1825 Velvet waistcoat
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1825-1835 Wine velvet waistcoat
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The back of the waistcoat
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Detail of the back of the collar; the rise in the edge is off-centre
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Detail of the voided velvet
Description
The silk velvet of the foreparts has a voided pattern in pink silk of leaves on a vermicelli ground.
The roll collar is 3" at its widest, and the edge rises at the back where the collar narrows to 1⅝", showing ⅞" of the velvet which is sewn to the stand underneath; this is ⅝" to the left of the centre back as an extra piece has been inserted. The collar is an extension of the forepart facings and must have been cut too short on the left side as there are no signs of other alterations.
The fall of the collar is lined with dark brown silesia, which also forms the waistcoat back. There are two pairs of dark brown tapes, ⅝" wide, to adjust the waist at the back; they are sewn into the side seams, ½" up from the lower edge and 3⅜" further up, and sewn down across the back for 3½" each side, leaving loose ends long enough to tie at the centre.
There are seven self-covered buttons and worked buttonholes down the front; the top two buttons are placed about ½" further in than the rest, to better fit the wearer. Each forepart has a welted pocket; the welts are 4¾" wide and ¾" deep.
The waistcoat is lined with fawn cotton twill, and the lower edges of the fronts are faced with strips, about ¾" wide, of black silk grosgrain.
Contemporary illustrations
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Fashion plate in Petit Courrier des Dames, September 1825
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Portrait of Edmond Jean Forstall by Jean Joseph Vaudechamp, 1835. Historic New Orleans Collection
Contemporary items
More waistcoats from the Hopkins Collection can be seen in Waistcoats, published by The School of Historical Dress and available from the Hopkins Costume Trust bookshop.