Dating this fragile dress

[acceber]

I think it's homemade. It closes in the back with a metal Talon zipper and two covered buttons. The hem is a disaster. The whole thing is so fragile and tears easily. I'm wondering if there wasn't some embellishment going on with the hem that is gone now. Seems an awfully short dress for the 50s-60s, which is where I'm guessing at.

 

[acceber]

I don't think it was hand made, but it was shortened. Someone cut along the bottom lace in a scalloped sort of look and then just sewed the liner to the dress to match. It doesn't work - the fabric is rolling up and it looks terrible. I wonder what I could do to fix it and perhaps come close to how it may have looked before someone butchered it.

 

[acceber]

What the hem is doing.

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

I agree that it's been shortened: it was probably below the knee, maybe mid-calf originally. It looks to be an early '50s dress, maybe late '40s.

The hem needs to be separated from the lining, you could unpick them and hem them separately and then they will sit better. Someone has done a 'down and dirty' hem but the two fabrics have different weights and will work better by themselves.

 

[acceber]

Thank you very much! I did remove the hem stitching. It would be very easy to restore the length of it and disguise doing it if I could find the same fabric, which I suspect is highly unlikely.