Embroidered bells on Princess Charlotte's court gown.
Several years ago I featured Princess Charlotte’s bellflower court dress, a sumptuous creation that must have taken a boatload of seamstresses untold hours of work to complete. I had the privilege of viewing this fragile dress when it was on exhibit at the Museum of London, and I often wondered how the bell flowers (which were worked with silver thread and tiny glass beads) were made.
The court dress, 1814. Image @Museum of London
Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Needlework (1870) provides a glimpse. Although the illustrations are rough compared to the royal example, one begins to understand how time consuming this needlework was for the women who labored long hours in poor lighting conditions. The book describes the process for bluebells, which were embroidered in a raised satin stitch. The pieces were worked separately, then half of the embroidered piece was sewn onto an outlined embroidered shape on the fine fabric. This shape represented the inner part of the flower.
Bluebell embroidered work.
The first two illustrations from Beeton’s book show 1) the complete bluebell and 2) the inner part of the flower with the overcast outline.
The flat outer part of the bluebell. This piece is fastened onto the outline.
The second illustration shows the raised outer part as a flat piece. This second embroidered piece was fastened in a three dimensional way onto the overcast outline. Then the excess material was carefully cut away without damaging the underlying fabric. (This job must have been tougher and more delicate with Princess Charlotte’s gauzy net dress.)
I recall clearly seeing that some of the bellflowers had been torn away or were missing – and wondered if someone had stepped on Princess Charlotte’s train, or if she had snagged the hem on something.
Jane Austen's World 
Stunning to imagine the entire dress decorated by hand with these intricate designs. And I wonder if the dress was heavy?
I recalled that the train was figured with silver embroidery and that it looked heavy. I cannot imagine that walking in this court dress was easy, for the dress seemed both delicate and heavy at the same time. I wish I could recall the information at the museum when the dress was on display, but it was such a long time ago.
What an amazing project it must have been! This was very interesting. I, too, wonder how many stitchers worked on it, and how long it took to make? It would seem almost impossible to commission such a gown for an event less than several months to a year off! (Maybe hasty stitching contributed to the missing/torn flowers?)
The edges were definitely torn, for they were ragged. The London Museum site states that it took 600 hours to restore this fragile gown for exhibition and that it may never be exhibited again (sadly). I imagine that a score of seamstresses worked nonstop to create this dress. My impression of that gown has never left me.
What an amazing gown, and the stitch illustration is incredible. Thanks for sharing this.
Hi Vic,
The Royal School of needlework is based at Hampton Court Palace. They still do this sort of work.
Is raised embroidery or Stump Work the same thing as you describe above?
Here is a link to the Royal School of Needlework.
All the best,
Tony
http://www.royal-needlework.org.uk/content/62/royal_school_of_needlework_raised_embroidery_explained
Tony, I am not ure if Stump Work is the same thing, but it looks just as intricate! Thanks for the link. Vic
I embroider, but I can’t imagine doing such an elaborate dress.
Wow! It amazes me to see all that beautiful work and know that it was all done by hand. Kudos to the craftsmen, er, -women, of the past who had the patience to work in that field.
One of the things that makes me a bit sad about Jane in later life is that she became so expert at needlework – according to her nephew. Somehow it’s not what one would have expected of her after the anarchic fun of the Juvenilia.
Would it be possible for me to reprint this article in my monthly volunteer newsletter? The newsletter goes out to the volunteers of the 1820 historic site I manage (www.stephensonhouse.org). The ladies in our Sewing Circle would love this article. Thank you for writing it…it is wonderful. Love, Love, Love the detail images too.
RoxAnn
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