Hello sweet friends! Welcome to a very special historical Fashion Friday. I have to say that this year’s Costume Extravaganza just about did me in. But like all Little House stories it all worked out in the end. I hope you enjoy the Caroline Ingalls Black and White Dress Reveal.
All The Historical Research
I recently shared all my historical research for the dress including images, fabrics, patterns and more in this post.
To bring you up to speed the inspiration for this dress comes from the book On The Banks Of Plum Creek written by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Then they stood and stared at Ma. She was perfectly beautiful in her new dress. It was black and white calico, a narrow stripe of white, then a wider stripe of black lines and white lines no wider than threads. Up the front it was buttoned with black buttons. And the skirt was pulled back and lifted up to puffs and shirrings behind. Crocheted lace edged the little stand-up collar. Crocheted lace spread out in a bow on Ma’s breast, and the gold breast pin held the collar and the bow. ~ Chapter 24, Going To Church
A Bonnet and Reticule
The bodice of this ensemble, with it’s puffs and shirrings was not an easy make. Several times I had to walk away from it and work on other things such as a matching hat and purse.
Most Victorian ladies, when going out in public, would wear a bonnet and carry a reticule. I wanted to adopt a pioneer frugality for both projects.
A small amount of black silk was found in my scrap bag. It was leftover from an Edwardian dress that I had made last year.
If you follow me on Instagram you may have recently seen a new ivory reticule that I had made. The shape was inspired by a lovely 1833 extant example from the bridal trousseau of Anna Jones Hoppin. The original is housed in the Bruce & Susan Greene Costume Collection that I recently viewed at the Genesee Country Village & Museum. I loved it so much I simply cut the same shape on the black silk.
For the bonnet there are an abundance of examples that I had pinned for inspiration on my 1870’s Pinterest Board.
Longtime readers may recognize the new bonnet as I simply gave an old one a makeover. The dress that this green topper went with had long since found a new home.
I removed all of the flowers and lace then painted the base with black dye. Vintage ribbon as well as a few black and white flowers were added. Voila ~ a new bonnet!
Caroline Ingalls Black and White Dress Reveal
I talk about the difficulties in creating this ensemble in the video. Truly, the only reason I didn’t completely abandon this project was that I kept thinking about how Caroline never gave up.
When a huge log rolled onto her foot, probably breaking it, Caroline did not give up. She continued to help Pa build the Little House on the Prairie.
Ma refused to let her family freeze to death and kept twisting hay during The Long Winter.
These are just only two examples of Caroline’s determination.
So I gathered up all of my Ingalls gumption and decided I was going to finish this dress!
This included sewing on 24 antique jet glass buttons. I purchased them from my dear friend and neighbor, Becky, who is both a collector and a vendor.
The buttons sparkle so beautifully in the sun.
The black crochet bow was created from a random antique piece of lace that I had found at an estate sale. It was originally ivory and received the same Rit dye treatment as the bonnet.
There is also antique crochet trim on the little stand up collar. I want to point it out because sewing it evenly between the interior and exterior collar pieces took some time and effort. 😉
On The Banks Of My Creek
It seemed fitting to do the photo shoot on the banks of the little creek that runs near my home.
Puffs and Shirrings
I hope all the puffs and shirrings have delighted your heart.
I can’t resist showcasing a few images of Ma’s black and white dress in black and white.
This Week’s Video
While pictures are wonderful there is just something so lovely about a bustle dress in motion. Come see the dress strolling along the creek.
If you wish to view the video in a larger format just click on the black box in the lower left hand corner that says Watch on YouTube.
I’ll see you on Sunday!
Laura
Am I the first to congratulate you here on this outstanding job? Your perseverance paid off! well done.
Beautiful Laura, I don’t know how you do it! Love the photo setting by the creek!
As always, Laura, it’s simply beautiful. You can see the hours of work and the photos are terrific!
How can I sign up to receive emails for your blog? I can’t seem to find a place for subscriptions.
Wow! This is a beautiful dress. So much work that clearly goes into creating these. I do now sew nor have that talent, but so respect people who do and the creations they make.
Your persistence and commitment to the project certainly paid off. Clearly you are talented ! I was also amazed that you were able to find 24 black glass buttons! Thank you for sharing your post with the Home Imagined Link Party.