I bought some pretty little dresses from a lovely lady on Saturday.
This one was hand made by her mother and is in absolutely wonderful condition. The lady was, I guess, in her early 70’s, so the dress which looks to fit a 3-4 year old, must date to the late 30’s. The cotton has a formal stiffness to it, the puffed sleeves and neckline are edged with little frills and the bodice has the most amazingly neat smocking.
And just look at the back …
… a double row of pearly white buttons, each one fastened with a little elasticated loop. A mother’s love carefully sewn into every minute stitch of this gorgeous little dress.
From the same lady came these two baby dresses. Soft, silky, creamy fabric, again beautifully made with intricate smocking and the same mother-of-pearl buttons. These two have a couple of marks on them that I am hoping will come out without too much trouble.
I will be taking the dresses to the next antiques fair and really do hope they will go to someone who will love and care for them as carefully as their original owner.
For me, these little dresses, painstakingly made by a mother for her child, really do epitomize the true meaning of the saying ‘a labour of love’.
11 comments:
Oh, they are adorable! As you say, hope they go to someone who'll appreciate all that love and hard work. Such fantastic work. I smocked a dress many years ago - hard work! Abby x
Hello Marina:
These beautifully made dresses are indeed so very pretty.One can well imagine the delight of the young girl who had the thrill of wearing them.
The attention to detail is exceptional and, like you, we hope that they will find a good home which will cherish them.
So lovely I hope I can find such nice things one day trouble with me is once I get a story behind an item I cant sell it lol.
I had such lovely vintage dresses for my girls when they were little (50s ones) I lent then to someone and never saw them again maybe thats why I horad so much now.?
Goodness, what lovely dresses especially those double rows of buttons; though I must confess that when I was about 4 years old the thought of wearing all those stripes and smocking would have had me throwing a wobbly!
Oh how precious! I'm so glad that you were able to purchase them, and trust that they will indeed go to a new home from the fair where they'll be loved and treasured too. I can only imagine how many hours of motherly love was sewn into these beautiful little gowns ~ such a treat for us to enjoy them with you ~ thank you! Love Brenda
They are just gorgeous! Such beautiful little dresses - as you rightly say, a labour of love!
Liz
They are all such beautiful dresses. The tiny buttons are wonderful, and as you say, the Mothers love that has gone into making them, shows in the detail of every garment.
I feel sure they will go to someone who will treasure them. Abby x
They are lovely, such a lot of work must of gone into every stitch, I bet she must of felt proud to see her daughter wearing them. Wouldn't it be lovely to see a photo, but then you would definitely never bear to sell them! I think they are the sort of thing that would go to a collector maybe, so I'm sure the next owner will love them xx
Super-duper dresses! I love pale blue and white stripes and the amount of work in that dress is spectacular!The other two are so sweet too - that unmistakeable vintage look. Good luck with the stain removal!
x
Absolutely gorgeous!
Hi Jane...ma sai che anche io portavo questi vestitini, da bambina...Lovely!!! Se li avessi ancora...my god!! Un caro saluto, *Maristella*.
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