Making an 1860s Wrapper

“MORNING DRESS—The most suitable dress for breakfast, is a wrapper made to fit the figure loosely, and the material, excepting when the winter weather requires woolen goods, should be of chintz, gingham, brilliante, or muslin" - The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness by Florence Hartley, 1860 

When I give a "Getting Dressed" presentation, I like to travel in style, comfort, and modesty, donning a wrapper to drive my horseless carriage to and from the locations.  (Since we are just meeting, showing up in only a chemise and stockings might be quite scandalous!)  I was in desperate need of a new 1860s wrapper, as this is probably my most popular and frequently booked decade, and this blog post will detail the project. 

I started designing and sewing the wrapper at the end of February, and finished by the beginning of March.  The first occasion I had to wear it was for a more recent "Getting Dressed in the 1860s" presentation in April for the Presbyterian Village at North Church, which is an independent senior living community.  They were a wonderful audience too, asking lots of questions and sharing some of their own fashion memories, especially from the 1950s and '60s.  Special connections like these are why I love doing fashion programs, and historical clothing is such an excellent tool to discuss all kinds of social history - like gender, identity, and self-expression - as well as economic, labor, political, and technological advancements.  I have a couple more 1860s programs lined up this summer, so the wrapper should get some more wear. 

Historical Inspiration

First a definition: what is a wrapper?  A wrapper (also called a morning dress/robe) is a semi-fitted or loose dressing gown that women would wear in the morning or evening, with or without their corset.  Wrappers tended to follow the lines of a fashionable dress, but were considered informal dress - i.e. best worn in the privacy of one's home for breakfast, chores and domestic duties, or lounging around, but not in front of company.  Some wrappers were fastened from the neck to the waist and stitched shut from the waist to the floor, while others were left open through the skirt to reveal a decorative, embroidered petticoat.  Due to their relaxed fit, many had drawstrings at the waist, or could be tied with a belt, making them perfect for maternity wear too. 

Here's another excerpt from The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness by Florence Hartley, 1860, describing the (un)suitability of wrappers for receiving morning calls: 

DRESS FOR MORNING VISITS—A lady should never receive her morning callers in a wrapper, unless they call at an unusually early hour, or some unexpected demand upon her time makes it impossible to change her dress after breakfast…A wrapper made with handsome trimming, open over a pretty white skirt, may be worn with propriety; but the simple dress worn for breakfast, or in the exercise of domestic duties, is not suitable for the parlor when receiving visits of ceremony in the morning. 

The "simple dress" worn "in the exercise of domestic duties" could be made from a more serviceable calico, as opposed to finer wools and silks.  Printed cotton wrappers often featured bolder colors and busy patterns, which made them both easily launderable and helped to hide dirt and stains from household chores.  

When looking at extant examples, I was feeling particularly inspired by those with velvet accents, like collars, cuffs, and patch pockets, and will share a few below.  If you're looking for more examples or other styles, feel free to take a look through my 19th Century Wrappers Pinterest Board. 

This first example comes from a Pinterest upload, and I would love more information on the garment.  The caption provided only that it was displayed at the Antioch Historical Society, and I assume belongs to a private collection.  I just love the bold print, and the red silk collar and patch pockets, which appear to be trimmed with black ribbon (maybe silk or velvet?) and fringe. 

Display at the Antioch Historical Society
Image source: Pinterest, unidentified owner/collection 

The second example was originally an Ebay auction item, which the seller listed as an "1860s Civil War Era Dress," but it is actually an early-1870s wrapper.  Again, I was responding to the large striped print, with velvet accents, including collar, wide cuffs, patch pockets, buttons, and belt (which should be placed higher, in the gap between the buttons...)

Anyways, here's the description form the Ebay seller: "This elegant antique dress is sewn of the most exquisite wool fabric with paisley pattern fabric…Ever so soft deep chocolate brown silk velvet collar, pockets, sleeve cuffs, belt with matching silk velvet over wooden buttons. The lower dress skirt offers the typical fullness needed for hoop skirts and bustle."

Early 1870s Wrapper, originally an Ebay Listing

And finally, a third example from the MET, described as a "quintessential dressing gown of the period with military-style cuffs, cord belt and paisley pattern:"

Dressing Gown, ca.1875, MET Museum (accession number: 2009.300.124) 

For my own design, I wanted to complement the large striped print with equally bold, velvet cuffs and collar, as well as a wide skirt to accommodate a hoop (if desired).  

Construction Details

This was a stash-busting project, meaning that all of the materials came from the stash and that I did not have to buy anything for its making.  For the fashion fabric, I chose the most gorgeous reproduction cotton - called "Red Charlotte Serpentine" by Michelle Yeo (Pattern C8433) from the Penny Rose Designer Fabric Collection (I believe I had ~6 yards) - deep red cotton velvet for accents, and cotton muslin for lining.  I also used vintage gimp trim (passementerie) to mimic the serpentine print. 

For the design, I knew I wanted a fitted back with a full, gauged skirt; and a loosely-fitted, long front with a half lining and two double-pointed ("fisheye") darts on each side to provide gentle shaping.  For the pattern, I used a modified version of my bodice block and coat sleeves, and the front piece references the general shaping in Laughing Moon Pattern #118: Wrapper, Work Dress, or Morning Gown 1840-1860.  The cuffs were drafted off my coat sleeve, and I also patterned a wide collar off the neckline measurements.  I decided I'd leave the wrapper open to hem, in case I made a fancy petticoat; and to close/cinch the waist with a self-fabric belt. 

After patterning and cutting out all of the fashion and lining pieces, as well as the velvet pieces with their facings, I started with assembling the back pieces.  The back was flatlined with cotton muslin, and then I piped the waistline in preparation for the skirt.  The skirt is just two rectangular panels seamed together, gauged, and whipstitched to the back bodice. 

The skirt is made from two panels of fabric, seamed and gauged (cartridge pleated).
The fullness will accommodate a hoop, if desired. 

I also added a 1" twill tape casing for a drawstring, following extant examples I have seen, which will come in handy for keeping the wrapper sitting at the waist when worn over a hoop. 

The finished back, flatlined with muslin - notice the 1" twill tape casing for a drawstring.

Finished back from the outside - notice the piping at the waist.
I also squared the side seams so everything would be on the straight of grain.

With the back finished, I turned my attention to assembling the fronts.  Since my fabric was not wide enough to cut the full front pieces, I pieced two triangular gussets at the sides.  I serged the raw edges for a neat finish, seamed, and pressed them open to combine the two pieces into one.  I also hemmed the half-lining, and then flatlined it with the bodice:

Detail showing both the side piecing and the bottom edge of half-lining.

For some gentle shaping, I marked two double-pointed darts (also called "fisheye" darts) to help contour the fronts.  Double-pointed darts are often used on dresses and jackets that are nipped-in and fitted at the waist, while providing shaping for the bust and hips. 

View of the half-lining and marking the double-pointed or "fisheye" darts.

To ensure smoothly-stitched (no puckers) darts, these must be stitched from the middle to the top point; then, returning to the middle and overlapping the stitching, and sewing to the bottom point.  Avoid backstitching at the points, and instead, much like a standard or single dart, decrease the stitch-length about an inch from the top, and tie off the thread tails.  (Here's an simple, illustrated tutorial on Sewing Darts.)  I also smoothed the curve of my darts and clipped to the centers, so they would lay nicely when pressed over a tailor's ham to the side seams. 

I curved my double-darts to avoid a harsh line; and stitched them from the middle to each point.
Instead of backstitching, I decreased the stitch length at the tops and tied the thread tails.

Here are the double-darts clipped and pressed -
always press darts over a tailor's ham to support the curves and avoid puckers.

View of the darts from the outside - notice contouring for the bust and hips.

Next, I joined the sides, stitching the fronts to the back, and pressing the long seams open: 

Attaching the fronts to the back at the side seams.

Unfortunately, I seemed to stop taking in-progress pictures at this point - so I will just describe the next steps.  To finish the fronts, I folded under the facings and whipstitched them in place, since I intended to leave the front open (in case I want to display a petticoat).  I also tried the wrapper on, measuring and pinning up the hem, which was also finished by hand. 

For the coat sleeves, I lined them with muslin, and piped the armscyes of the bodice.  I added deep velvet cuffs, which were lined with the fashion fabric, and then trimmed with the gimp braid.  I made sure to edgestitch everything to keep the linings from rolling outwards.  Here are the finished coat sleeves, right before setting them into the wrapper: 

Coat sleeves with deep velvet cuffs, trimmed with vintage gimp braid.

To finish the neckline, I made a matching velvet collar, also lined with the fashion fabric, and trimmed with the vintage gimp braid.  I used self-fabric bias tape to enclose the seam and raw edges, and act as a narrow neckline facing.  Two metal hooks and thread eyes were added to fasten the wrapper at the collar, and a self-fabric belt was made to accent (and close) the waist.  The belt closes with two metal hooks and thread eyes as well. 

After adding a matching velvet collar and self-fabric belt, the wrapper was done!

Completed Project Pictures

I am still waiting for an occasion to take some nicer pictures in a historical location...but for now, pictures on a dressform will have to do.  I promise the wrapper fits better on me, and was worn over a chemise, drawers, and petticoat for my presentation.  It also fits over a hoop, if desired. 

Finished 1860s wrapper, front detail. 
There are two metal hooks and thread eyes to close at the collar, and a self-fabric belt to cinch the waist. 

1860s wrapper, full-length front views.

1860s wrapper, side views - notice the gores and piecing of the skirt.

1860s wrapper, back views - the skirt is very full at the back to accommodate a hoop.

1860s wrapper, back detail shot.

And that's a wrap to this wrapper post!  Our next sewing project will probably be an 1830s wrapper for another "Getting Dressed" presentation. 

As for the next blogging content, I'll be switching over to Patreon (many thanks to our loyal, patient patrons) to create a two-part series on the making on an 1860s "Bloomer Costume" or reform dress.  I recently completed and sported the look for a living history presentation on the Chinese participants in the American Civil War at the New-York Historical Society - which was the perfect kick-off to Asian American, Native Hawaiian, & Pacific Islander Heritage Month! 

Thank you for reading & special thanks to our generous patrons!

Like what you see here and want to support the creation of future content, historical costumes, and fashion history programming?  Consider joining us over on Patreon with pledges starting at $2/month, and you'll also unlock exclusive content like bonus blog posts and more!  Follow @youngsewphisticate on Facebook & Instagram for regular project updates.