Help dating crochet dress (es) from Scotland

[laurenm]

Hi there Everyone,
Any thoughts on an era for these home made crochet dresses? Also there is a few little rust stains on one of them....any advice as to how best to clean crochet? I was told these were brought from Scotland at some point.


the first one is actually a very pale blue, it just doesn't show in photos.

Thanks alot,
Lauren

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Laurenm, how you clean crochet is like any other garment: it depends on the fabric. Can you tell if it's silk, cotton, rayon perhaps? The latter two can be soaked in an oxygen bleach but the first probably won't relinquish the stains.

 

[laurenm]

Thanks Nicole, I'm not sure what the fiber is, I've never handled it before. It seems really delicate and slinky so I'm afraid of stretching the very close pattern.
I spoke to the person who brought it in today and he said he had been wrong about Scotland, it was actually brought by his 'ex pat' British relatives from Zimbabwe at some point. Any sense of a date on this? I keep thinking maybe 60s?

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

To see the silhouette you really need to put them on a body of the right size: they're hanging loosely on your form, so that's distorting the shape a little. I tend to agree with a '60s date but sometimes these are earlier or later.

So much yarn has been used in each one so I think they're most likely to be cotton - in any case, I would soak and see what happens. If you have any concerns you can pull them out but you should be fine.

 

[laurenm]

Thanks Nicole, I'll get some shots on real folk!

 

[Pinkcoke]

I can only give my vague thoughts on this, as I haven't handled many as Nicole probably has but I will say the crochet patterns used on your examples are so much more complicated than that used on the 60's crochet dress I have, of course they could have been made by someone really experienced in crochet but these would have taken some time to produce. The pale colours also seem to me to suit an earlier decade than the bright colours I've seen previously on 60's examples.
It would be really useful to know if they were cotton, silk or something else. The former two should feel quite different to each other.

 

[laurenm]

Thanks Melanie, I'll try and sort out what fiber I've got....I'm pretty sure it is not cotton, but it doesn't have that 'crispy' synthetic feel either.

 

[Rue_de_la_Paix]

Hi,

As has been said, it is not so easy unless we can see the dresses on a person or mannequin, and can handle the yarn. I have had pass through my hands a goodly number of 1990s dresses similar to yours, made in China (or the Phillipines) of a somewhat slinky or silky feeling rayon cord or yarn that had a more slippery feel than cotton yarn and a very slight sheen. They are usually in white, cream or black, but I have seen pale blue and pale pink. They also came in 2 piece outfits, top and skirt with elasticized waists. I get that same vibe from these dresses.

Of course, I cannot tell from just the photo, but the look of the yarn and your describing it as "slinky" made me chime in.