Hello all. I came across this dress and am having some trouble identifying era and such. I believe it's 1940s, and possibly a military uniform. It's a crepe rayon, side metal zipper closure. It has brass waterbury buttons. I tried to find military uniforms in this peachy color but no luck. Perhaps a nurse? I really couldn't find anything similar though. Would it just be a "trend" type of piece mimicking a uniform style? Also, how did the wrists close? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Blubird - the cuffs are French cuffs, they fold back and a ladies version of cufflink went through the holes to secure. Does it have shoulder pads? If so, can you describe or photograph? Can you tell if the zipper is original? What sort of buckle (or is that a matching button?) does the belt have? The fabric looks like rayon, but a textured weave, not crepe. I suspect you have a military style (rather than military) dress from the late '30s because the skirt is too long and the sleeves too generously cut for wartime. There is a whopping big hem there, that you can take down to restore the original silhouette.
Hello It doesn't have shoulder pads. The zipper looks original, it reads conmar I believe. The fabric does have a weave to it for sure. It feels sorta like crepe, the same "weighiness" but yeah maybe not as slippery. I didn't try washing it for that reason - I've had no success trying to wash crepe. Scary. Interesting on the sleeves - this is my first find with this! The belt does have the same type of waterbury button closure. On some of the buttons it says waterbury and on some it doesn't. Also, there is a little double-ended pin type of closure that goes through the back of some of the buttons and secures them. (I'll post a pic) I haven't run across that before either. Interesting how culture/fashion mimics current political ideals - if this is a military style.
those are called cotter pins, Bluebird. that way they can be removed for cleaning and not get damaged. the buttons bear the US army emblem:
Ah, American! Of course - I forget that the US came into the war later, and fabric restrictions weren't the same as Europe/Australia. It could be early '40s WW2 in that case. Good work, Mary.
If it's US Military, there should be a label with all the ID numbers, style numbers, etc. This looks more military styled than actual uniform. The black trim and the French cuffs aren't right for a uniform dress. That would generally be a button cuff.
I know this is an old thread but I was looking at old nurses uniforms and found this sold listing on ebay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-US-Army...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557
I too think it inspired and possibly someone added the buttons to make it look more military for a play etc. I doubt the buttons are original to the dress.
This one is very similar to the one Carla found which was a WWII nurse's uniform...it's too bad that you don't have a label in yours like that one has.
