helwen

Cotton was used in this period; they grew it in the southern colonies..however, it was used for servants, slaves, and 'poorer' folk as I understand it. 'Middle' class types tended to linen and the more expensive wool with silk appearing in the more well to do arenas. In general. A polonais would be a more distinguished gown, not something workaday so far as I have been able to determine.

For work, the petticoats with chemise, strapless stays, and short gown would be more appropriate, perhaps with a quilted bodice for warmth.

It depends on what you are trying to do with your impression. Have you checked out some of the sites like the Draper, Two Tailors, Silly Sisters and similar?

I adore the polonais, especially the anglais version, but since my own portrayal is a 'common' or 'frontier' type, having one of those would be a rare and cherished thing made of the best material I could lay hands on. For me, linen is a good choice with wool for winter wear, and my Concords are on target for this too. Being a craftswoman, I dress more simply.

You could try joining the Yahoogroup 18c Woman. Talk about some expertise. O-o

Edited Date: 2010-06-23 05:01 pm (UTC)

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Thanks :)

I've been to 2 Tailors and the Draper, but somehow was missing some of the status info. Seemed like people were poor or rather well off, and I guess I'm going for somewhere in the middle, like a gentleman farmer's wife. Or at least I was... but then I couldn't be sure if said wife would still spin and weave.

Looks like I might go for petticoats, stays, and maybe a country jacket like at 2 Ts' site, which I also rather like the look of.... although they have in cotton, so I might have to see about finding it in wool.

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If you get hooked, definitely join the egroup I mentioned...I've gained a great deal of knowledge from them.

Status mattered. What one looked like was important. So much so that many of the items left show this clearly; areas that weren't visible were often simply made..say 5 or 6 stitches to the inch, that sort of thing. Some of the underlying pieces might not be fitted so well.

What you looked like was important. It is important though to understand that New England never had a destitute class of poor. Crafts folk would have worked more with the jackets..aka short gowns and similar. Linen would have been common, wool too although at that time a deal more expensive since it came from England.

So much have I seen in the documents and discussions on that list. Serious reenactors they are. O_O But very nice. Very helpful and very pleasant.

I think you're on the right track, yep. I'm running in the similar line to that adding in the pinner apron...strapless stays, which didn't bind the shoulders and torso so would have been better for working women.

If I come across more stuff, or more links from the list, I'll send you an email.

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Hm, found a page at Draper's that says in later 18th, cotton was enjoyed by all classes.

The price is dear, but I do like that Cicoria, one of the prints, was printed in America, not imported.

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Some of the prints are unbelievable. In the later part of the century, as Americans were relying on their own manufacture, and especially after 1783, yep. Cotton. Lots and lots of cotton. :)

I focus on the AWI so earlier than that.

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*nods* The Cicoria is right from during the AWI though ;) Printed in Philly!

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Outstanding! And the availability almost had to be regional; the British controlled the sea and for the latter half of the war, the South was an absolute mess of warring Tories, Whigs, Colonials, Hessians, and British troops. Trade lanes were sporadic, at times ceasing. In the earlier part it was the North that was the focus.

Pelham and other areas here had a thriving flax industry although I don't know exactly when that got started.

Since I prefer linen to cotton due to humidity and heat concerns, it works fine for me. :)

IF I lose enough mass I'll have a go at one polonais. Maybe. LOL

Good books: "Tidings from the 18th Century" and "Whatever shall I wear? A guide to assembling a woman's basic 18th century wardrobe".

Strapless stays for the win!

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Thanks :) Further reading has led to some illumination and some confusion...

Cotton was apparently more of a lower class thing earlier in the 18th c, but more across all classes in later 18th c.

Then one site said only poorer people wore linen petticoats as an outer layer, but another one says linen for outer layers would be find for the middling classes too. :P

I'm thinking at least some of the differences may be regional...

Thinking about those groups, thx.

Oh, and definitely going with strapless stays!

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jdulac.livejournal.com

Raw cotton was grown in the southern colonies and exported to England for actual finishing and weaving into cloth. Finished cloth is largely an import to all the colonies. The colonies exported raw material (cotton, timber, tobacco, etc) and almost anything nice is imported. This was a pretty key part of being a colony at the time :).

Cotton fabrics were immensely popular in the 18th century, usually as printed cottons, originally imported from India, and later manufactured in Europe. It was nice stuff cheap for the average person.

http://www.gbacg.org/costume-resources/original/articles/printed_cottons.html

http://www.costumes.org/history/100pages/18THFABR.HTM

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Britain actually forbade cotton for a time as it was threatening their linen and wool industry.

A number of the acts that fired the AWI came from Britain attempting to keep the colonies dependent on English manufacture.

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Thank you :)

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Weirdly enough, my history of quilts class just finished a class on early printed calicos. :)

Based on that, I think you *could* get away with one in a printed fabric. Check the University of Rhode Island fabric collection for possibilities, or the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

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And to expand on this...would you like copies of some of my class readings when I'm done with them? There's some excellent information on the printed cotton craze of the 17th and 18th centuries...and no, the cotton by and large did *not* come from America in the 18th century. It was imported from India, either plain or printed, or sometimes from Egypt.

It was indeed banned for several decades, but that only made it more desirable in aristocratic circles (including the British court). The East India Company got around the ban on printed cottons for a while by importing plain cloth and giving it to the native English calico printers.

As for what it looked like...

here's a Mughal example. And here's a Waverly print that isn't too far off, and this nice Waverly toile. There are also some toiles from, of all places, Country Curtains that would probably work if you were looking for something inspired by the legendary toiles de Jouy, like this one.

Good luck - like I said, if you want to read some of my class stuff, let me know. I'm happy to help.

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Sure, I'd love to read them, thanks!

btw, the single color toiles wouldn't have been used for clothing, just for furnishings and curtains -- I remember that from a tour at Historic Deerfield, and have come across it a few times on reenactor web sites so far. Of course for quilting, everything's fair game :D

I suspect I'll end up with wool and/or linen at this point. Certainly the petticoats will be.

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Quite true - toiles would have been too heavy for clothing. But Indian floral prints would work nicely, and be quite comfortable.

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And yet more information.

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