British Lady’s Magazine, December 1817.
“Morning Dress.”
This morning walking dress shows deep mourning for Princess Charlotte, who had died on November 6. This initial stage of court mourning lasted 4-6 weeks. Deep or full mourning required fabrics that have no sheen or shine. This dress uses bombazine, crepe, and velvet. Although some of the trimmings look white (which would make this half-mourning, which was not announced until early February) I think that all the trimmings are actually black, but painted lightly so that we can see them better.
Miss Macdonald designed this dress, as well as the corset worn under it. Her designs are featured in this magazine regularly, which suggests she paid for such regular promotion. Her mourning attire for Princess Charlotte was also featured in Ackermann’s Repository.
The print is described in the magazine as follows:
“High dress of fine bombazeen, trimmed with crape, crimped ribbon, and double vandyked, crape and satin stars on the points, giving it a very novel and tasty effect, and small round cape trimmed with crimped ribbon. Scotch cap of crape and velvet, ornamented with a Prussian plume of feathers. With this dress is worn the Athenian corset, composed of black silk, entirely new, and invented by Miss Macdonald, who has kindly favoured us with these dresses.”
