Fancy Dresses Described; or, What to Wear at Fancy Balls is a 19th century fancy dress manual, filled with creative, sometimes surprising, fancy dress costumes. Basket
of daffodils, a pack of cards, the Suez Canal, a comet, and the
eighteenth-century are just a few of the disguises suggested in this entertaining book. Fancy Dresses Described went through multiple printings in the 1880s and 1890s, a testament to its popularity. Author Ardern Holt also wrote a companion volume for men titled Gentleman's Fancy Dress: How to Choose It. Equally popular, though with less compelling illustrations, Gentleman's Fancy Dress was also printed in multiple editions during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Unlike today's Halloween costumes, fancy dress wasn't worn to celebrate a specific holiday. Instead, fancy dress was worn at parties and balls, which were held throughout the year. Hosts sometimes asked guests to select thematic costumes, such as fairy tales, or France at the time of Louis XV. Whatever the theme, donning fancy dress offered attendees the
opportunity to (temporarily) step outside the societal and sartorial
boundaries of their everyday lives. Many revelers made their own costumes, while others purchased or rented their fancy dress. Rental houses offered short-term rentals at reasonable rates, and stores offered ready-made costumes for purchase. Ranging from intimate gatherings of close friends or family, to large public entertainments, fancy dress balls featured dancing, refreshments, and socializing.
Whether or not you'll be wearing a Halloween costume this year, be sure to browse through this 1887 edition of Fancy Dresses Described. Though many of the costumes would be considered culturally insensitive today, others are a refreshing counterpoint to the current plethora of "sexy" Halloween costumes. Next year, let's hope for a resurgence of costumes with unique themes like spelling bee, ice queen, the ghost of Queen Elizabeth I, Monte Carlo (the red and black costume pictured below), and folly.
…just curious as to the kind of thread used for sewing in the cards…and what size were they, since playing cards have changed some over time…
Unfortunately, Holt’s description of the fabulous black and red Monte Carlo costume seen here describes only the components. Author Ardern Holt assumed that her readers were either in a position to hire a skilled seamstress, or were able to sew. Generally speaking, most women had enough basic competence in sewing that would have allowed them to create a costume based on these descriptions, which mostly center on adding elements to skirts or bodices of specific color.
Holt’s vagueness on the construction details is typical of 19th century sewing instructions found in women’s magazines like Godey’s. That said, you’d definitely need very sturdy thread to sew playing cards to fabric! In this day and age, most people would probably use a glue gun rather than a needle and thread.