Pieter De Hooch Watercolor? No

Ok, I have a watercolor in a very heavy and old frame and it is signed and I can read the signature. Unfortunately, it obviously is not an original Pieter de Hooch! What do I have though?

 

Judging by the dress of the woman, it was painted near the southern shore of the former Zuiderzee in The Netherlands. The Zuiderzee became IJsselmeer in 1932, when a dyke closed the entrance to the North Sea.
The cap the woman is wearing, was still worn by elderly women in the 1940s. Below is a picture of winter dress from the village of Spakenburg, the cap in your watercolour is from Spakenburg or a village nearby.
As you've noticed, it is not by the famous Pieter de Hooch. The name could have been chosen for fun, or it could be that the painter happened to have the same name.

 

Thanks for this insight and context. The outfits are pretty scary. I would guess this frame to be much much older than the 40's.

 

Yes, the outfits look scary. The people around there are very nice though, I always enjoyed going there.
Those austere-looking caps were discarded by the younger generation during WWI, when Spakenburg and surrounding villages welcomed many Belgian refugees, who taught them a thing or two about fashion. The lady on the right is wearing the Belgian-inspired hairdo and a small cap adjusted to that fashion:


The painting could be 1910-1920, and older frames are used all the time.

 

Regardless, I think it's a sweet painting!!! Look at the facial expressions on the couple.....Old Love, First Love, Comfortable Love????? Very Sweet!!!

 

I haven't seen any of the other Pieter de Hooch paintings with this style. I think it was a different painter with the same name. I think with the seashore background it has a lot of interest.

 

Do you feel it is worth more than the $100 that I paid for it?