Customer Reviews

Victorian Wedding Dress in the United States: A History through Paper Dolls

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When engrossed in wedding preparations, today's brides may find comfort in knowing they are not bound by the customs of Victorian times, and have the freedom to select the best fashion features from that era. Back then, the circumstances of the bride often dictated the necessity to wear a gown of color that could be worn at future social engagements, rather than an elaborate, expensive gown of white.

Fashion illustrator and author, Norma Lu Meehan, and costume curator, Mei Campbell, have produced an appealing publication of wedding styles as they were popularized in the United States during the Victorian era. The paper doll book, Victorian Wedding Dress in the United States: A History Through Paper Dolls, complements a series on fashion history published by Texas Tech University Press.

In addition to the detailed and colorful paper doll illustrations, there are meticulous descriptions of each gown, often including a journalistic report of the wearer of the gown, the location of the wedding, and perhaps information on the family background. The gowns are drawn from the collections at the Northern Indiana Center for History and the Museum of Texas Tech University. Meehan and Campbell also provide a lengthy bibliography and an enlightening glossary that may be useful for a bride of 2010 who wishes to include a bit of ruching on her wedding dress.

by Diana Nolan
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

"Victorian Wedding Dress in the United States: A History Through Paper Dolls" is a lovely set of authentically reconstructed wedding dresses and paper dolls to fit them on from 1850 to the turn of the century. A detailed history of the once white Victorian wedding dress is included, with surprising variations on the theme in the American examples shown. "Victorian Wedding Dress in the United States" is an elegant paper doll history that will delight those with an interest in fashion, the evolution of the American wedding dress, and paper doll book collectors.