Ball gowns and formal evening gowns were generally worn "after five" to evening balls, dinners, or soirees (parties). They were never worn for regular daytime wear. Formal evening wear often included short sleeves and bare neckline/shoulders, something that was rarely seen on daytime wear.
Formal evening attire of the early '60s aimed for the hourglass figure. Even short chubby ladies (like the 5'2" Mary Todd Lincoln) look slim-waisted wearing the 1860s style. A properly fitted corset is the best foundational garment to start your look off right. After that, there are three main things that achieve this look:
- Dropped shoulder seams. This is universal for all dresses in the Civil War era. Lots of lace, ruffles, and flowers are added to the shoulder/bust area to widen out the "top of the hourglass."
- A high waistline. It should be just under the bottom edge of your rib cage, right about where you elbows are
- A smoothly flaring skirt. There should be enough bones in the hoop underneath to create a smooth outline. And there should be enough fullness is the skirt and petticoats to be full and "swishy!"
- Tucker. A tucker is a lace or netted channel around the bodice edge through which ribbon was thread. This ribbon could then be tightened to hold the bodice edge smoothly against your skin.
Period-correct material for an 1860s ballgown will have the following features:
- Natural fiber. This usually means silk, although there are some very fine, sheer cottons that can work as well. NO POLYESTER. Polyester is plastic. It's like wearing plastic wrap around yourself. Picture yourself doing an energetic dance in a warm room covered in plastic. UGH! Natural fibers "breath" and are therefore far more comfortable for warm activities like dancing.
- Light weight. Don't make the mistake I did when I made my first ballgown - I chose a heavy, gorgeous drapery fabric! Yowzers, that ballgown was heavy and stiff enough to stand on its own! 1860s ladies knew that extremely light and "floaty" fabrics would be much easier to dance in. And they look absolutely breathtaking when you are swirling around the ballroom!
- No cotton calicoes, small prints, or "bedspread-looking" material. In the 1860s, small prints and calicoes were considered materials for work dresses - or even men's shirts! Definitely not ballgown material. Go for silks in solids, stripes, plaids, or old-fashioned embossed/embroidered designs (if you're confident enough to tell whether it's truly an 1860s design). No "Little House on the Prairie" fabric for the ballroom!
- All colors. Nearly all of the colors we have now were available to our ancestors. Contrary to Hollywood myths, there were no colors assigned only to "ladies of the night." In fact, middle-aged and older ladies could wear just about any color they pleased. It was considered decorous for young ladies to stick to whites and pastels. A silk ballgown could be any solid color from white to yellow to red to black. Plaids and stripes mixed up several colors. Civil War ballrooms were brilliant and colorful!
Additional Frills
A lovely, well-fitting, swishy silk ballgown can still be ruined by adding incorrect trim. So let's look at what types of "frills and furbelows" the Civil War era ladies used.
- Lace. Not our modern, heavy, shiny, polyester lace. Our ancestors used beautiful, fine lace made from cotton or silk. And the only colors available were black, white or cream. Look for vintage lace on eBay or Etsy, or use very fine modern lace that doesn't shine like polyester.
- Ribbon. Silk taffeta ribbon was often used but is hard to find today. A faux silk taffeta or a silk satin ribbon can work also. Ladies of the 1860s used silk ribbon for ruching (intricate pleating designs), bows, and rosettes. Check out original fashion plates to get ideas.
- Flowers. Silk, velvet or parchment flowers are your best option. On rare occasions, cotton or polyester flowers from craft stores can be made to work by removing all traces of the plastic middle and plastic leaves. The options for floral decorations are endless. Some ideas are: A single corsage for your bodice, a garland around your shoulders, knots of flowers at your shoulders, flowers used to loop up an overskirt, and flowers at your waist. Once again, original fashion plates are a great resource.
- Overskirt. Overskirts of the 1860s were often made of light and airy fabrics such as silk organza or Chantilly lace. Both of those options can be expensive so some budget-conscious substitutes can be polyester organza or a very fine, light-weight re-purposed lace curtain.
This gorgeous plaid gown from The Graceful Lady's website is a great example of what the basic dress should look like. The bodice fits smoothly, the sleeves are darling little puffs with a self-ruffle of scallops, and the skirt is full and beautifully pleated to the waistband.
This dress would have included some type of trim, which was probably removed later to be reused on another gown. Lace was expensive and was re-purposed whenever the fashions changed. Flowers and ribbons would have been lightly tacked on so they could be removed and refreshed as the seasons passed and fashions were updated.
This beautiful lilac silk gown, seen on eBay, is early 1860s as evidenced by the tiered skirt which was a holdover from the 50s. The edges of the tiers are cut in scallops.
Another evidence of the date is the long pointed waist. Points were "in" during the 50s, but by 1865 the straight waist was becoming more popular. (The plaid dress above is thus probably a later date than the lilac dress.)
Noticed the fine, filmy lace on the bodice. This dress likely had some ribbons or a corsage originally, and it was removed to be reused. This dress is an excellent foundational design that can be embellished in many ways with ribbons, lace and flowers.
This gown is a wonderful mixture of lines and contrasts. The dark portions are olive green velvet ribbon. The tucker really stands out on this dress.
The ruffles are some type of sheer silk, probably organza. I love how the bottom ruffle is straight around the skirt, but the middle ruffles are wavy. That's a bit complicated to pull off.
Once again, the pointed waistline tells us that this may be early 1860s. Can you imagine this dress floating around the ballroom?
PATTERN SUGGESTIONS
Past Patterns #704 1864 Ball Gown Bodice
Truly Victorian Ball Gown Bodice
BACK TO DRESSES