Woman's Shoes
Subject
Accessories
Title
Woman's Shoes
Date
ca. 1828
Description
These shoes are dated to the 1820s and classified as evening slippers. The shoes have a 1 inch wooden stacked heel; the leather sole is 3 inches wide at the widest part and just 1 inch at the slimmest. Sixteen-inch long ribbons are used to tie the slippers onto the foot as seen in fashion plates of 1820s and early 1830s evening wear. The lining is rough and appears to be homespun linen, a stark contrast to the luxurious pale blue silk with a small diamond pattern of the outer layer. On the back of each slipper a pink patch has been added to prevent the silk from splitting at the points of stress. There is no maker’s mark.
The oval toe and long vamp are common features of shoes from the late 1820s/early 1830s, with seams on both sides of the toes connecting it to the upper. There is no right and left. The wearer would decide for themselves and then the fabric would stretch out after walking around for a bit.
The low wooden stacked heel was common in the Regency period as it was comfortable and would keep the shoe elevated from the mud and grime on the ground. The shoes are classified as slippers due to the lack of tongue and back seams. Formal slippers made from silk or cotton with rosettes (or other ornamentation) and ties can be seen in many paintings and fashion plates from this time period; they were even worn by children. The rosette is made of the same pale blue ribbon as the ties and is pleated and basted in place at the highest point on the vamp.
In art many women and children can be seen wearing similar shoes. From this it is easy to determine that the ties are wrapped across the foot and around the ankle where it would be tied, like a ballet slipper. More often than not the shoes were worn with simple white stockings. Shoes made of a fancy fabric like these, that have minimal staining, would have been reserved for evening wear.
References
Anonymous . Fibre & Fabric: A Record of American Textile Industries in the Cotton and Woolen Trade. Vol. 20, Unknown, 1894.
Boyle, Laura. “Regency Shoes.” Jane Austen Centre and the Jane Austen Online Gift Shop, JaneAusten.co.uk, 26 July 2020,https://janeausten.co.uk/blogs/womens-regency-fashion-articles/regency-shoes.
Chalon, Alfred Edward. “Portrait of a Woman with Two Children in a Domestic Interior.” 1815. ArtUK.org, University of Oxford, London, England, , Museum of the Home,
London, England, https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/portrait-of-a-woman-with-two-children-ina-domesticinterior-
132996. Accessed 4 Dec. 2021.
Rexford, Nancy E. Women's Shoes in America, 1795-1930. Kent State University Press, 2000.
The oval toe and long vamp are common features of shoes from the late 1820s/early 1830s, with seams on both sides of the toes connecting it to the upper. There is no right and left. The wearer would decide for themselves and then the fabric would stretch out after walking around for a bit.
The low wooden stacked heel was common in the Regency period as it was comfortable and would keep the shoe elevated from the mud and grime on the ground. The shoes are classified as slippers due to the lack of tongue and back seams. Formal slippers made from silk or cotton with rosettes (or other ornamentation) and ties can be seen in many paintings and fashion plates from this time period; they were even worn by children. The rosette is made of the same pale blue ribbon as the ties and is pleated and basted in place at the highest point on the vamp.
In art many women and children can be seen wearing similar shoes. From this it is easy to determine that the ties are wrapped across the foot and around the ankle where it would be tied, like a ballet slipper. More often than not the shoes were worn with simple white stockings. Shoes made of a fancy fabric like these, that have minimal staining, would have been reserved for evening wear.
References
Anonymous . Fibre & Fabric: A Record of American Textile Industries in the Cotton and Woolen Trade. Vol. 20, Unknown, 1894.
Boyle, Laura. “Regency Shoes.” Jane Austen Centre and the Jane Austen Online Gift Shop, JaneAusten.co.uk, 26 July 2020,https://janeausten.co.uk/blogs/womens-regency-fashion-articles/regency-shoes.
Chalon, Alfred Edward. “Portrait of a Woman with Two Children in a Domestic Interior.” 1815. ArtUK.org, University of Oxford, London, England, , Museum of the Home,
London, England, https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/portrait-of-a-woman-with-two-children-ina-domesticinterior-
132996. Accessed 4 Dec. 2021.
Rexford, Nancy E. Women's Shoes in America, 1795-1930. Kent State University Press, 2000.
Source
Donor: Mrs. Howard G. Godfrey
Identifier
URI 1966.28.23
Contributor
Skyler Rabidoux
Collection
Citation
“Woman's Shoes,” Historic Textile and Costume Collection, accessed May 9, 2024, https://uritextilecollection.omeka.net/items/show/503.