The world was excited with new inventions and the promise of a new age in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Fashion was certainly at a pinnacle of femininity, dripping with lace, precious stones, maribou, and luxurious fabrics. Not everyone had the means to afford these expensive fashions, but a new trend in the retail industry was making it easier for the average person to look quite fashionable. Mail order catalogs of the day offered everything from ladies' petticoats to suits to the ever-popular shirtwaist to shoes and hats. You were able to outfit yourself from head to toe without having to leave home-quite a novelty in those days!

Charles Dana Gibson's Gibson Girl was the ideal woman of the era. Feminine and fashionable with just a touch of spirit, she wore the clothes that women around the world tried to imitate. Through her, the ubiquitous shirtwaist-and-skirt combination became a fashion icon of the era. The shirtwaist indeed was a boon to women's wardrobes, since it was relatively inexpensive and could be worn with many different skirts. Made plain with just a few tucks or fancier with lace insertion and long, puffed sleeves, this blouse was worn by women of average means everywhere. Usually made of sheer white fabrics such as batiste or voile, this versatile garment was also made in prints, silk, wool, and linen.

Skirts of the late Victorian and early Edwardian periods were usually gored and could be hemmed at walking length (slightly above the ground) or with a slight train. Fullness was confined to the back with fastenings either of hooks and eyes or buttons. They were made most often of sturdy cotton, linen, wool, and, for "good" skirts, silk.

Underneath these fine gowns women wore many undergarments, including the following: chemise, drawers, petticoats, a corset cover, and, most notably, the corset. In the late 1890s and during first year or two of the 1900s , the hourglass corset was still in vogue, but it was soon replaced by the new straight-front corset. This corset pushed out the bosom, nipped the waist and thrust the bottom out in back, creating a distorted "S" shape. It would be almost ten years before women were liberated from this restricting style. But not all women laced as tightly as fashion photographs and illustrations of the time would have us believe. Many health texts of the day warned against the perils of tight lacing.

By 1910 the end of an era had come. World events such as the sinking of the great ocean liner Titanic, the social upheaval in Europe, and the Great War sounded the death knell for an age of feminine opulence in dress. Women's garments became progressively simpler as women entered the workforce and became more involved in sports and outdoor activities.

For a sampling of period fashion from this era, visit The Tides of Change, a website chronicling fashion from 1900-1920. For further information on sewing garments from this period, I highly recommend Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques by Kristina Harris (though the title is misleading; it's a reprint of a book from 1905-clearly Edwardian!). See also ITF's 1910: a Year of Elegance and Grace.