Victorian Dress Question

graysquirrel · April 2010

I am in the very beginning stages of planning my dream Victorian wedding on a budget. I have looked all over the internet trying to find an appropriate dress but have not found a whole lot. Does anyone know of any seamstresses who have made/can make a Victorian gown? I'd like it to be 1870s-1880s style.

GracefulMeadow86 · April 2010

you might want to try asking about a seamstress on your local board, but as for vitorian wedding ideas and things, i know a few ladies on this board are going through route. they might have some good websites for you or designers that offer a similar type of gown or at least victorian-inspired!

Nukke · April 2010

graysquirrel--I have a few links on my computer at home, but I'm at work right now (shhhh.... ) so I'll help you out when I'm home in 8 hours.

In the meantime, ditto PP and check your local boards. As soon as you said the magic word "seamstress" that means a local lady you can go see. I found at least three dressmakers in Toronto who specialise in Victorian dresses. And that was from walking around the city--they aren't listed online. I definitely suggest asking people or walking around your independent designers/fashion/artsy fartsy section of your city.

graysquirrel · April 2010

Thanks! I don't mind having it done from a distance. I have done that before with special clothing items. Most of the people I found online specialize in doing it from afar. I was just hoping to widen my number of choices, even if it means buying from far away.

[Deleted User] · April 2010

That's funny you're looking for that time period, I'm in the middle of making myself an 1875 bustle dress! Just for funzies, it's blue stripes with black/white detailing. I've never made anything for anyone besides me though, good luck with your search!

graysquirrel · April 2010

Thanks knotties! I found a few local ladies to check out and have been thinking about contacting Lavender's Green for a custom quote.

graysquirrel · April 2010

I'd love to see your dress, futuremrsbrian! That sounds like quite the project!

MrsKevers · April 2010

Here is a link which I hope works...if not you can copy/paste it to your browser. Charles Dana Gibson wsa an artist in the late victorian period who designed advertisments for manufacturers and sales ads featuring ladies' apparel and intimate items. The classic feminine victorian icon, the Gibson Girl, is his creation. This link will not only provide you with renerings of his Gibson Girl sketches but is loaded with drawings of that periods fashion and trends. C.D. Gibson was by the end of the 1890s almost exclusively published in Gody's Ladies Book...the Vogue of the day. You can also research more victorian related themes by using google and of course one of my favorite resources wikipedia.org. I

another quick note: It was in the victorian era that women first began to wear white wedding dresses. The use of kissing balls and topiaries became popular and a favorite passtime of many a victorian lady or gentleman was to learn that each type of flower had a specific meaning. A gentleman could send a 'secret' message to his sweetheart by selecting just the right flowers to say I love you, lets run away together, and even will you marry me? Draw lots of cues from nature as anything botanical was quite popular. The late victorian era was a post-war economic boom and opulence and lush details were the order of the day..think Titanic. Hope this helps. Good luck with your planning!

http://www.gibson-girls.com/index.html

graysquirrel · April 2010

It is nice to meet a fellow Victorian enthusiast on here! I actually teach history and have focused a lot on the period, so I know exactly what I want the dress to be/which details to include. Finding someone to make the dress is the tough part, but I have since gotten a few leads. I do plan to use some of the period customs in the wedding. I'm giving fans as favors and attaching cards with a few of the Victorian flirtation signals on them. This way my guests can feel more included in the theme and can stay cool. I'm not sure what I want to do for flowers yet. My venue includes some, so I may be stuck :0/ Oh well, Orange blossoms are probably too expensive anyway.

Nukke · April 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-theme-boards_retro-vintage-weddings_victorian-dress-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Theme%20BoardsForum:667Discussion:0be54564-886d-4ce6-bb00-e2126c17f04dPost:029590bd-bd83-41c2-86ee-8d64fc0dadf2">Re: Victorian Dress Question</a>:
[QUOTE]Here is a link which I hope works...if not you can copy/paste it to your browser. Charles Dana Gibson wsa an artist in the late victorian period who designed advertisments for manufacturers and sales ads featuring ladies' apparel and intimate items. The classic feminine victorian icon, the Gibson Girl, is his creation. This link will not only provide you with renerings of his Gibson Girl sketches but is loaded with drawings of that periods fashion and trends. C.D. Gibson was by the end of the 1890s almost exclusively published in Gody's Ladies Book...the Vogue of the day. You can also research more victorian related themes by using google and of course one of my favorite resources wikipedia.org. I another quick note: It was in the victorian era that women first began to wear white wedding dresses. The use of kissing balls and topiaries became popular and a favorite passtime of many a victorian lady or gentleman was to learn that each type of flower had a specific meaning. A gentleman could send a 'secret' message to his sweetheart by selecting just the right flowers to say I love you, lets run away together, and even will you marry me? Draw lots of cues from nature as anything botanical was quite popular. The late victorian era was a post-war economic boom and opulence and lush details were the order of the day..think Titanic. Hope this helps. Good luck with your planning! <a href="http://www.gibson-girls.com/index.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.gibson-girls.com/index.html</a>
Posted by MrsKevers[/QUOTE]

I'm glad you mentioned gibson girls! I was thinking of making the gibson girl hair style the next hair/makeup challenge but thought maybe no one would know what it was :(

CandyGirlSparks · April 2010

Try googling the term "steampunk"...a lot of steampunk fashion sites actually carry just straight up Victorian clothes. I myself am having a steampunk wedding, but wanted my dress to be more period and less sci fi.

Here's one site I like and might get some bridesmaids outfits from:

http://www.retroscopefashions.com/lolita2.html

And here is my wedding dress:

http://steampunkthreads.com/Merchant5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=S&Product_Code=SPRECO80217-8-9R&Category_Code=ENS

Hope that helps!

tytbody · April 2010

where can we find some retro shoes.. all the shoes i see look so just agggg. I can't wear 4" so if you find some cool shoes, please let me know. maybe the are under a different topic then wedding shoes.

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