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| day dress
CD2009-0018
IMG2008-0194-0093-Dm | |
| | Artifact Number | 986.32.1 a-b | | | Category | 03: personal artifacts
| | | Sub-category | C100: clothing, outerwear
| | | Place of Origin | Country - Canada, Province - Ontario
| | | Place of Use | Country - Canada, Province - Ontario
| | | Measurements | Length 161.0 cm, Width 45.0 cm, Thickness 18.0 cm | | | Artist / Maker / Manufacturer | Morehouse & Godson
| | | Person / Institution | Associated party, Biggar, Mrs. Jane Hellen
| | | Earliest Possible Date | 1871/01/01 | | | Latest Possible Date | 1885/12/31 | | | Inscription | (inside centre back of bodice/à l’intérieur, sur le dos du corset, au centre) MOREHOUSE & GODSON / TORONTO | | | Caption | Comments on this dress from the Mowat family
| | Additional Information | Two-piece dress composed of a bodice and skirt, both made of ivory coloured ribbed silk. The skirt is trained and bustled. The bodice has a pale blue silk satin plastron, with a simulated bib of ivory silk mesh with a chenille fringe and blue trim and bow. Blue bows trim the sleeves; skirt has a front swag of mesh with blue satin and chenille trim and blue bows, train has blue satin trim. Front of bodice fitted with two diverging darts from lower edge to bust line: outer dart begins at lower edge, inner dart begins at waistline. What appears to be the lower section of this dart is the style line of the plastron. Pale blue silk satin plastron begins at the mid-point of the shoulder seam, gently angles in to waistline and gently flares to lower edge. Plastron seams are finished with two lengths of thick blue cording. Centre front is closed with 11 hand-worked buttonholes and half ball buttons covered with matching blue figured silk. Standing collar is finished on all edges with wide blue piping. Short, lateral-slash buttonhole stitched at waistline of left front. A bib effect reaches to the waistline. It is formed of a fine, soft, square-meshed silk mesh of which one edge is trimmed with two rows of wide blue piping and a "kite tail" fringe of chenille. Bib is trimmed at centre front with blue tailored bow. The lower edge of the bodice forms a rounded point at centre front, curves up to side seams, and then curves down to centre back. It also has an added wide blue bias band which continues around back bodice and is trimmed with thick blue piping. Back bodice is cut in six sections; two central back sections are seamed from waistline to neck. Inner side backs are joined to backs with curved lapped seam from armhole to waistline; outer side backs joined to inner side backs with curved seam from armhole to lower edge. The unseamed portion of back sections forms a fishtail; the unseamed portions of inner side backs are brought together to form a point at lower centre back, which is trimmed with a blue tailored bow; two similar bow trims at centre back neckline. The two-piece set-in sleeves are shaped to the contours of the arm with a small amount of ease at elbow. The lower edge is trimmed with spaced blue bias bands which each have a tailored bow at central front area. The fabric in the back area between bands has been replaced by mesh puffs. The lower right sleeve is trimmed with silk tulle edging. The bodice is backed with silk twill; lower band and fishtail lined with silk tabby. The outer front darts are boned their entire length, with boning in the side seams and outer side back seams as well. The centre back seam is boned for several centimetres above the waistline. A half-moon-shaped kapok pad covered in ivory silk is attached to underarm area. There's a moiré silk ribbon waist stay. Printed in gold at centre back is: "MOREHOUSE & GODSON / TORONTO". Skirt has been unpicked across the back waistline and at centre back seam in train, so that style lines are no longer precise. The skirt is cut in three panels. The centre front panel is seamed to side panels with placket in left side back seam and pocket in right side back seam. Lower skirt area trimmed with a wide puffed band of mesh and two self fabric ruffles, the lower concealing a lace-trimmed, pleated tarlatan ruffle. Wide mesh swag, trimmed with a blue band and chenille fringe, loops from waistline at opening to lower centre front area and up to pocket. There are three large blue bows, spaced along left front seam; the lower one is holding the swing in place. Bustle and train, formed of two panels seamed vertically, created on a foundation of white scrim which is seamed into the centre back area of the skirt. The lower scrim area is rounded to form the train and finished with a wide pleated tarlatan ruffle which is concealed by a very wide, slightly gathered self-fabric band trimmed with a wide blue band. The inside edges of the bustle area have been faced with a 5 cm wide band of silk satin, edged with narrow blue piping, then turned to outside and formed into a zigzag (sometimes called cascade) ruffle from hipline to beginning of train. The bustle is attached to scrim with two spaced rows of shirring from waistline to the beginning of the train (although much of this shirring is now missing and bustle and train style lines are distorted). The left train area has a wide blue bias trim which finishes the side, bottom and centre back opening. Right side of train has blue lightly gathered ruffle edging on side and bottom edges; originally the right centre back was concealed under the left centre back but tacking is now broken. The bustle is formed by adjusting three pairs of tapes on underside of scrim. The dress is thought to have belonged to Jane Helen Mowat, daughter of Sir Oliver Mowat. Jane Helen Mowat married Charles R. W. Biggar in 1875. Mr. Biggar is said to have been a lawyer. The firm of Morehouse & Godson is listed in Toronto city directories between 1876 and 1883. Edward Morehouse first appears in 1875 as a clerk. In 1876 the firm is listed as "Importers of Foreign and British Dry Goods" and in 1879 as "Wholesale Milliners and Dry Goods" Edward Morehouse continues to be listed until 1899.
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CD2009-0018
IMG2008-0194-0094-Dm | |
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