Well, let me tell you, that Gilded Age fashion, it was somethin’ else. Lots of fancy stuff goin’ on back then. Rich folks, they sure did love to dress up. More layers than an onion, I tell ya! And them ladies, squeezed into them corsets tighter than a pig in a blanket. Couldn’t hardly breathe, I bet.
Them rich women, changin’ clothes all day long, like they got nothin’ better to do. Showin’ off, that’s what it was. Gilded Age women, always all laced up and buttoned, unless they’s at home. Only time they could take a breather from them corsets. But even then, still wearin’ fancy tea gowns and what not. Always had to look like a million bucks, even just sittin’ around.
And them shirtwaists, everyone was wearin’ them, it seems like. They was everywhere, like flies on a cow pie! Back in them days, they started gettin’ all these newfangled things, like that talkin’ machine, the phonograph, and that thing you talk into across miles, the telephone. Even somethin’ called the radio! All sorts of new things comin’ out. And newspapers and them picture books, magazines, everyone was readin’ them. Showin’ off all them new styles, I suppose.
Folks also started doin’ more fun stuff, like goin’ to shows and playin’ games. They had this new game, basketball, and ridin’ around on them two-wheeled things, bicycles. And football, that was a rough one, I hear. Lots of bruisin’ and such.
Now, I heard tell of this queen, Marie Antoinette. She wasn’t from the Gilded Age, but she was all about the fancy clothes. Even wore men’s clothin’, so I heard. Wore this thing called a “redingote,” like a man’s coat, but for a lady. Sounds mighty strange to me, but I guess that’s what the royals did.
But back to the Gilded Age fashion. Them ladies, they wanted to look like an hourglass. Skinny in the middle, and curvy up top and down below. That’s why they wore them corsets, to get that shape. Must have been mighty uncomfortable.
- Lots of layers of clothes
- Corsets to make the ladies look like hourglasses
- Rich folks changing clothes all the time
- Shirtwaists everywhere
- New inventions like the telephone and radio
In the 1870s, it was all about the bustle. That’s what they called it, the bustle silhouette. Made their backsides stick out. Looked like they had a pillow stuffed back there. I don’t know how they sat down with all that goin’ on! But that was the style, I guess. Fashion was all about the bustle silhouette.
They had all sorts of fancy names for their clothes, too. Like them tea gowns. Sounded like somethin’ you’d wear to a fancy tea party. And them dressing gowns, probably for when they was gettin’ ready to go out. All very fancy, not like the simple clothes we wear.
The Gilded Age was all about showin’ off your money. And clothes was one big way to do it. The more you could change your clothes, the richer you looked. And them corsets, well, they was just part of the whole getup. Made them ladies look like they was supposed to, I suppose. But I’m glad we don’t have to wear them things anymore.
That time, the late 1800s, lot of things were happenin’. New stuff was comin’ out, all these inventions. And the way people dressed, well, that was changin’ too. This Gilded Age fashion, it’s a sight to behold, that’s for sure.
Women’s fashion back then, you see, it weren’t simple at all. If you was wealthy, you had dresses for everythin’. Dresses for mornin’, dresses for afternoon, dresses for evenin’. And fancy ones for parties and balls. Can you imagine havin’ to change your clothes so many times in one day? It is the Gilded Age fashion!
Now, them corsets, they weren’t just for lookin’ skinny. They was about standin’ up straight, too. Posture, they called it. Made the ladies look all proper and such. But I bet it was hard to bend over and pick somethin’ up off the floor! Not very practical, if you ask me.
And the hats! Oh, the hats! Big and fancy, with feathers and ribbons and all sorts of things on ’em. Must have been hard to see where you was goin’ with one of them things on your head. But that’s how they did it back then. All part of that Gilded Age fashion.
Nowadays, folks dress for comfort more than anythin’ else. But back in the Gilded Age, comfort didn’t seem to matter much. It was all about the look. And that look, well, it was somethin’ else. Layers and corsets and bustles and big hats. A whole lot of fuss, if you ask me. But I guess it was a different time, that is the Gilded Age fashion.
