Friday, April 3, 2026

Sporting Fashion: Gardening 1830s

Two days until Easter and Spring is blossoming today like mini rainbows sprouting from the earth.  April the first brought the most and only rain we'd seen in well over a month.  The clouds swept away sometime in the early hours of the 2nd, and I was finally able to spot the April Pink Full Moon from my bedroom window.  Today the windows and doors are open pulling in the scent of orange blossoms and lovely fresh air.  The last place I wish to be is sitting here journaling my latest project, but no project is complete until it is archived thusly.

The book, Sporting Fashion, Outdoor Girls 1800-1960, is still my go-to for historical fashion projects.  There are so many wonderful costumes in this book.  If you love historical costuming, don't hesitate to purchase a copy.  Rachel Hoffman might not be using it any longer as inspiration for our subscription boxes (I hope this isn't true!), but this doesn't mean that I won't continue to enjoy this book and bring some of these treasures to life on a doll.

While I have many tagged pages, Gardening 1830s, was destined to be the next with spring on the way.  I think I started planning this one back in January after the holidays.  When I've shown this page to others, I've gotten a bit of silence.  They've been probably thinking,"What's that hat?  Those are really big sleeves!,  Aren't there prettier, more interesting things to make?"  Nope.  Not to me.  I've been studying this work of art in costuming for a long time now.  It wasn't just the delicate fabric of the gown, but yes, THE HAT, and the pattens.  I've never made pattens before.  Isn't it about time?

The more I studied this gown, which was worn and enjoyed by a woman at some point in the 1830s, the more I appreciated every detail and aspect of the thing.

"London's Royal Horticulture Society inaugurated its first public flower show in 1833.  Simultaneously, botanical books and journals, such as author Jane Loudon's The Gardener's
Magazine and Register of Rural and Domestic Improvements (what a title!), aided ladies when studying scientific specifications of plant life, floriculture design, and landscaping.  These resources enticed nascent gardeners outdoors to tend flowerbeds and vegetable patches." - Sporting Fashion...

I am not a gardener.  I could be, but my husband does a grand job of it on his own.  But that doesn't mean I'm not enthralled and appreciative of every blossoming bulb, flower and shrub that nature
and sun bring forth.  In fact, I study the petals and blossoms.  Smell their scent.  Feel the velvet softness of some of their leaves and petals.  Wonder at the magic of each so like and unlike others in the garden.

When a female horticulturist took to the garden, she layered herself in protection against the sun.  She wore work gloves to keep her hands soft, clean and protected from thorns.  A large straw hat would keep both the sun out of her eyes and protect her skin from the sun's damaging rays.  Such hats were described as "ridiculous to elegant", as farmworkers wore such a style of hat.  

A sturdy apron protected a delicate muslin gown from the ravages of garden trimmings.  Pattens were worn to raise the feet above manure laden soil.  

It probably took an hour just to dress for a few hours of work in the garden, and the woman would look just as lovely outdoors
as she did indoors.

One of things that drew me to this project was making a pair of pattens.  My Pleasant Company doll, Felicity, owned a pair.  I always assumed they were for walking through mud, snow and rain, and had never considered them for the purpose of gardening.  I was going to make a pair.  A very small pair.  If I was successful, I'd continue the project, for without them, what was the purpose?

If my memory serves, the metal rings were made from a dense cardboard tube cut down.  Dense,
because a doll had to stand on them.  The prongs are bent at the tops to fasten to the wooden soles of the shoes.  Leather straps with ties hold the patten to the shoe.  Layer upon layer of Mod Podge and Gesso and paint were applied to form strength and a color close to old metal.

I still dream of what it would have been like to be an artisan of Etrennes in late 19th c. France.  I'd learn metal work to fashion such pieces.  A subject for another time.  I'd learn everything!

The last piece I made was the lacey day cap.  I kept studying the photograph and wondering about the lace peeping out from under the straw hat.  I looked it up.  Indeed, these lace day caps were worn for domestic affairs but also beneath straw hats to protect he hair and its style.
Above is a sample recreated by a contemporary seamstress, but I wanted to make one that had the double row of lace ruffles show on the mannequin.  The rest of the cap was constructed specifically for my Lacie doll's hair style.  Sometimes I feel more like a sculptor than a designer. Or whacky person that sews really difficult things because she just has to see if she can do it.

The second to last thing I made was the fichu or collar.  This would also protect the woman's neck, shoulders and chest from the harsh rays of the sun.  I honestly wasn't sure what I was looking at half the time in that photograph, but I never gave up.  The mannequin is white.  And so was this collar that looked more Puritan, than purposeful.  When I realized that it was not a part of the dress, it was a relief.  This doesn't mean that it was easy to construct, but it was quite doable as an accessory.
The fabric I used for the dress took me days to find.  It's a vintage muslin, loosely woven and delicate.  It was the closest thing I could find to the original gown, sized for a doll.  I would not be surprised that the original was of a similar weave, but when you put it on a 16" fashion doll, it loses its drape and ability to have a proper fullness.  Only so much fabric can be gathered or pleated to fit into sleeve holes and waist bodices.

Lacie's removable hands worked well for these giant sleeves with the narrow, long wrists.  The width at the top of the sleeves was a little over 7".  Instead of gathers, the sleeves are pleated at the top to fit into the sleeve hole.  Just another detail I discovered while studying the photograph.  

One of the most difficult details of this gown was the scarf, or sash that runs through little bars of fabric up to the narrow shoulders of the dress.  There must be a name for these little ladder rungs.  And it took me a long time to figure out what was going on with this deco- 
ration.  I thought it was a design sewn into the sleeve hole, but no.  The self-fabric scarf runs through a "rung" or loop at the shoulders as well.  What you cannot see is the back of the dress.  I decided that the scarf would drape behind with a delicate knot.  Works for me.

Tiny silk ribbons tie at the shoulders as well.  And a ribbon pouf or rosette was made for the center of the bodice.  Fiddly work, at best.

Naturally, I hoped I could make the apron out of a dish towel.  Nope.  The checks are too large, and the dish towel fabric too thick.  The blue row at the bottom?  Tried a few things to make that happen and failed.  That's okay.  It's still a pretty thing with pleats, not gathers, and a very thin waistband with ties.  The one driving theme in all of this was "a delicate design".
The hat was the second thing I made.  Second in difficulty to the pattens.  So I thought at the time anyway.  I made my own hat pattern for this funky little sunshade.  As the book described, "ridiculous".  I LIKE it!  It's fun.  I love hats.  Always have.  For me, for dolls, what have you.  I like hats.  Remember the hat I made for Gwendolyn with the eye shades in it?  I like a fun project.

I found a suitable plaid for the ribbon, but it is printed cotton and sometimes the look matters more than the function.  It's bulky to tie but looks correct when trying to replicate the original.
The third thing I made that I cannot forget to mention, were the gardening gloves.  These were hand stitched of vintage ladies' leather gloves.  It's difficult to cut up such pretty things as those gloves, but the leather is so thin that its necessary.  Goat skin?  Stretched lamb?  Not sure.  One thing I do know is that I need to redraw the pattern I have for them.  I can do better.  The gold gloves I made for the Hunting costume came out much better and I don't know why (a better fit). but I gave myself a pass since these are gardening gloves, and not tea or opera gloves.
This morning I filled a basket I dug out of some drawer or cabinet that looked best as the trimmings basket.  I have little baskets everywhere.  I don't have time to make things neat and organized.  I'd rather be creating.  Why do you think artist's studios look like a bomb hit them?  Simple.  We know where the stuff is.  At least we think we do.  I still haven't found this little rabbit I bought in the 90's.  I put him someplace safe.  That's all I know.  

I gained a better appreciation of what went into making gowns like this in the 1800s.  In the movies, the actors wear a different dress in every scene.  I can assure you that wardrobes were not that vast, even for the moderately well-off woman.  
For the seasoned seamstress/designer, you may be wondering why this dress was not done with an empire waist.  Well, I was making this for a doll and considered how it would look and fit her with all the accessories.  And I'm still fussing with darts.  I could have shortened the bodice, but the gathering of the skirt, which is also pleats not gathers, would have looked very bulky below her breasts. 
When Lacie comes in from gardening, she removes her fichu, sun hat and pattens.  She'll arrange her flowers in vases, so still needs her apron on.  In researching aprons, and there is a lot written on them, I found some interesting and useful dialog.

"The apron tied at the waist was a utilitarian item for the working class, and a decorative item for the upper class.  When we move into the Regency era and higher-waisted dress styles, a common form for working women seems to be the waist apron often worn with a large fichu or neckerchief."

Even with descriptions such as this, studying originals, even if they are in beautiful photos of museum quality books, is a great start.  More research, if you're an A-type like myself, is pure fun and aids as you go along with your project.


A snapshot of the accessories.  Every detail.  And I surely hope I didn't miss one!

These long, detailed projects are wonderful to work on.  I can put it down.  Pick it up when I have time.  I don't need to finish a difficult project.  I want to.  I often choose the most unusual and difficult things because they make me think, stretch my skills, allow me to try new things.  And there are the key words.  New things.  I never make something twice, and each item I make is from scratch.

Oh!  You may have noticed the boots used for this outfit.  They were from the mountain climbing subscription box.  Heels would not have been worn with pattens, and these boots were made to give the foot a flat sole.  Good color match, too.  And they're hidden under the long gown.  Works for me!

Now that I've spent this incredibly beautiful day typing on the computer, I'm going to finish this off, put the pads back on the patio lounge chair, brew myself a mug of tea and take my book outdoors to read.  Easter is just around the corner.  I enjoy this holiday so much.  Lacie can spend time in the garden with her roses and hollyhocks.  I truly hope you enjoyed this posting.  Wishing you a lovely spring and Happy Easter!