Children's fashion on the wane of Russian Empire

Over a period of 35 years, distinguished fashion historian Alexander Vasiliev has been collecting antique photographs, which he gathered in a unique album "Children's Fashion of the Russian Empire", released in Russian by the Moscow-based publishing house Alpina Non-Fiction (nonfiction.ru). The time frame covers the period from the late 1850s, when the first photographs appeared in Russia as pictures pasted on cardboard, to 1917, when the sun set on old Russia. The photos in this album plunge the viewer not only into the history of children's fashion of the era, but the history of Russia itself.

In the 1860s, children's clothing in Russia generally followed the precepts of fashion as proclaimed in Paris. Boys' and girls' clothing up to the age of five differed only slightly. They all wore petticoats and small pants. Sisters and brothers would dress alike.

Throughout the entire decade, children's suits were sewn in the chequered style of Scottish tartan. Also popular were taffeta, organdy, tarlatan, and barège. Preference was given to white. Young girls, in imitation of women's fashion, still wore small crinolines.

The 1870s began with a fashion reversal. At that time the tone was still set by Paris, where in 1869 Charles Worth's bustle — a framework of complex drapery at the rear — had completely transformed the female silhouette. The long-standing vogue for wide dresses on crinolines had finally come to an end.

A narrow silhouette with drapery came into fashion. In the first half of the 1870s, children's clothing mainly copied adult styles. In that regard, girls often wore reworked versions of their elder sisters' and even moms' dresses. Dresses were adorned with pleated trimmings. Drapery or large ribbon bows were attached to the back of skirts.

In the 1880s, children's fashion suddenly broke loose and set the style for trendy adult wear in the 20th century. A great deal of attention was paid to clothing for girls. The most popular was the whole-cut "princess" dress with a lowered waist and accordion-pleated skirt, often trimmed with lace and English embroidery. In this cut, one cannot fail to discern the silhouette of a woman's dress from the 1920s — truncated with a lowered waist.

The influence of Russian folk costumes was particularly noticeable in the era of Alexander III. Most clothes were cross-stitched in the Russian style, and it was very common to finish children's clothing with colored chain-stitched lace. Russian and Ukrainian children's garments were not uncommon in the 1880s, especially among Slavophils.

Over the next decade, the changes in children's clothing became even more noticeable. Boys aged 1-4 wore short garments with a low-set waist, sometimes with a Russian clasp on the side. Sailor suits with large down-turn collars were a particular favorite.

Girls aged 1-2 were attired in short dresses knitted from white zephyr wool, already similar in style to children's clothing in the first half of the 20th century. Dresses for 5-year-old girls were made with a yoke, bouffant sleeves, and a low-set sash.

Sailor suits for boys in the 1900s represented sailor's uniform in miniature. Children's sailor jackets were white with a blue collar and white cords at the edge; under the jacket was a striped garment that resembled a sailor's sleeveless vest.

A new approach to girls' dresses came from the U.S. — pleated skirts with a small yoke on top. The style afforded the child full freedom of movement, and due to its practicality remained in use for a hundred years. A new element in girls' fashion was the elegant "cabriolet" hat-hood in the style of the 1830s, made of homespun felt and trimmed with black ostrich feathers and taffeta ribbons.

In 1910-1913, the trend for children's fashion to become more adult intensified. Many styles and fabrics in vogue with women became part of the children's wardrobe, too. But World War One saw a lot of belt-tightening, and many were forced to resew and rework children's clothes. Many protests sounded against children's fashion — simplicity was the order of the day. Girls' dresses became knee-length with a low waist, and simple-cut belted trapezoidal dresses and children's sarafans entered into use.

After the Bolshevik coup, the situation regarding the manufacture and sale of children's clothing in Russia changed dramatically, as did life itself. The nationalization of industry, in particular sewing factories, led to an overwhelming shortage of textiles. The most common model at that time was the straight-cut dress shirt with lowered waist.