A Dress and Bonnet For Marmee

Hello dear friends! Yesterday was Thanksgiving here in the states. If you celebrated I hope that it was wonderful. Today I have a very special historical Fashion Friday for you: A Dress and Bonnet For Marmee.

Historical Inspiration

As always I start my historical fashions with a bit of research. 

Little Women, written by Louisa May Alcott, begins in the 1860s. I couldn’t find any full length photographs or carte-de-visite of Louisa during this time period. Her little sister, Abigail May Alcott Nieriker, (known as May) did the early illustrations in her big sister’s book which provides only a few glimpses of what fashions in the March household may have been . 

You can find the original illustrations by the real life Amy from the first edition HERE. 

In thinking about what Marmee may of worn I considered several factors:

• It would need to be long wearing.
• Feature simple lines that wouldn’t be out of fashion in a year.
• A darker color befitting of her age but also reflective of the somber time period.
• Made from wool which would be warm in the Concord, Massachusetts winters.

But then I also considered that Marmee had once been a rather wealthy woman. As such she would probably still have some desire to have a bit of frivolity in her fashion. Something that wouldn’t require much yardage. Fabric was expensive and precious particularly during the Civil War years. 

I settled upon one specific design element: puffed sleeves.

This simple addition didn’t require much fabric. The sleeves could be sewn first and the puffs attached separately. This way they could be easily removed at a later point if they went out of fashion. 

I do love a good puffed sleeve!

There are quite few photographs and carte-de-visite (CdV a calling card with a photographic portrait mounted on it) that show the puffed sleeve style. 

This post contains a wonderful collection of a wide variety of sleeve designs worn in the 1860s.

A good book that covers fashion from 1861-1865 is Who Wore What by Juanita Leisch. The puffed sleeve also makes an appearance within its pages. 

Dresses From The Films and Mini Series

I have watched most versions of the Little Women television mini series and films several times. Each time was with a different objective. One set of viewings was to study what the character of Marmee wore. 

The 2017 PBS mini series costume designer was Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh. She is also known for other historically inspired films such as Becoming Jane and Love & Friendship.

Emily Watson, who portrayed Marmee, was dressed in fashions befitting her age and the time period. 

Walter Plunket designed the costumes for both the 1933 and the 1949 versions of the film. Some of the clothing is a bit costumey.

Of the two I prefer the 1949 film. It also does a good job of showcasing 1860s knitwear. 

Squirrel moment: I’m dying to make this bonnet worn by Great Aunt March. 

The uber talented Colleen Atwood designed the garments for the 1994 film. 

I will say that out of all the characters clothing featured in this film version Marmee was my least favorite. 

But I did love the color and texture this dress. It was the inspiration for my own.

A Dress and Bonnet For Marmee

For those who have followed me for a few years you may recall that I begin working on each years holiday theme almost a year in advance. There is so much to handcraft when creating specific themes. It takes a tremendous amount of planning and time. This year, for me, has been full of surprises. Both good and bad. One key factor was Mr. Decor’s horrible accident. I knew I would need to rally my troops to reach the holiday season finish line. 

For that reason I hired my dear friend Tiffany of Stitchin’ Addiction to make my dress. She is an amazing seamstress who I knew would be the perfect person to create the dress I was envisioning. 

I had purchased an out of print pattern, Simplicity 4400, from eBay. It can also be found on Etsy. 

This pattern was challenging even for such an experienced sewist as Tiffany. It took over 40 hours to create. 

A mock up of the bodice was necessary to achieve the correct silhouette. I also wore a corset during fittings and when wearing the finished dress. 

A Dear Little Bonnet

Of course Marmee would also have a hat. High brimmed, poke and spoon bonnets were quite fashionable in the 1860s.

Anna Worden is an excellent resource for images. This article provides design details featured on many bonnets of this time period. 

Bonnets of this era could be trimmed simply with just a bit of lace and ribbon. 

They could also be quite elaborate in their decoration with the addition of flowers, beads and other trims. 

I love to share this image as often as I can. It’s a great bonnet. Plus it shows that the use of rick rack trim has been around a very LONG time. 

My friend Michele is an amazing milliner (hatmaker). She constructed the buckram and wire base of my bonnet. (Which is the part I hate. LOL) Her favorite patterns are from Out Of Portrait and Timely Tresses. 

That left me to do what I love such as adding the interior fabric and antique lace trim. I had found just a scrap of the moiré fabric at an estate sale. So the fabric had to be pieced together in the interior crown area and on the bavolet ruffle. In both areas it is hardly noticeable. The accent flowers and petersham ribbon are vintage. The cranberry and crystal picks came from the holiday section at Hobby Lobby. I wanted to wink at the holiday season but not fully embrace it. This way the bonnet could be worn in say February as well.  

The Reveal

I LOVE how it all turned out!

I do so love a good puffed sleeve, much like another literary heroine. 

“But I’d be ever so much gratefuller if–if you’d made just one of them with puffed sleeves. Puffed sleeves are so fashionable now. It would give me such a thrill, Marilla, just to wear a dress with puffed sleeves.” ~ Anne of Green Gables 

The seams feature piping which help to reinforce areas that may receive extra strain such as the sleeve head and back bodice area. 

As always I try to include an antique element in everything I wear. This dress has antique black silk buttons on the bodice. They were a lucky estate sale find. 

This Week’s Video

In this week’s video I am joined by Tiffany. We discuss 1860’s fashion and more. You’ll want to stay to the end to watch the bloopers as I have a wardrobe malfunction a la Carol Burnett. 

I’ll see you on Sunday!

Laura

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Join us for holiday watch parties of our favorite television and film versions of Little Women.