Dating a Dress

[greatglenvintage]

Would this dress be 30s or 40s? It feels like silk. I'm terrified to clean it, and I'm not sure how to fix the yellowing/underarm staining. There's also about a 1 inch tear near the metal side zipper. :( Any tips on dating and cleaning would be great! Thanks!

 

[poppysvintageclothing]

What a gorgeous print. Is it silk chiffon or just silk?

 

[Rue_de_la_Paix]

Beautiful dress. It would be helpful to see the dress "right way" up, as the sideways photos do not show the dress well, especially the length. Tt looks like mid-late 1930s, but could also be post WWII later 1940s.

 

[greatglenvintage]

I'm fairly new to this, so I'm not sure whether it is silk or silk chiffon.

 

[greatglenvintage]

For some reason, I can't get the other photos to be right side up, even from a computer...

 

[Linn]

Very pretty print and pretty dress. I think it is early 1950's.

 

[Jonathan]

Same source as your blue ribbon dress? Because it looks similar to me - c. 1950-52

 

[greatglenvintage]

Jonathan - I'm not sure if they are the same source, but I found a bunch of dresses at the thrift store on the same day.

 

[greatglenvintage]

I also found a 20s dress, a few 40s dresses, and a few 50s dresses that day. But now I'm doubting the dates of all of them, haha...except the 20s one. That one is pretty obvious.

 

[poppysvintageclothing]

It looks 40s to me...if it's chiffon it would be very sheer, I can't tell from the photos.

 

[greatglenvintage]

It's not sheer at all, and it is unlined.

 

[poppysvintageclothing]

So it most likely is a regular silk. It's really lovely. I can just see it with a big straw hat.

 

[Linn]

The fabric might be rayon which can feel like silk. You will know for sure if you can find some loose threads and do a burn test.

 

[MemphisVintage]

Lovely dress! Such beautiful colors perfect for warm weather! To me, it looks late 40s.

 

[Rue_de_la_Paix]

This dress is really lovely and I adore the fabric. As Linn stated, a burn test will reveal if it is silk. In one photo it looks like a silk taffeta, but in another it almost looks like a fine silk faille. Really nice.

I get a strong sense of late 1930s from the fabric, the colors and the pattern, but not so much the silhouette. I am wondering if this has been altered, updated after WWII. Can you tell if the pink velvet ribbon was an addition? The ribbon looks like antique silk velvet to me. Can you show us the stitching inside where the ribbon as been sewn on?

Also, has the hem been altered at all? Could this have been a full length gown and has been made shorter?

What a great thing to find at a thrift shop!

 

[greatglenvintage]

I've added more pictures of the hem and how the velvet trim is attached. I think you may be right about it being added later. There are various types of stitches where it's attached. Where I can slightly pull up the velvet, the dress is folded over and stitched. The shoulders are also gathered, but it looks like they may not always have been. The velvet is incredibly soft. I haven't had time to do a burn test, but the dress fabric is very thin and light (although not sheer) and not stiff.

I'm not sure how to tell is the hem has been altered. I attached another photo.

And yes, I nearly cried right there in the store when I found all these dresses. It's definitely not a normal thing. I think I've used up my vintage luck for a while, haha.