The "tea gown" or "wrapper" seems to have been common maternity wear in
the late Victorian and Edwardian periods. This is not made very
explicit. But if you look at some illos you can see, for example, things
like a sack-like front with a very loose waist sash tied at the bottom
of the abdomen. And in pattern descriptions, read references to things
like "can be closed with hooks and eyes or if necessary lacing" (the
lacing could of course be loosened). Tea gowns and wrappers were made of
a much wider variety of materials than the lightweight silks commonly
associated with fancy tea gowns, and the homey flannels and calicos
associated with morning wrappers. In other words, they were made in
materials you could wear all day. I am not sure how much they were worn
outside the home. But as someone said, some version of a loose boxy coat
was often available and that could cover a lot in terms of not only
pregnancy but the gown worn for it.
I have an original circa 1911 brown velvet dress with a bertha-like cape
that covers a bound slit on each side of the bodice. The skirt is not
ample enough for pregnancy, but it's certainly a nursing dress. It's a
nice dress and quite suitable for wear outside the home. I did not even
realize it was a nursing dress till after I bought it.
Fran
Lavolta Press
http://www.lavoltapress.com
albert...@aol.com wrote:
In a message dated 4/5/2009 11:47:39 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
katybisho...@gmail.com writes:
a 1911 day dress The waist could be raised a bit and the skirt
altered, and I wonder if nursing slits could be hidden under the yoke
for post-pregnancy.
_______________________________________________
h-costume mailing list
h-costume@mail.indra.com
http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
