Skip menu to read main page content

A Tarlatan Summer Dress

“There is nothing so graceful and pretty for a young person as a thin dress” 

– Godey's Lady Book, March, 1865

1984.57.1.1_frnt.jpg1984.57.1 Gift of Mr. Townsend Scott

 No matter how often it happens, we are always surprised when we open a dehydrated brown box from the Pratt House storage and find vibrant, striking colors.  Such was the case with this 1868-1870 tarlatan bodice and skirt embroidered with red stripes and blue, pink and violet flowers and trimmed with an exceedingly bright green ribbon and lace.  The tarlatan itself would have been white at the time of its creation, which would have enhanced the brightness of the colors further.   A comparative example can be seen below, on the day dress from the Kyoto Costume Institute.  

kci_tarlatan dress.jpg

Day dress, late 1860s, The Kyoto Costume Institute, AC4324 82-17-43AE. Photo by Taishi Hirokawa ,Copyright of The Kyoto Costume Institute

Tarlatan or tarlatane is a thin open-weave cotton that is stiffened, giving it more shape than gauzy muslins.  This was desirous as it could provide the shape of similarly patterned silks and taffetas with the prettiness of a sheer cotton.  It was especially favorable to young girls and in those summer months when the airiness of cotton was much preferred to the hot, close-weave silks.  The stiffness of the fabric allowed it to be worn without the hoops that dominated the earlier part of the decade.  Instead of a cage crinoline, a tarlatan dress might fit closely at the hips and be shaped “by a very stiff crinoline petticoat trained and deeply flounced just at the back” (Godey, 1867).  Evidence of this style is visible in the skirt of the dress from the Fashion Archives.  The front of the skirt has a wide, flat panel that hangs more or less straight down.  The back of the skirt is longer and gathered at the waist, which would require some support to lay properly.  This alteration hints at the rise of the bustle in the coming decade.

1984.57.1.1&1984.57.1.2_v2.jpgFront of gown, showing flat front panel

 

1984.57.1.1&1984.57.1.2_v3.jpgVerso of dress, showing a longer, gathered panel in the skirt

 

Despite its good qualities, tarlatan dresses lacked that color silk evening gowns of the same time could boast.  To add color, tarlatan dresses might have been trimmed with vibrant satin ribons and lace, embroidered, or dyed.  This allowed the wearer to keep her “graceful and pretty” cotton dress while having the color and trim of a silk evening gown. The dress in the Fashion Archives at MdHS features embroidered stripes and flowers which remain strikingly bright, as well as an almost neon green lace and ribbon trim. The stability in the green dye of the satin ribbons and lace on the dress above suggests that they were dyed with a green aniline dye.

While tarlatan dresses fell out of fashion in the 1870s, the fabric was still used.  The stiffness of the tarltan made it ideal for petticoats, pleated trims, and ruffles as well as for other household uses.

References:

“Chitchat upon Fashions for August”  Godey's Lady Book (August 1867).

“Christmas tree decorations” Godey's Lady Book (January 1885)

 


New Call-to-action