1860s Silk Day Ensemble “The Berry Dress”

I’ve named this ensemble “The Berry Dress” because my inspiration for it was the berries that grow on lush green bushes in the summer. This was quite a complex make and took me around 215 hours to complete, as it is completely hand stitched.

The ensemble is made of four parts; a skirt, bodice, bonnet, and Swiss waist/sash. The pieces can be mixed and matched with other garments in my wardrobe, and they can either be worn individually or all together. I purposefully did this in order to make the ensemble as practical as possible for everyday wear.

The construction materials include chartreuse silk taffeta and a red/pink shot silk for the outer fabric. For the lining, I used cotton organdie and brown silesia.