Myth of the Victorian Waist

Have you ever looked at a photograph from the Victorian era and wondered how people looked so “perfect?” Perhaps you observed slim figures. One of the biggest myths that circulate in social and fashion history today.

A common myth was that “everyone was skinnier back then.” We might think this when we see photographs and museum exhibits that feature small-waisted garments. With many examples of small-figured people, we might think that body diversity wasn’t around. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Body diversity did exist. There are surviving clothing items throughout history with waist sizes from 25 to 50” to prove it.

But the myth still persists. There are many reasons why it’s still prominent, from museum collecting biases to visual aids such as photographs, advertisements, and portraiture. Today’s blog post examines mid-to-late Victorian era photography and how photo editing skills feed into the myth.

Even though we think of photo-shopping as a recent invention, you’ll be surprised to know that they were using this practice (although on a much more primitive level) in various publications.

The Victorians manipulated negatives using pencil markings and scraping techniques to draw, erase, and touch up perceived beauty flaws. Period books, such as The Art of Retouching Photographic Negatives (1898), provide methods for altering the bust, neck, arms, mouth, hair, eyes, and dress.

But beyond photo-retouching, clothing emphasized small waists by exaggerating the hips, sleeves, and the like.

So, how was this accomplished? Getting dressed was an extraordinarily complicated practice involving many layers of clothing for any woman of means. For instance, let’s look at early European styles of the aristocrats from previous centuries.

You began with a chemise (smock/shift). This loose garment is around knee-length and without any shaping. It’s made of linen or, as the century progresses, cotton. The idea was that it soaks up perspiration and was changed and washed frequently, keeping your more elaborate and expensive overgarments from getting smelly.

Next came the bodice (corset or petticoat). The bodice was usually tight-fitting linen and sleeveless. It could be stiffened with layers of buckram or with whalebone strips to support the breasts and create the required profile. It was fastened by being laced together through eyelets: front lacing is easiest, but if you have servants to assist you, side or back-lacing gives a smoother appearance. The petticoat is a plain drawstring underskirt.

Now for the kirtle. Depending on fashion, parts of this garment may be on show, so more expensive cloth was used. It had long fitted sleeves and was shaped to the upper body. The kirtle was a versatile garment worn primarily by women from the medieval period through the Renaissance. Picture a fitted dress that could be worn as an underlayer, outerwear, or both, depending on the occasion. Practicality was at its core, but style wasn’t sacrificed. Kirtles came in different fabrics, colours, and levels of decoration, making them suitable for all social classes.

Lastly, the actual gown, itself. But it was the extras that defined the narrow waist. The following methods were used to accomplish this, and they were still used throughout the Victorian era.

There were bum rolls, also known as rowles, placed between the petticoat and the kirtle.

The farthingale, which could be outrageous or straightforward, is shown in the following photos.

You could wind up looking like this depending on the current style or what was “rowleing” at the time (good bun pun, no?).

Of course, we cannot leave out the corset, a staple throughout much of history.

Many thanks to Ray Ward for the following information.

The corset has been around for centuries. Its history is long and varied, and it has been used for both functional and fashion purposes. From its early days as a functional garment designed to support the body to its use as a fashion item in more recent times, the corset has undergone many changes. Here is a timeline of the corset’s history, from its humble beginnings to its current status as a fashion icon.

The corset is a functional garment designed to support the body. Its earliest use dates back to ancient times, when Minoan women wore linen corsets to support their breasts.

Early corsets were made of stiff materials like bone or wood and were often laced tightly to provide support. They were particularly popular during the Renaissance period, when they were worn by both men and women.

Roman women and men also used corsets for functional purposes. Roman women wore them to support their breasts, while men wore them to help straighten their posture.

In the Middle Ages, corsets were primarily worn by wealthy women. They were often made of expensive fabrics like silk and velvet and decorated with jewels. Corset makers were highly skilled artisans, and corsets were often seen as works of art. During this period, men preferred looser-fitting garments and did not generally wear corsets.

The corset emerged as a fashion item during the Victorian era. Corsets of this period were often highly decorated and worn to symbolize a woman’s modesty and virtue. Wearing a corset was also seen as a way of achieving the ideal female form, which was slender and curvaceous. Not wearing a corset was considered quite scandalous, and many women even wore them to bed!

One of the most famous stories about a Victorian corset is that of Queen Victoria. It is said that she wore a corset so tight that it actually damaged her ribs. She is also thought to have popularized the trend of wearing a white wedding dress, as she wore one when she married Prince Albert in 1840.

Corsets began to be used for medical purposes during the Victorian era. They were prescribed for women with ‘hysteria’ and for other ailments such as back pain and poor posture.

The corset began to fall out of fashion at the beginning of the 20th century. Women were becoming more active, and the corset’s constrictive nature was seen as incompatible with this new lifestyle. The invention of the brassiere also contributed to the decline of the corset, as it provided support without the need for a constrictive garment.

If the history of clothing from the 16th through 19th centuries sounds interesting, please check out my History of Clothing playlist.