Picked up these two pretty dresses today. Woman at the sale said they were found in an attic and she believed they were from the late 1800s. I am more inclined to think the 1910s, yes? Also, on the embroidered beige dress, I cannot figure out how the back sash is supposed to go. Suggestions? They were both wadded up very badly and I've spent the last hour steaming them. I didn't even realize that the lilac dress had scalloped hemlines! No zippers, just tons of little snaps and hooks and eyes.
How wonderful that you will be restoring these. I agree, they date from the mid 'Teens era. The yellow dress looks to be a bit earlier in the decade than the purple but only by a year or 2. Hard to tell the original length on the yellow dress, which looks as if it once had a longer underskirt (or is it still bunched up in need of more steaming). Great finds!
the back sash hoto is upside down! Honestly, I don't know why my iPhone keeps flipping photos. They are all the right side up in my photo gallery. I've deleted the upside down photo in the original post. Here is the photo right side up:
Thank you! The beige dress with the embroidery has an underlayer that is straight along the bottom with a fine hand-rolled hem (I do believe it to be original length). The embroidered overlay has a ruffled jagged edge. They don't really require actual restoration, there are no tears or holes, just a couple inch-long seam areas that need to be re-sewn. Dare I take an iron to these? The beige dress is like a stiff but fine sheer organza (silk?). The purple dress fabric is a bit less stiff than the beige embroidered dress. Sorry about the horrible photos. The lighting in my house is terrible.
Just giving this a little bump to ask about cleaning. They both could benefit from a soak... dare I? And, can they be ironed? Thank you, ~Donna
Do the dresses feel dirty to your hands? Are they smelly from long storage? I have successfully hand washed garments like these. I suggest in the bathtub, so they can stretch out and not be twisted. An amazing amount of grunge comes out with a plain water first rinse, then use a small amount of mild soap or detergent second. Third, rinse well. Dresses from this era have abundant hooks and eyes which may rust if items are soaked for any period of time. Hand dry as well as you can, then use a hair dryer on them. Good luck. Marian
Thank you Marian. There are no odors or spots and they don't feel dirty , there are just some areas of general gray grunginess when you look at it from a certain angle and in a certain light.. As you said, there are tons of hooks and eyes all over these dresses. Thanks for the tips!
