Polonaise (clothing)
Encyclopedia
Clothing
Clothing refers to any covering for the human body that is worn. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic and is a feature of nearly all human societies...
of the later 1770s and 1780s or a similar revival style of the 1880s
1880s in fashion
Fashion in the 1880s in European and European-influenced countries is characterized by the return of the bustle. The long, lean line of the 1870s was replaced by a full, curvy silhouette with gradually widening shoulders. Fashionable waists were low and tiny below a full, low bust supported by a...
inspired by Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
national costume, consisting of a gown
Gown
A gown is a loose outer garment from knee- to full-length worn by men and women in Europe from the early Middle Ages to the 17th century ; later, gown was applied to any woman's garment consisting of a bodice and attached skirt.A long, loosely-fitted gown called a Banyan was worn by men in the 18th...
with a fitted bodice
Bodice
A bodice, historically, is an article of clothing for women, covering the body from the neck to the waist. In modern usage it typically refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the 18th century, or to the upper portion of a modern dress to distinguish it from...
and cutaway, draped and poufed overskirt, worn over an underskirt or petticoat
Petticoat
A petticoat or underskirt is an article of clothing for women; specifically an undergarment to be worn under a skirt or a dress. The petticoat is a separate garment hanging from the waist ....
.
The eighteenth century polonaise (also referred to as a milkmaid dress) was a conscious imitation of rustic country women's habit of tucking their outer gowns up to keep them out of the muck. The open skirt could be poofed up by tucking the front corners through the pocket slits or, later, by means of tapes and loops sewn into the skirt.
The nineteenth century revival style, sometimes described as "Dolly Varden
Dolly Varden (costume)
A Dolly Varden costume is a woman's outfit that was briefly fashionable from about 1869 to 1875 in Britain and America.-Name:Dolly Varden is a character from Charles Dickens's 1839 historical novel Barnaby Rudge set in 1780...
" had lost all connotations of this rustic origin.
