This 1596 Marcus Gheeraerts II portrait of Barbara Sidney, Countess of Leicester and her children is another example of how the wheeled farthingale was worn above the waistline to accommodate pregnancy. Compare Barbara’s waistline to the fashionably pointed ones of her daughters.
Portraits of the time show that the huge wheel farthingales of the late 16th and early 17th century appear to have been a useful tool for disguising/accommodating pregnancy when worn above the waistline.
This portrait of Anne, Lady Pope and her children was painted by Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger in 1596.
Very cute girls’ ensembles from Ladies Treasury, October 1889.
A very smart little girl’s ensemble from Journal des Demoiselles, September 1889.
The latest in children’s fashions from La Mode Illustrée, 1888.
The last few years of the 1880s saw the brief reintroduction of the bustle to girl’s fashion. This resulted in somewhat awkward shortened styles like the ones seen in this plate from Ladies Treasury, February 1887.
Children’s red leather shoes made between 1885 and 1895.
An 1887 Emil Brack portrait of a girl in a velvet dress.
A girl’s military-inspired cotton ensemble made between 1886 and 1888.
A gorgeous girl’s French cut velvet dress made in 1886.
