Green bodice and skirt with brown stripe accents
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1880
name: label: Created by
content: Unidentified
label: Subject of
content: Black Fashion Museum, American, 1979 - 2007
notes: label: Description
content: An olive green bodice and skirt with brown stripe accents. The bodice (a) is made of olive silk twill and has a band collar made of striped silk faille with a looped pile. The collar opens on the proper left side and has two metal hooks on the interior of the front side opening. Two holes are at the other side of the collar opening where metal eyes were likely previously sewn to align with the hooks. The bodice has long sleeves which end in two-inch cuffs made of striped silk faille with a looped pile. A decorative V shaped panel is sewn to the center of the bodice. A panel of striped silk faille with a looped pile in the shape on an inverted capital A is sewn to the center front panel. Green silk twill is sewn to the center front panel around the negative space of the A shaped panel. Eight pleats are sewn along each section of the silk faille which narrows to a point at the bottom of the center front panel. The center front panel is attached along the neckline and opens on the proper left side, it is faced with green silk twill. Three rows of hand stitching are at the back of the center front panel and four rows are sewn at the bottom: these secure the pleats at the front. Seventeen metal hooks are sewn along the proper left side of the decorative center front panel which align with brown thread loops on the proper left side of the bodice. Three more metal hooks are sewn along the proper left side of the center front panel along the top of the shoulder with also align with thread eyes. Below the decorative center front panel, the bodice opens in the center front with seventeen buttonholes and twelve wooden buttons, five of the buttons along the bottom half of the bodice are missing. Two vertical shaping darts are sewn to each side of the center front opening. The back of the bodice has a center back seam along with a princess seam and two side back seams on each side. Two decorative wooden buttons covered in silk faille with a looped pile are sewn to the center back of the bodice below the waist. The center back of the bodice ends in a pleated tail with a panel of silk faille with a looped pile sewn below the pleats. The inside of the bodice is lined in brown cotton twill. The edges of the center front opening are finished with the fabric’s selvage. The center back tail, hem, and collar are self-faced with green silk twill. Two pieces of boning (possibly metal) encased in white cotton twill tape are sewn along each side of the center front opening. Boning is also sewn along each side seam and each side back seam. A chevron linen twill waist tape is sewn to the center back interior of the bodice. Two metal eyes are sewn on the end of the proper right side which align up with two metal hooks on the other side. Padding, likely lambswool is encased in brown silk satin and hand sewn to the bottom of each armscye. Cotton knit with scalloped edges is hand sewn over top of a portion of the lambswool below each armscye. Cotton twill ribbon is sewn at each armscye seam. The bodice is machine and hand sewn; the interior seam allowances are finished with hand whip stitches. The center back tail is hand sewn to the lining at the interior.
label: Description
content: The matching skirt (b) is made of green silk twill and has a one-inch self-fabric waistband with white cotton handsewn overtop. The waistband opens at the center back with two metal hooks and eyes. The skirt is pleated at the center front and is in the style of a modified polonaise. An asymmetrical overskirt made of two panels of green silk twill is draped across the front of the skirt going from the proper right side to the proper left. The overskirt starts on the proper right side and has a five-inch panel of striped silk faille with a looped pile on the edge of the skirt. This panel tapers to a point at the hemline which narrows to a half an inch wide. The skirt below is made of brown glazed cotton with an eight-and-a-half-inch green silk panel sewn at the bottom. A thirteen and a quarter inch pleated panel of green silk twill is sewn along the bottom third of the glazed cotton. The pleated panel continues around the circumference but narrows to five inches at the back. A thirteen-inch-long panel of green silk twill is sewn above the pleats at proper right front. Along the proper right side and back of the skirt is a panel of striped silk faille with a looped pile in the shape of a capital A. Green silk twill with seven pleats are sewn to the negative space of the A shaped panel, the pleats get wider at the bottom. Three decorative wooden buttons covered in silk faille with a looped pile are sewn to the proper left side of the trim. The center back of the skirt is draped with concentrated gathering and volume placed below the waistband for the bustle silhouette. An overskirt is sewn to the proper left and back of the skirt. The overskirt opens on the proper left side and the hem is finished with a single fold. The skirt is lined with brown cotton. Cotton twill tape is sewn to the proper right back side seam which is tied to another piece of detached twill tape. The tied twill tape that is detached was originally stitched to the proper left back side seam. Three cotton twill loops are sewn to the lining, at the center back and one on each side of the center back. When worn, the twill tape ties would have woven through the loops and tied in the center back to gather the skirt. A pocket is sewn to the proper right side below the overskirt. The skirt is made of machine and hand stitching. The waistband is faced with brown cotton satin. A cotton twill tape loop is sewn to each side front of the skirt. An inch and a half band of dark brown glazed cotton is sewn below the waistband, possibly added later to lengthen the skirt. The bottom interior is faced with grey and white linen. The hem is finished with a brown wool ribbon hem protector.
label: Cataloging Notes
content: This project received Federal support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum.
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Clothing and dress
label: Topic
content: Fashion
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Collection title
content: Black Fashion Museum Collection
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Fashion and Historical
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2007.3.704ab
objectType: label: Type
content: bodices
label: Type
content: skirts
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No known copyright restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: silk twill, silk faille with looped pile, silk satin, glazed cotton, cotton, cotton knit, cotton twill ribbon, lambswool, metal, wood, linen twill ribbon, boning, and wool ribbon
label: Dimensions
content: a: bodice
label: Dimensions
content: Length (a: shoulder to hem): 24 in. (61 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: Width (a: shoulder to shoulder): 13 1/2 in. (34.3 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: Waist (a: flat): 12 1/2 in. (31.8 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: b: skirt
label: Dimensions
content: Length (b: waist to hem): 42 in. (114.3 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: Waist (b: flat): 11 in. (27.9 cm)