardrobe).

Now comes the bustle. Depending on the year it might be a large lobster-like contraption that tied on at the waist and across the hips. In a different era, the bustle looked more like an inverted hockey helmet that folded to allow the wearer to sit without crushing it.

Is it just me, or are you exhausted thinking of how much effort went into getting dressed?

Now it's YOUR turn:

Do you think it was worth all the trouble women underwent for the sake of fashion?
Which one of the above fashion items would you not mind wearing today to help achieve a certain silhouette?
Have you ever donned any of the above items for any reason? What was it?

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BIO
Tiffany Amber Stockton has been crafting and embellishing stories since childhood. Today, she is an award-winning author and speaker who has partnered with Nerium International in the anti-aging industry, helping others look younger and live better. She lives with her husband and fellow author, Stuart Vaughn Stockton, in Colorado. They have one girl and one boy, and an Aussie/retriever mix named Roxie. She has sold fourteen books so far and is represented by agent Sandra Bishop. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

FASHIONS DURING THE ROARING 1920s!

Anne Greene here:

 

In December I discussed Christmas During the Roaring 1920s. In January I discussed the Flapper In The Jazz Age. This month for  Valentine's Day, I’m homing in on Fashions During The Roaring 1920s. In March, I’ll discuss Accessories and Hairstyles During the Roaring 1920s.

 

When we think of the 1920s we tend to think of ancient history. But events that occurred after World War I still affect our lives today.

 

FASHION CHANGED AFTER WORLD WAR I. Social customs and morals relaxed in the optimism brought on by the end of the war and the booming stock market. Women entered the workforce. People ignored the prohibition on alcohol. A revolution occurred in almost every sphere of human activity. As women earned the right to vote, fashion trends became more practical. Flappers discarded the constrictive corset, an essential undergarment to make the waist thinner.

 

Undergarments transformed to conform to the ideals of a flatter chest and more boyish figure. The chemise or camisole and bloomers replaced the confining corset. Soon those shortened to panties or knickers. All-in-one lingerie grew popular.

 

The development of new fabrics and new closures in clothing affected fashion. Natural fabrics such as cotton and wool were abundant. Silk was highly desired for its luxurious qualities, but the limited supply made it expensive. Artificial silk patented in the United States became known as rayon. Rayon stockings grew popular as a substitute for silk stockings. Rayon was also used in undergarments. Before the 1920s buttons and lacing fastened clothes. Now metal hooks and eyes, zippers and snaps developed to make dressing easier and faster.

 

Improved production methods enabled manufacturers to produce clothing working families could afford. People’s fashion sense grew more sophisticated. Working-class women looked for modern dresses to transition from farm work to urban careers. Women adopted a modern look that suited their new careers as typists and telephone operators.

                                                     

 

For the first time in centuries, women's legs were seen with hemlines rising to the knee. A more masculine look became popular, including flattened breasts and hips, and short hairstyles such as the bob cut and the Marcel wave.

 

But the 1920s also loved luxury. High end designers favored expensive fabrics like silk, velvet and satin, while department stores carried less expensive variations on those designs made of new synthetic fabrics. The use of mannequins grew widespread and showed shoppers how to accessorize the new fashions. The modern fashion cycle, established in the 1920s, still dominates the industry today.

 

Clothing fashions changed with women's changing roles. Although society matrons of a certain age continued to wear conservative dresses, sportswear worn by younger women became the greatest change in post-war fashion. The tubular dresses of the teens evolved into a similar silhouette that sported shorter skirts with pleats, gathers, or slits to allow motion. The most memorable fashion trend of the Roaring '20s was the flapper look which was functional and flattened the bust line rather than accentuating it.

 

The straight-line chemise topped by the close-fitting cloche hat was the uniform of the day. Women bobbed their hair short to fit under the popular hats, a radical move in the beginning, but standard by the end of the decade. Low-waisted dresses with fullness at the hemline allowed women to literally kick up their heels in new dances like the Charleston. In 1925, shift dress with no waistline, and a hem approximately one inch below the knee emerged.

 

Proper attire for women was still enforced for morning, afternoon, and evening activities. In the early part of the decade, wealthy women still expected to change from a morning to an afternoon dress. Afternoon gowns featured long, flowing sleeves, with sashes, bows, or artificial flowers at the waist. Evening gowns, slightly longer than afternoon gowns, featured satin or velvet, and were embellished with beads, rhinestones, or fringe.

 

Clothing styles consisted of more than just the cloche and flapper. Casual clothing was introduced to the public. Women began to wear pants. Certain styles of women’s shoes were unique to this decade. Some of the breakout shoe styles included the ankle strap button shoe, the t-bar shoe, and shoes trimmed with sequins or other materials.

Men began to abandon formal wear when more and more men opted for suits with long suit jackets for special events and shorter suit jackets for casual occasions.
 

All in all the decade brought in practicality and fun. The US was young, lively, and full of expectations. Nothing was impossible.
 

Would you have enjoyed living during the 1920s? Leave a comment for a chance to win Anne’s newest book release, Marriage By Arrangement. This makes a lovely Valentine's Day gift for a loved one.

                                                        

ANNE GREENE delights in writing about wounded heroes and gutsy heroines.  

Her second novel, a Scottish historical, Masquerade Marriage, won the New England Reader Choice award, the Laurel Wreath Award, and the Heart of Excellence Award. The sequel Marriage By Arrangement released November, 2013.  A Texas Christmas Mystery also won awards. She makes her home in McKinney, Texas. Tim LaHaye led her to the Lord when she was twenty-one and Chuck Swindoll is her Pastor. View Anne’s travel pictures and art work at http://www.AnneGreeneAuthor.com. Anne’s highest hope is that her stories transport the reader to an awesome new world and touch hearts to seek a deeper spiritual relationship with the Lord Jesus. Buy Anne’s books at http://www.PelicanBookGroup.com. Or at http://www.Amazon.com. Visit http://www.anneswritingupdates.blogspot.com for information on writing an award-winning novel. Talk with Anne on twitter at @TheAnneGreene. Visit Anne’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/AnneWGreeneAuthor.