Long black silk dressing gown with lace ruffles around the top and sleeves. The neck of the dress comes up high and is fitted to the neck. Inside of the back of the neck is sewn a black label with pink stitching that reads : " L. Calvayrac Paris". Around the top edge of the neck is a wide ruffle of floral lace that hangs down. The closure of the dress starts at the left side of the neck and runs across the top of the left shoulder with six hook and eye fasteners. Six more hook and eye fasteners run down the left side of the chest to the underarm and then nine more hook and eyes run down the left side of the dress to close it. There are two large horizontal lace ruffles across the chest with a lace panel over the black silk in between the ruffles. On the inside of the underarm, there are chamois arm shields. On the shoulders there are three large lace ruffles. The sleeves are long, fitted, and have alternating panels of black silk and lace over black silk going down the sleeve ending with a large lace ruffle that would partially cover the hand. There is a black silk belt that would tie in the front around the waist, although there is no pronounced waist area. The general shape of the dress slopes outward from the underarms like an "A". At the bottom there is a narrow horizontal stripe of cream embroidery running along the dress. The pattern has connected ovals in the center and a ladder pattern running horizontally along top and bottom ovals. The very bottom hem of the dress has a narrow band of thicker black fabric sewn along it. The small train is also visible from the front. From the back, the same lace panels and ruffles continue from the front neck, shoulder, chest and sleeve areas. At the waistline, the belt is attached in two separate pieces on either side of a central are of gather. From these gathers, the dress falls in small pleats down the center of the dress adding fullness to the block of the skirt. A small rounded train scoops down and the band of embroidery continues around the back of the bottom of the skirt. Note: attached to the left shoulder is a flap of black silk that goes to the inside and has a loop on the corner. There is a hook on the front of the left chest area just below the neckline. When attached this supports the left sleeve from the inside.
dressing gowns
faille
silk (fiber)
lace (needlework)
Gown, Dressing
L. Calvayrac Paris (Embroidered)
Original to Phillips House (Salem, Mass.),
P923
L. Calvayrac (Manufacturer)
Paris, France
20 8/16 (W) (inches)
Gift of the Stephen Phillips Memorial Charitable Trust for Historic Preservation
2006.44.1343
Paris (Ville de Paris department, Île-de-France, France)
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