Busy Door« LifeLock - Identity Theft Prevention Protection | Home | Plus Size Womens Clothing Is Available In Many Designs »
Reviewing How Bathing Suits Have Evolved
By Busy Door Guest Blogger | April 27, 2009
Going to the beach as a form of entertainment really gained popularity after the onset of railroad travel. While the ladies of the day knew that it was improper to have tanned skin, they still needed some type of womens swimsuits. Therefore, the bathing suits that became available resembled smocks and the women actually sewed weights into the hems of the garments so that they would not float up and reveal their skin.
The next step in the evolution of swimwear swimsuits saw creations that were more like full length gowns, usually made from cambric or muslin. The garments had long sleeves with thin cuffs and were worn over pants or “trowsers,” as they were called then. The ensemble also required a scarf, sandals and even gloves. It wasn’t until sometime later that women were allowed to show a little leg.
By the mid 19th century, women’s swimsuits or bathing dresses, still covered most of their figures. Amelia Bloomer came up with the innovative idea of wearing bloomers under the swim dresses but the Turkish pants and paletot dresses were made from heavy flannel fabric, which surely had to weigh these bathing suits down quite a bit.
Wherever the water was shallow near the beach people would change in little houses on wheels, which were drawn out into deeper water by horses and hauled back to the shore when the water play was finished. At some of the larger resorts on the shore, where the most glamorous ladies of the day were, hundreds of these little change carts would be in the water at one time. Their broad wheels gave them the advantage of not getting stuck in the sand. In some areas the idea of wearing a little less, including shorter bloomers and skirts, was starting to be kicked around a little; but the implementation of those ideas would not come into play until the early 1900s, or more accurately 1910.
Those little bathing cabanas gave even the most modest of women a chance to spend a day at the beach in privacy. Upon arriving at the beach wearing layers of petticoats and dresses, the horse would haul the cabana out into the ocean where the ladies could then change into their bathing suits. There was a hood added later so that they could emerge from the water wearing their soaking wet swimsuits without being seen. After the ladies peeled off the wet suits, they could then change back into their many layers of petticoats and dresses.
Topics: Product Reviews |
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
