Museum Notebook: Women's fashions of the 1870s

Victorian gown with bustle. Whanganui Regional Museum Collection: 1986.222

Whanganui Regional Museum recently opened Dressed to Thrill, an exhibition of fashion clothing and accessories from the 1870s and 1970s.

Fashion changes over those 100 years closely mirror changes in society, creating a fascinating window into the popular culture of each era. Fashion-conscious New Zealanders in 1870 relied on magazines sent from Britain and Europe to see the latest trends. Clothes were generally hand-made for the wearer, either at home or by dress-makers.

A glimpse into an everyday Victorian era wardrobe of the 1870s would reveal an array of floor-length dresses, covering every inch of flesh other than the face, and embellished with ruffles, pleats, bows and frills. The desired fashionable silhouette of a flat tummy and generous behind was achieved with the help of a tightly laced corset and padded bustle.

Anyone who has tried wearing a tightly laced corset will have observed that the restricted diaphram area impedes normal breathing. It's not surprising that ladies at the time frequently fainted and needed to be revived with smelling salts.

Camiknickers from the 1870s. Whanganui Regional Museum Collection: 1976.64.39

Along with the corset and bustle, camiknickers were a popular undergarment of the time. Previously, women wore a separate chemise (under top) and drawers (knee-length undies). Camiknickers combined the two into a single garment, achieving a smoother silhouette. Camiknickers were usually left open at the crotch for ease of toileting.

Visitors to Dressed to Thrill will see a set of camiknickers on display next to a 1970s jumpsuit, a neat example of underwear design transforming into fashionable outerwear a century later.

Ladies with enough wealth to own and wear an evening gown could flash a little more flesh, leaving shoulders and neck bare. For extra protection, the 1870s evening gown was usually worn with an additional, easily removed outer cape. Capes had the advantage over fitted coats that they didn't crush the highly tailored and embellished gown underneath. Cape styles of the 1870s had vents or additional fabric at the back to allow room for the bustle and all the ruffles, bows, pleats and frills covering the back of the skirt.

Ladies of the 1870s ventured outside with the protection of a parasol to keep the sun off their faces. Parasols were usually made from silk or lace, often with ivory incorporated into the handle.

The array of parasols on display in Dressed to Thrill includes one made entirely of hand-made "tatted" lace, created using a time-consuming knotting process. It represents many hours of intricate hand-work. These items of feminine fashion were certainly an expensive status symbol.

A lady's ensemble was completed by the obligatory hat and gloves, two fashion accessories that remained in common usage for outdoor wear in New Zealand until well into the 1970s, with some schools retaining them as part of girls' uniforms long after the general public had given up wearing them.

Over the next 10 to 20 years, ladies' dresses in New Zealand gradually became less elaborate, used less material and allowed for greater freedom of movement.

We know that fashion goes in cycles; however, women in Aotearoa/New Zealand have never revived the flounces, bustles and corsets of the 1870s. Just the camiknickers … as outerwear!

• Margie Beautrais is the educator at Whanganui Regional Museum