Belles and Bells- The 1850's

Gorgeous painting by Franz Xaver Winterhalter.

After the slight dip that was seen in the 1840's, the 1850's brought accessorizing and decorating back with a vengeance.


The pointed waist that we saw in the 1840's remained popular in the 1850's, monopolizing evening wear and remaining very, very popular until the end of the decade and the early 1860's, when it disappeared without a trace.

Absolutely breathtaking. It looks like lace was a popular accent in the late 1840's and 1850's.

The off-the-shoulder neckline, seen in both of the above images, carried over from the 1840's and remained very popular in evening wear for the entire decade. While digging around various places on the internet, I've also seen one or two instances of off-the-shoulder sleeves in day wear.

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By about 1854-55, another development came in the bodice for day wear. Panels of fabric that started at the shoulders and crossed over in a v-shape to the waistline became iconic of the 1850's and 60's.  As well as fabric that matched the rest of the dress, lace shawls provided the same shape.

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Also by about the middle of the decade, the sleeves on day dresses changed. In the 1840's, sleeves were narrow and natural the whole way down, but by 1854-55, they widened significantly at the bottom, and sometimes had a puffy sleeve underneath that gathered at the wrist.

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In the latter half of the decade, bold prints and patterns were popular for both day and night.

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So, you may have noticed that I'm saving the best part of the garment for last here. It's (almost) literally the elephant in the room. Since the late 1820's, the skirts have been rapidly growing, from narrow to conical to bell shaped to what we now have; nearly spherical skirts supported by hoops, crinolines, flounces, anything that will support their staggering girth. They're like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man of historical fashion, deliciously enormous and totally out of control. And strangely enough, I sort of like it. The skirts were heavily decorated with flounces, trims, lace, bows, and anything the Victorian and Antebellum women could think of to stick on them.

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The hairstyles of the era were pretty nondescript, usually being a simple braided bun at the back of the head or the nape of the neck. Sometimes ringlets or spaniel curls were worn to frame the face, shown in the first image. Here's a really easy tutorial for an 1850's inspired hairstyle.

Another gem by FXW. Check out the sleeves as well.

Next week, we get a look at the 1860's, when the fun, ridiculous frippery of this decade gets taken down a notch by a little downer known as the American Civil War. I have to say, as crazy as this decade was, it was also pretty fun. I'll definitely miss researching it. A little nerdy part of me would love to see a woman from the 1830's and a woman from the 1850's duke it out to see who could be more over-the-top. And the best part is, I still can't quite decide who would win.