glossary of victorian

7/28/2019 Glossary of Victorian

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Glossary of Victorian DressmakingTerms

Understanding the Names

Victorian dressmaking have a language of its own. Here are some termscovering gown design and fabrication choices that will make it easier foryou to describe the gown of your dreams.

SHAPES

A-line: A gown that is gently flared from the waist to hem, usually with afitted waist and no horizontal waist line. Sometimes called a princess line

Ball gown: A very full skirt with a natural (as opposed to elongated or high)waistline.

Basque waist: Elongated about 2 inches below the natural waist. / may dipto a point at center front.

Empire waist: A shortened waistline created by attaching the skirt justbelow the bust line.

Princess line: A slightly-flared design that accentuates the waist and curvesoutward just below it. Also called A-line.

NECKLINES

Bateau neck: A slightly-curved neckline that skims each shoulder blade

Decolletage: A plunging neckline that reveals cleavage.

High: High banded collar; fits close to the neck

Jewel neck: A gown bodice that rises about the bust line to circle the baseof the neck

Keyhole back: A tear-shaped opening, either small and close to the nape ofthe neck or larger and dominating the back of a gown.

Off-the-shoulder: Falls below the shoulders, may or may not have sleeves

Portrait neck: Neckline that frames the shoulders and gives attention to thebustline.

Queen Anne neck: A sculpted design that is high on the sides and back witha sweetheart shape across the front.

Sabrina neckline: A straight neckline that begins 2 inches from the edge ofeach shoulder


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Scoop neck: A rounded neckline lower than a jewel neck.

Sweetheart: shaped like the top half of a heart.

SLEEVES

Bishop: fuller in the lower forearm, then gathered at the wrists into a widecuff

Cap Sleeves: short fitted sleeves

Gauntlets: An option with many sleeveless gowns, they are fabric coveringsfor the forearm (from elbow to wrist). Gauntlets look like gloves with thehands removed

Juliet: Long fitted sleeve with a puff at the top.

Leg-O-Mutton: Sleeve with gathered full top tapers to a snug fit at thewrist.

Poet: Extravagantly rounded from the shoulder to the elbow.

Point sleeves: Long sleeves, generally very fitted to the arm, which come toa point on top of the hand and just below the wrist.

Puff: Short sleeve gathered into a gentle rounded shape.

LENGTHS

Ballerina skirt: Full from waist down and reveals the ankles. (Similarly,ballet skirts end just above the ankles.)

Floor-length gowns: Should be hemmed to fall one-half to one-and-one-halfinches above the floor. This is personal preference.

High-low: A skirt cut shorter in the front and falling to floor length in back.

TRAINS

Brush train: The shortest train length, just brushing the floor. Also called asweep train (some definitions put a sweep at a slightly longer length than abrush) or a court train.

Cathedral train: A train extending 9 feet from the waist (roughly 5 or 6 feetbehind a bride, since her height from waist down is factored into the train's

length). Some definitions also classify a train extending 7 1/2 feet ascathedral length.

Chapel train: A train extending 4 feet from a bride's waist.

Court train: short train extending about one foot longer than a sweep orblush train.

Royal train: The longest train length. Extends more than 9 feet from the


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waist.

Sweep train: shortest train just brushing the floor.

Watteau: train attached higher than the waist, usually near the shoulderline or from an empire waistline.

Bustle: A gathering of fabric caught up with some detail - such as a bow ora small peplum - at the back of a gown. Most common at the waistline.

FABRICS

A word about fabric before we begin. There are two terms erroneouslyinterchanged. One is fiber and the other is fabric. Fiber refers to what thefabric is made of such as silk, polyester, acetate, rayon, etc. Fabric refersto the weave of the fiber - satin, organza, chiffon, taffeta. You can have afabric such as satin made of almost any fiber. Each fiber has it's owncharacteristics and comes in a wide range of quality. Use of one fiber overanother does not in and of itself constitute a better gown.

Bengaline: A fabric usually a blend of cotton and acetate with tightly ovencrosswise ribs.

Brocade: a fabric with a pattern woven in

Charmeuse: A soft, flexible fabric usually shiny on one side and matte onthe other side.

Chiffon: A sheer, soft, limp, fluid fabric.

Crepe: A lightweight fabric characterized by a finely-crinkled surface.

Crepe back satin: A light to mid weight fabric that is satin on one side andcrepe on the other side

Duppioni: A tightly woven fabric with slubbed yarns, often usedinterchangeably with raw silk.

Duchess Satin: A very heavy stiff satin

Faille: A lighter version of bengaline

Georgette: A sheer fabric with the same weave a chiffon and crepe butheavier than chiffon and lighter than crepe.

Matte Satin: A medium weight satin with a dull finish.

Organza: A sheer usually stiff fabric with a plain weave.

Peau de soie: Matte satin

Point d' esprit lace: Fine net fabric characterized by oval or square dotswoven in a grid-like pattern.

Raw silk: A fabric characterized by course, intermittent nubs in the weave.


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Shantung: A lighter weight version of duppoini

Taffeta: A lightweight crisp cross woven fabric that gathers into greatfullness.

Tulle: a lightweight fine sheer billowy net.

TRIMS

Alencon lace: A needlepoint lace, generally in a floral design, outlined withheavy threads on a sheer net background. One of the most common bridallaces. Re-embroidered Alencon has been stitched over with sequins, pearlsor other trim for added definition.

Bugle beads: Tubular beads used for ornamentation.

Chantilly lace: A delicate-looking lace marked by a hexagonal meshbetween dominant designs and a scrolled outer edge.

Guipere lace: Heavy lace work of dense patterns joined by thinner bars.

Illusion detailing: Featured on many bodices and created by using a fine,sheer fabric.

Point d' esprit lace: Fine net fabric characterized by oval or square dotswoven in a grid-like pattern.

Schiffli lace: Actually not a lace proper but an embroidery used on bridalgowns. Schiffli is added directly to a fabric instead of being sewn on top ofit as most laces are.

Venice lace: A heavy needlepoint lace, generally made in cotton, in higherrelief than regular Alencon.

glossary of victorian

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