advice on dating some dresses would be amazing!! - veryyy picture heavy!

[susanjoyce]

good evening!!
id love some information and opinions on these dresses - anything you can offer would be brilliant, i know theres a few on this post and i dont want to be cheeky asking dress by dress so just any little tips would be so appreciated!

a lot of the information on zips ive found tends to be all over the place!
but am i right in saying side metal zippers will generally be older than a back centre zip? - the polka dot dress and square/rectangle block colour dress have the zippers on the opposite side from the others but reading other posts i think this doesnt really mean anything?!
the pink gingham dress and black/brown floral dress have 'upside down' zips - anything of note?

im also wondering when the under arm guards were popular?

dress one - looked 50s style to me - a hem been taken up maybe?

dress two - poppers inside just to even up pattern? 50s style?

dress three - white detail around neckline and sleeves is quite thick and perhaps added on later judging by stitching. button down front detail with poppers behind this.

dress four - very heavy fabric

dress five - havent actually come across this style before! 50s ish print?

dress six - 60s?

dress seven - very heavy fabric

dress eight - 50s style?

sorry for the lack of mannequin a lot simply wouldnt fit it!
thank you for any help!
x

 

[Jonathan]

I was going to ask you if you got them in Europe because the zipper going up, rather than down, seems to be more common on continental dresses, also the smooth tear drop shape pull is typically continental European as well. I see the dress shield and the label are in German or Dutch, so that answers my question. The oldest dress looks to me to be the blue and white print dress with the white collar and cuffs - early 50s on that one, the brown and white laterally striped dress looks mid-50s to me, the yellow rose print looks like a c. 1958 chemise dress, probably from a pattern after a Cardin or YSL for Dior design. The rest all look early 60s to me but for the blue polka-dot one - I have no idea when that's from...

 

[lizzietree]

i love them all!! What a lovely selection of dresses.

Is the blue polka dot one very small and short? Think it may be early fifties childrens if it is...
I had a dress in near identical fabric and style to the brown one (the heavy one) my one was american and i managed to date it (through its union label and some details furnished on me by its previous owner) to 1963. I will see if i can find a pic somewhere... but it was incredidbly similar. Even though they were probs from different sides of the world the likeness is pretty crazy!

 

[susanjoyce]

thank you both very much!
Jonathan it amazes me you can date a dress to a year! amazing knowledge! and yes i bought them in Europe!
and lizzietree itd be so good to see your similar dress.
the blue polka dot does look quite child style huh! its the same length as the green one say but i'll try it on and see if its small made up top.
im happy to know im not a million miles away from the dates i was thinking!
thanks again! x

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Jonathan, interesting what you say about the zippers - here in Australia they go down as well, and we also get a lot of European clothes as there was so much migration during the 20th century. It never occurred to me that they would go any other other way - I have found the odd one, and I thought they must have put it in the wrong way! Now I know

Nicole

Edited: I meant zippers go up! Not down.

 

[Jonathan]

I have a few dresses with the zipper going up, and they are all European, however, I also have European dresses where the zipper goes down, so it seems to be both.

 

[susanjoyce]

hi again!
lizzietree this is the blue dress on a mannequin to try and decide if its childrens or not!

looks an alright adult size! hm!

x

 

[lizzietree]

Hmmm it does look more like an adults dress now! How everything changes when on a mannequin.

I'll have search through my photo archive and see if i can find one of the brown dress. I only sold it earlier in the year so i should have one somewhere!