Hi,
I'm working on a 1/12 scale (dollhouse miniature) of the outfit in an 1849 fashion plate. (If you've subscribed to the Costume Gallery, it's part of the "Year in Fashion: 1949" collection, http://www.costumegallery.com/1849/ . It's the March 1849 Fashion Plate : Lady with Children .) I'm almost done with the gown and moving on to the bonne t. I am not very knowledgeable about 19th-century headwear, and am hoping someone with expertise can give me a clue or two or three . The bonnet appears to be straw, and I think it is more or less the typical shape of that decade, which I've seen variously described as cottage/spoon/scuttle . I've read that by 1849 the brim, while still large in circumference, no longer extended very far out beyond the face, which seems consistent with the image . Other examples from the same year that I've seen had a straight top line rather than a break between the caul and brim. A ribbon trims the hat, more or less where the caul would turn into the brim if they were not continuous. So far so good. The plate doesn't show the back of the bonnet. Other examples from around the same time have some kind of fabric ruffle on the back at the bottom of the caul, coming forward as far as the ribbon trim. Here are my questions: 1) None of the real-life bonnets I've looked at is straw. On these other bonnets, the fabric ruffle is made of the same fashion fabric as the outside of the bonnet. Would a straw bonnet have the ruffle? What would it be made of on a straw hat? 2) The bonnet in the fashion plate has an elaborate bow and tassel trim on the visible side. Would there have been the same trim on both sides of the head ? Or just on one side? 3) There's something sort of poufy or ruffly going on inside the brim of the bonnet. Would the lining have been poufy or did fashionable women still wear caps under their bonnets in '49? 4) There are also flowers trimming the inside of the brim. Would those have been arranged the same way on both sides of the head, or asymmetrically? Thank you for any thoughts you might share! Best, Lauren ----- Original Message ----- _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
