Cream Ballgown
Manufacturer
Margaret Dempster
WearerWorn by
Margaret Hird
(Macduff, Scotland)
Datec.1903
Object NameDress
Mediumsilk, wool damask, lace, chiffon and cotton
ClassificationsFashion and Dress
DimensionsWaist (Possibly Smallest Period): 55.8cm
Bust: 82cm
Back Length: 41cm
Bust: 82cm
Back Length: 41cm
AcquisitionPresented in 1989 by Margaret Milne.
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS014769
About MeThis beautiful two-piece evening gown was made by Miss Margaret Dempster (b.1872) of Macduff, a trained dressmaker, who wore it as her first ball gown, during the late 1890s. Miss Dempster then altered the dress in 1903, when she married, updating it to the latest style of the time and adding a yoke and high neckline for modesty.
The dress features all the hallmarks of Edwardian fashion with a great froth of chiffon and lace around the shoulder area, a nipped in waist, aided by 17 bones in the bodice and a full-length, sweeping skirt, with a train at the back, to balance out the shoulder-line.
More About Me
Margaret Dempster, a trained seamstress, made this two piece as a ballgown in the late 1890s, but added yolk, high neck and updated fashion details for her own wedding
