Retro Rack

One of the things the Victorian era saw, Fashionable Reader, was an exploration of that liminal space through casual around the house wear.

Wrapper 1855  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Here we have the wrapper that was only meant to be seen by family.

Dressing Gown  early 1870s The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Dressing Gown  1875  The Kyoto Costume Institute

 Dressing gowns, banyans and wrappers are often quilted all or in part.

Wrapper early 1860s  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

One of the signs of a wrapper is that the waist is designed to be loose or tied tight. Often they split up the front, like a carriage dress or a robe so they can be pulled over a nightgown or underpinnings, like a dressing down but slightly more tailored. Still NOT designed to be worn over a corset.

Peignoir 1860-1865  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Peignoir  1880s  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 Peignoir seems to be a catch all term.

Morning Dress  1860  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Morning dresses were initially gowns for the breakfast table that did not require a corset.They're characterize by a looser top lots of details in the neck and sleeves.

Morning Dress  1872-1873  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

One of the things we see evolving (and limits being tested) after the 1950s through the 1900s is the idea of what was not meant to be seen (undergarments and nightgowns) to what was initially only meant to be seen by family or lovers (wrappers & peignoirs) to receiving casual around house guests at breakfast (morning dresses) to I'm comfortable at home and I want to show my wealth with yet another space & occasion specific outfit (the tea gown).

Tea Gown  late 1870s  The Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Tea gowns were an evolution of the morning gown.

Tea Gown  1875  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Tea Gown  1875-1880  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

1Harpers Bazar New York Sat June 13 1891 Dressing Gowns Nightshirts

This evolution is coupled with the rise of the middle class, the sexual revolution (including contraception and woman's suffrage) and various other factors.

Bed Jacket  1885  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Dressing Jacket  1885-1890  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 We see a culmination in this towards the turn of the century in the popularity of (and wide-scale use of the word) negligées and lingerie sets, which specifically implies an article of clothing that is sexual in its nature for it is meant to be seen by a lover.

Negligée  1880  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

This kind of clothing, prior to the first sexual revolution, would not have been acceptable for a fashion house to make, let alone a fashionable lady to purchase.

Negligée Callot Soeurs, 1898-1900s The Metropolitan Museum of Art

There was also head wear that was designed to be worn exclusively around the house, but that's a whole other story...

House Cap 1900  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

For Primrose!

Boudoir Cap 1895 The Metropolitan Museum of Art

nightgown 1894  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Dressing Gown  1897-1899  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

You can shop my recommendations via the following lists:
Steampunk, Retro Jewelry, Makeup, Retro Clothes, Lifestyle

Product links on this blog are usually to Amazon using my associate code. At no additional cost to you this means I get a slight kick back if you make a purchase. Thank you! This allows me to continue to produce this blog without sponsors.

So I spotted this dress in How to Marry a Millionaire (yes I recognize all the issues with this movie but I can't help but love it, mostly for the clothing). And then it showed up in one of the fashion blogs I follow and I was like, hey is that the SAME dress?

Norman Norell, 1957  The Metropolitan Museum of Art Lauren Bacall

Norman Norell, 1957  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

screen shot

As you can see the fit is not quite the same, perhaps he redesigned it for her and for the screen, or perhaps this is a knock off? Also the sleeves look shorter. I checked the net and couldn't find anything on this dress in this movie.

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

You can shop my recommendations via the following lists:
Steampunk, Retro Jewelry, Makeup, Retro Clothes, Lifestyle

Product links on this blog are usually to Amazon using my associate code. At no additional cost to you this means I get a slight kick back if you make a purchase. Thank you! This allows me to continue to produce this blog without sponsors.

I recently did a Business of Writing presentation. I don't do this often, but I feel like I'm getting to the point in my career where I should pay it forward. A kind of, "Let me tell you what I have learned from my mistakes so you don't have to."

Anyway, this is what I chose to wear for my presentation:

I always think of red and black as power colors. 

I'm not sure there is any scientific reality to my assumption, or if, instead it's just that I feel more powerful when I'm wearing them. I blame Star Trek. Red makes me feel in command.

Also this is a pretty comfortable and cool outfit, it's light weight and simple, and doesn't wrinkle easily. It's one of my go to outfits in general, and for autumn in particular, I think, because of the color profile.

Wearing this dress at a convention before I promptly ripped the jacket. 

I love this dress because it feels faintly Spanish influenced and it reminds me of this one on Joan in Madmen:

I keep waiting for eShakti to do a run on this style of dress but I suspect the fabric is hard to come by as is, and no one wants to do that kind of applique anymore!

I'm wild about this swim suit:

For the characters!

For Mrs Barnaclegoose in the Finishing School series...

Countess Nadasdy in the Parasol Protectorate series...

And the countess later in Romancing the Inventor...

Vintage velvet hat with applique leaves (gift), vintage glasses (gift from a reader) with my prescription, necklace vintage heirloom, dress & jacket 1950s, modern CK wedge sandals from several seasons ago (similar $15-30).

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

You can shop my recommendations via the following lists:
Steampunk, Retro Jewelry, Makeup, Retro Clothes, Lifestyle

Product links on this blog are usually to Amazon using my associate code. At no additional cost to you this means I get a slight kick back if you make a purchase. Thank you! This allows me to continue to produce this blog without sponsors.

1850 Evening gown of red silk brocaded with black rose, c.1850 pinteres

Almost Then: For Gail

1959 Cocktail dress, 1959  From the Kent State University Museum Pinterest

2012 Tadashi-Shoji-American-Pie-Reunion-Madrid-Photocall

Soulless Shirt

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

quotes Gail likes

So this was the first eShakti dress that I purchased after the Rack Reduction. It's a little bit big and I need to work on the measurements that I give them if/when I order from them again.


I ordered this just after the holiday season because I love the fabric. It's better in person but it has a peacock component with blues and pinks within the gold.  It's no loner available. It came with a sash belt and pockets (!) and I had the neckline altered to a wide V and short sleeves added because I wanted it to look more 1950s like this:

Party dress, 1950s via shewhoworshipscarlin tumblr

I'm wearing it with short beaded cotton gloves (because of the heat in Kansas City) similar $15 in satin.


The multi-colored hair flower is a gift (similar $10) and the shoes are modern MJ almond toe pumps (similar $30). I love them but they are wicked painful. The tassel necklace is a modern jet piece that I love (similar $17). I got it from Dark Garden years ago. I have a THING about tassel jewelry.

Tassel Jewelry a Retrospective

Watch Fob  1850  Lang Antiques

Pendant  1910  Bonham’s

Brooch  Cartier, 1920s  Christie’s

1920s Necklace  1stdibs.com

Brooch  Cartier, 1925  Christie’s

Diamond and Pearl Necklace  Sterlé, 1955  Christie’s

2014 via 13 Amazing It-Bags to Seriously Invest in for Fall and Beyond on WhoWhatWear.com

2016 Saint Laurent Lolita tassel choker at ysl.com

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

You can visit the following shopping lists: Travel Dork, My Steampunk, My Wardrobe.

Product links on this blog are usually to Amazon using my associate code. At no additional cost to you this means I gets a slight kick back if you make a purchase. Thank you! This allows me to continue to produce this blog without sponsors.

For the first night of WorldCon I wore my new purple dress from the previous blog. But for the first offical day of the convention I wore this favorite vintage 1950s blue and white day dress.


It has a cute little jacket too, but I didn't get a picture of it at this event. Here it is at Comic Con, 4 years ago pre-reack-reduction.


Believe it or not I weigh less in these Comic Con photos, just goes to show what a little less boob will do for a girl's figure. Now where was I?


So I am wearing it with a little flower hair band (similar $18), faux pearl set (similar $10), vintage white leather gloves (similar $29), and some Mia nomad flats (discontinued, similar $23).

A Historical Retrospective on Blue & White

For Lord Akeldama

1760s  The Victoria & Albert Museum

For Sophronia

1853-1854 Blue FLower  The FIDM Museu

For Monique

c.1860      United States      MET

For Dimity

Bodice  1865-1866  Musée Galliera de la Mode de la Ville de Paris

For Agatha

1868 Robe à Transformation   Kerry Taylor Auctions2

For Ivy

1872  The Kyoto Costume Institute

For Prudence

Afternoon Dress 1903 s  Jacques Doucet  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

For Primrose

1905 Summer Day Dress  The Victoria & Albert Museum

For Gail

Clip Brooches  Raymond Yard, 1935  Christie’s

Glamorous 1950’s Dress.  Glamorous❤Vintage❤Soul tumblr

2013 Elie-Saab-Couture-Oblivion-Moscow-Premiere

"A great variety of bright colours is only suited to a carpet. For a dress, two are quite sufficient."
~ The Ladies' Guide to True Politeness and Perfect Manners or, Miss Leslie's Behaviour Book
by Eliza Leslie (1864)

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

You can visit the following shopping lists: Travel Dork, My Steampunk, My Wardrobe.

Product links on this blog are usually to Amazon using my associate code. At no additional cost to you this means I gets a slight kick back if you make a purchase. Thank you! This allows me to continue to produce this blog without sponsors.