Dress #043: Victorian dress in lavender

This hand stitched Victorian paper dress is made from Japanese paper embellished with glass beads, and is based on an American dress from Strawbridge & Clothier's Quarterly' (vol. 2, no.1, Spring 1883). The catalogue describes it as an “Embroidered French Gingham Dress Pattern, containing 18 yards of best gingham, and 9 yards of embroidery’, all for only $7!

To recreate the look of the lace tiers of the skirt, and the lace edging of the top, I layered Japanese mizutama watermark tissue in dark rose over a shimmering lilac paper. Hand-embroidered lines imitate the seams and folds of the dress; it is stitched onto cold-pressed 100% cotton paper. It was the completely ridiculous shape of the skirt that drew me to this dress; can you image trying to walk – or sit! – in such a creation?

The dress is six inches tall, stitched by hand on 8x10 inch 100% cotton watercolour paper, which means that it will pop right into any commercial frame in that size, and be ready to hang on your wall.