British Lady’s Magazine, November 1817.
“Walking Dress.”
The Leghorn bonnet (leghorn refers to the material — plaited straw made from Italian wheat — and not the shape) is said to be in the French shape, a prevailing style. Bonnets at this time had huge, wide brims. The French shape turned up slightly. As this bonnet has a pink ribbon that ties under the chin, smashing down the sides of the bonnet, the French brim is brought even more upward, almost to a point. It’s interesting that the “French shape” included such a tall crown. French prints at this time showed very moderate, even low crowns with brims exploded to enormous widths. In British prints, soaring crowns are still shown, but will begin to shrink down within the next year.
The Indian shawl shown here is gorgeous!
The print is described in the magazine as follows:
“Blue satin spencer, over which is worn a rich India shawl; petticoat composed of fine India muslin, worn a moderate walking length, ornamented at the bottom with a flounce of rich needle-work or point lace; a Leghorn bonnet, trimmed with a puffin of satin and lace; the lining and strings to correspond; French shape is still the prevailing taste; this bonnet is worn with a cap of lace and blond, ornamented with a roset to correspond with the trimming of the bonnet; round the neck is worn a filling of Brussels lace; gloves and shoes to correspond.”
