Item Tag 56"

Very Rare Antique Victorian Tulle & Lace Dress in Great Condition - XS/ S Beautiful 1900's Off White Tulle & Lace High Necked Dress is Fully Lined Through Bodice & Has Its Own Attached Ruffled Petticoat. First of all dress is in excellent ready to wear condition... with essentially no flaws! Design Details: 1) High neck collar featuring 5 rows of lace trim, 2) Irish crochet triangular lace medallion with a flower & leaves adorns the chest. 3) Bodice is trimmed with diagonal panels of tucked and draped lace onboth front and back sides.4) Long sleeves decorated with horizontal bands of lace applied every 2 & 1/4" extend into lace-edged points at wrist that partially cover the hand. Very pretty! 5) Dress closes op the back with mother of pearl buttons & buttonholes that are concealed from view by a covered buttonhole band. 6) Bodice is fully lined in a fine cotton organdy. 7) Skirt is also fully lined by a petticoat of the same organdy material. 8) Petticoat has a 4" deep ruffle at the bottom. 9) Skirt is gored so flairs out beautifully as it extends to the floor. 10) Skirt also features rows of gathered lace and tiers of ruffles that progressively widen at the bottom.11) Bodice (top) portion of dress is sewn to Skirt ( bottom) portion of dress at the natural waistline This holds both parts of the dress together in proper alignment when the dress is worn. 12) Dress is meant to be worn with a wide sash or belt positioned at the natural waistline. 13) These Sashes were selected, made & sold separately so that they could be individualized/ personalized to the individual wearing the dress and changed out for different occasions. The sashes both defined the waistline of the dress and concealed the seam where bodice and skirt were attached to each other. Bodice would blouse slightly over the sash when it was tied in place. Sashes were often chosen to personalize a dress or commemorate a holiday. This dress is a unique find in beautiful condition - perfect for a wedding dress, or a special eventor party. Measurements: Shoulders: 15"Bust 17" x 2 = 34"Waistp: 12" x 2 + 24" Hips: 18.5" x 2 = 37" Bodice Length: (ctr. back nape of neck to waist): 14" Length Skirt: Waist to He: 42" Length of Entire Dress: 56" from ctr. back nape of neck to hem Would make a lovely & memorable wedding dress... Also perfect for a formal lawn party, games of croquet, garden parties, posing for your portrait, outdoor gazebo dances, picnics, and canoe outings with parasols, strolls through gardens, walks on the beach, and, of course, period photographs. There are lots of uses for this beautiful dress! It is in excellent condition and is also very strong so you can really wear it! Questions are welcome if you have them.... I have consulted an antique clothing expert in London who works for a museum there ( the Victoria & Albert Museum) about this beautiful dress. She says it is extremely rare to find a tulle dress in such amazingly good condition. She felt it came out really well in the hand washing I gave it. She went on to advise NOT to have it dry-cleaned as such tulle fabric often dissolves in the dry cleaning process so that should be avoided! She also advised not to try to clean it further as soaking in water can also damage the tulle. I did not soak it. I simply washed once in delicate soap then rinsed, rolled in a towel and laid flat on more towels to dry. Dress is in extraordinary condition for its age - about 120 yrs old. As good as it gets! Rare & Exquisite. Incidentally - Dresses like this were what inspired Jessica's Gunny Sax dresses - this is the real thing and far better construction and design as well as fabric. If you love cottage core this is the real deal and would be well worth consideration!