Antique Wedding Gown

crushvintage

crushvintage

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Hello!
We have this darling silver gown ( possibly wedding?) but we are stumped on how old this dress actually is, and were hoping someone could help us pin point a date. Usually we work with items that are 1920's and newer, but this dress just stands out as more of an antique garment. We would appreciate any little bit of knowledge you may have on this!
It has a silk slip that has the attached silver metal arms. Side snaps and back of the neck snaps on the slip. The long silver metal like gown is put together with a corset buttons in the back. Also large shoulder pads. We noticed too that there is some slight oxidization on the bottom part of the hem.

Thank you so much for your help! IMG_2012.jpg IMG_2061.jpg IMG_2064.jpg IMG_2066.jpg IMG_2068.jpg IMG_2069.jpg
 
Interesting gown.

I see a '40s metallic and silk lame' fabric (perhaps from the '30s) which was made into a dress with extended shoulder sleeves and drapery (stand up tucks) at the back of the skirt.

Since then, it looks like perhaps the drapery has been undone slightly, perhaps to make the skirt longer because the underskirt (beneath the bustled drape and bow) was removed for refashioning into sleeves and attached to the petticoat.

Confirmation would be from examining the stitches attaching the sleeves to see if they match the rest, and if there's any sign of the underskirt portion being removed. The slip looks original.

I think the shoulder pads are probably original '40s but it will help if you can post photos - and perhaps tell us what they're stuffed with? Thank you.
 
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Hello!

Thank you for your informative reply! We examined the dress a little more closely and took out the shoulder pads. The stitching is different on the arms Vs. the rest of the gown, so I believe you are right about the sleeves being attached later on. The shoulder pads are huge and are stuffed with some sort of cotton insulation material that is layered with cheese cloth. I've attached a few more photos for a better look at the small details!

Thanks again!
PS. Your detective skills are amazing! :)

. IMG_0949.JPG IMG_0950.JPG IMG_0952.JPG
 
Oh gosh, yes she did! Thank you so much for all of your help! It's very much appreciated.
If you have any tips on removing the oxidation from the material, that would be super helpful as well.

Thank you so much!
 
You're most welcome!

I can't help you on the oxidisation but the fabric looks really good, I can't see any flaws - silk and metallics are hard to clean when they have stains but it's beautiful I wouldn't try to remove as you're likely to damage.
 
I'm intrigued to know do you really think they wore it with the underskirt showing at the back or there is another bustle/train type piece missing?
 
Happy New Year. This one is (as Melanie says) intriguing. First impression is older than 40's, but then there are all the features Nicole mentions including the darned shoulder pads. For a moment I was even wondering about "costume," but I can't imagine using those buttons. It will be interesting to see what others have to add. I too think something is missing in the back. Great dress.
 
Looking at it again, with a train piece it would be a good candidate for a 60's/70's medieval wedding dress... that might be when it was altered. Maybe a huge veil covered the back?
 
I would have said it was a wartime wedding dress made from prewar metallic lame yardage (they ceased making lame during the war, but there were prewar stocks available until it was used up). The narrow silhouette and frugal use of the material suggests a wartime date, and the shoulder pads look completely original to me - that cotton wadding is typical of early 40s pads.
 
Thank you so much for all your help!
We removed the shoulder pads and it looks so great!

We appreciated everyone's help and feedback on this questions!
 
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