Featured Short wedding dress from the 1920s? What is missing from the outfit?

Hello all! I don't usually pick up vintage or antique clothing because it's not really in my wheelhouse but sometimes items are too good to pass up at the auction (I have a few more pieces coming soon that I will share)! This was a lot of various items with a photograph included. I want to confirm that the short dress is indeed a wedding dress and if there likely would have been a slip of some kind underneath? It's a little difficult to make out the details in the photograph, and I'm trying to see if there is anything missing. The lot also came with headdress, various floral button hole posies, silk stockings and some satin ribbons. Thanks for any info

 

That is lovely. IMHO, I would think there would have been some sort of layer underneath so it was not see thru-- slip or sheath.. I am not a clothes expert, so wait for those with precise knowledge.

 

Yes, it would have had a slip underneath. And it appears to be missing the sash which would emphasis the below-the-waist silhouette of the late 1920s. (It's visible in the photograph.)

Debora

 

Ah ok thank you! There is actually something that looks like a sash with it, I wasn't sure if it was part of this outfit or not. I will post a pic!

 

This looks to be silk. The other is a black ribbon also with the lot but unsure if associated with any of the wedding party or not!

 

An inexpensive wedding dress. Appears to be manufactured not hand-sewn. Are you sure the sash isn't rayon? Would have been called "artificial silk" in the 1920s. Humble people but respectable. Bride's side a bit more prosperous than groom's (although aren't he and his brothers good-looking!) Women, including those older, have bobbed hair and knee-length skirts so up-to-date with fashion. A small wedding party given the size of the cake. From the wax flowers, I suspect they were someone off-the-beaten track where flowers weren't plentiful in the summer months.

Debora

 

Wonderful information thank you! The sash feels like silk but I'm definitely not an expert so could well be rayon.

 

In what part of the world was the auction held?

Debora

 

As an aside, I am wondering if the bride's bouquet was just in stock from the photographer in your photo.

When my grandmother was still alive, I asked her how she was able to afford such a large floral bouquet fpr her wedding shot. I saw her wedding photo. She told me the photographer kept some florals in his shop and it was part of the set up. They were faux flowers. It was huge bouquet she held and she was very petite.

 

I'm in Alberta, Canada. The auction was in Saskatchewan.

 

That explains the ferns.

Debora

 

One thing interesting about the photo is it wasn't taken in a studio. It was taken outdoors and not even in a garden. Appears just to be a yard. With a folding table, covered by an inexpensive hand-worked tablecloth, set up outside to hold the cake.

Debora

 

Those are wax orange blossoms. They were standard in the early 20s; my grandother's veil from 1921 had the same flowers. Orange blossoms smell great but they're perishable as all heck and very seasonal. Queen Victoria wore them, so they became the standard. Since most brides didn't have a hothouse or orange grove, they used wax flowers. The cool part is you have the groom's boutonniere too!

 

Go Oilers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Haha oh yes, Alberta is very excited atm

 

Thanks all for your info and insight! I feel like I'm in a bit of a quandary now because I buy most of these auction items to resell but I'm a little compelled to keep these. I find it a bit sad that they didn't stay in their original family's possession.

 

I agree. Someone's mother. But daughter may have died without descendants. Families who homesteaded on prairie, I would imagine. Auction house provided no further details about provenance?

Debora

 

No, nothing. It was just a general vintage clothing lot with poor pictures and no real detail. The photograph is actually a modern one that appears to have be printed as a version of the original so no handwritten notes on the back or anything.

 

I know that tv shows and movies love to buy vintage or antique clorhing. You might want to put it up for a low amount and let the bidders decide what it is worth.
That is if you don't have that much invested and want to take a risk.
List with measurements and sell AS IS,

Just a thought

 

I was wondering about that.

Debora did a great assessment of all of this. It appears there was a plain backdrop set up behind the wedding party. Behind the bride's head there appears to be a gap between two pieces of cloth.