Abstract
This chapter highlights the potential that dress history has for informing present-day creative fashion practice and, particularly, the design of adaptive dress for sitting. It offers a critical analysis of the complexities and curiosities of formal side-saddle habit dress, encompassing approximately a century from 1850 to 1950. Using period riding manuals, personal sporting diaries, dress artefacts and original pattern books, the chapter presents and explains devices such as the ‘apron’ style of side-saddle skirt and the ‘cut away’ design of the formal riding jacket. Unusually, habit makers tailored these garments in, and for, the sitting position, reducing excess fabric around the seat and accommodating the ‘L’-shaped, seated, body through innovative internal construction. It is suggested that these historical approaches may usefully be transposed across time to enhance both the form and functionality of adaptivewear for certain seated communities today, notably people using wheelchairs. The chapter discusses examples of contemporary adaptivewear that have been designed specifically for the L-shaped position. In so doing, it advocates for collaborative approaches between product developers, creative pattern cutters and dress historians in order to benefit both the thinking and practice of inclusive design.
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Notes
- 1.
Matthew Pears, Susanna Kola-Palmer and Liane Beretta De Azevedo, ‘The impact of sitting time and physical activity on mental health during COVID-19 lockdown’, Sports Sciences For Health 18 (2022) 179–191.
- 2.
Lauren Cochrane, ‘Zoom! Power shoulders are back thanks to video meetings’, The Guardian, Dec 11 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/dec/11/zoom-power-shoulders-back-thanks-video-meetings-waist-up.
- 3.
Alexandra Palmer, ‘Fashion follows form: patterning a relationship between function and fashion’, ROM Magazine (Summer 2014) 18–23, 20.
- 4.
A great deal of the source material presented here originates from the Collection of the National Sporting Library & Museum, Virginia. I acknowledge and thank the NSL&M and its staff for their continuing support of my research.
- 5.
Alison Matthews David, ‘Elegant amazons: victorian riding habits and the fashionable horsewoman’, Victorian Literature And Culture 30:1 (2002) 179–210.
- 6.
Palmer, Fashion follows form, 20.
- 7.
Alfred Gell, Art And Agency: An Anthropological Theory, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1998, 17.
- 8.
Ellen Sampson, Worn: Footwear, Attachment And The Affects Of Wear. London: Bloomsbury, 2020, 37.
- 9.
Graham Pullin, Design Meets Disability, Cambridge: MIT Press, 2009.
- 10.
Pullin, Design Meets Disability, 303.
- 11.
Galen Cranz, The Chair: Rethinking Culture, Body, and Design, New York: W.W.Norton & Company, 1998, 25.
- 12.
Cranz, The Chair, 27.
- 13.
Priya Elan, ‘No sweat: how track suit bottoms became the height of lockdown fashion’, The Guardian, Apr 25 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/apr/25/no-sweat-how-tracksuit-bottoms-became-the-height-of-lockdown-fashion.
- 14.
Laird Borrelli-Persson, ‘Thank Zoom for reviving the waist up look first popularized in the 1930s’, Vogue, Apr 14 2020. https://www.vogue.com/article/waist-up-dressing-1930s-versus-for-zoom.
- 15.
Natasha Marsh, ‘What clothes will you wear when the pandemic is finally over?’ Byrdie, 2021, ‘https://www.byrdie.com/fashion-trends-post-pandemic-5190627.
- 16.
Sampson, Worn, 131–132.
- 17.
Borrelli-Persson, ‘Thank Zoom for reviving the waist up look first popularized in the 1930s’.
- 18.
Cally Blackman, 100 Years Of Fashion, London: Laurence King, 2012.
- 19.
Blackman, 100 Years Of Fashion, 13.
- 20.
Blackman, 100 Years Of Fashion, 142.
- 21.
Susy Menkes, ‘Blithe spirit: the Windsor set: a glimpse of the era before world war II: beauty on the eve of destruction’, International Herald Tribune Dec 3 2002, https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/03/style/IHT-blithe-spiritthe-windsor-seta-glimpse-of-the-era-before-world-war.html.
- 22.
For example, refer to: Steele, The Corset: A Cultural History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003; and Alison Matthews David, Fashion Victims: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present, London: Bloomsbury, 2015.
- 23.
Kat Eschner, ‘Although less deadly than crinolines, bustles were still a pain in the behind’, Smithsonian Magazine, Apr 21 2017. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/although-less-deadly-crinolines-bustles-were-still-pain-behind-180962919/.
- 24.
Anonymous, ‘Bustles’, Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, Nov 15 1888, 490.
- 25.
Anonymous, ‘Bustles’.
- 26.
Patricia Cunningham, Reforming Women’s Fashion, 1850–1920: Politics, Health and Art, Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press, 2002, 124.
- 27.
Juliana Albrecht, Jane Farrell-Beck, and Geitel Winakor, ‘Function, fashion, and convention in American women’s riding costume’, 1880–1930, Dress 14 (1988) 56–67, 56.
- 28.
Matthews David, Elegant amazons.
- 29.
Belle Beach, Riding And Driving For Women, New York: Charles Scribner’s, 1912, 127.
- 30.
Examples include: Nannie Power O’Donoghue Ladies On Horseback: Learning, Park-Riding, And Hunting, With Hints Upon Costume, And Numerous Anecdotes, London: W.H. Allen; Hayes 1903 [1893]. The Horsewoman: A Practical Guide To Side-Saddle Riding. London: W. Thacker; E.V.A (Eva) Christy 1907 Modern Side-Saddle Riding: A Practical Handbook For Horsewomen. London: Vinton & Co; Diana Sheddon and Violet Apsley 1932, To Whom The Goddess…: Hunting and Riding For Women. London: Hutchison and Co; and Doreen Houblon, 1938, Side-Saddle. London and New York: Country Life and Charles Scribner’s.
- 31.
A. C. Stuart Menzies, Women In The Hunting Field. London: Vinton, 1913, 19.
- 32.
Stuart Menzies, Women In The Hunting Field, 19.
- 33.
Lucy Linn, Thirteen Hunts In Ireland: Feb 13 To Mar 13, 1948. Privately Printed in Chicago, 1948, 22.
- 34.
Elizabeth Karr, The American Horsewoman, Cambridge: The Riverside Press, 1884, iv.
- 35.
Power O’Donoghue, Ladies On Horseback, 11–12.
- 36.
Furthermore, side-saddlers describe the leaping head as offering a particularly secure hold for the legs and body and liken it to riding ‘as if in a rocking chair’, a metaphor that is especially suited to the broader discussion here on the dress history of sitting and the seated body.
- 37.
Beach, Riding And Driving For Women, 5.
- 38.
Karr, The American Horsewoman, 114–144.
- 39.
Stuart Menzies, Women In The Hunting Field, 15–16.
- 40.
Hayes, The Horsewoman, 65.
- 41.
William Kerr, Riding For Ladies, New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1891, 64.
- 42.
J. Stirling Clarke, The Habit And The Horse: A Treatise On Female Equitation. London: The Authoress, 1857, 201.
- 43.
Houblon, Side-Saddle, 3.
- 44.
Hayes, The Horsewoman, 440.
- 45.
Accession numbers: 82.1960/20 and 155.1956/1. For more on the archives formerly held at Sileby contact Leicestershire Museums Service.
- 46.
Stuart Menzies, Women In The Hunting Field, 17.
- 47.
Alison Goodrum, A severity of plainness: the culture of female riding dress in America during the 1920s and 1930s, Annals Of Leisure Research 15:1 (2012) 87–105, 97.
- 48.
Power O’Donoghue, Ladies On Horseback, 49.
- 49.
Hayes, The Horsewoman, 92–93.
- 50.
Kerr, Riding For Ladies, 64.
- 51.
John Leech, John Leech’s Pictures of Life And Character, Volume II, London: Bradbury, Agnew & Co., 1887, 67.
- 52.
Beach, Riding And Driving For Women, 110.
- 53.
S. S. Gordon, The ‘Standard’ Work On Cutting Ladies’ Tailor-Made Garments: A Complete Treatise On The Art And Science Of Delineating All Garments for Women Made By Tailors. New York: Mitchell Co., 1908.
- 54.
J. P. Thornton, The International System of Ladies’ Garment Cutting. London: The Thornton Institute,1910 (fifth edition).
- 55.
Pullin, Design Meets Disability.
- 56.
And, of course, users and/or wearers are also vital stakeholders in the design and development process, too. Interesting examples pertaining both to sitting dress, and to seated makers, are provided by a growing community of grassroots, online, craft collectives and social justice groups (such as The Sewcialists, Seated Sewing and the social media feed, #SewnShownSeated) that advocate for inclusive clothing, the normalisation of the L-shape in fashion and design adaptations to fit and suit people using wheelchairs or with limited mobility. Refer to: https://thesewcialists.com and https://seatedsewing.co.uk.
- 57.
Royal Ontario Museum, ‘Fashion follows form: designs for sitting’, 2014, https://www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/fashion-follows-form-designs-for-sitting.
- 58.
For an extended review of the exhibition, refer to Rebecca Halliday, Four exhibitions in Toronto. Fashion Theory: The Journal Of Dress, Body & Culture 19:4 (2015) 519–539.
- 59.
IZAdaptive, ‘IZAdaptive home’, 2022, https://izadaptive.com.
- 60.
The riding habit in question is held by the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada, accession no: 925.38.19.A-C.
- 61.
Palmer, ‘Fashion follows form’, 20.
- 62.
Palmer, ‘Fashion follows form’, 20–21.
- 63.
IZAdaptive, ‘IZAdaptive home’.
References
Albrecht, Juliana, Jane Farrell-Beck, and Geitel Winakor. ‘Function, fashion, and convention in American women’s riding costume’, 1880–1930. Dress 14 (1988) 56–67.
Anonymous. Bustles. Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, (Nov 15 1888) 490.
Beach, Belle. Riding and Driving for Women. New York: Charles Scribner’s, 1912.
Blackman, Cally. 100 Years of Fashion. London: Laurence King, 2012.
Borrelli-Persson, Laird. ‘Thank Zoom for reviving the waist up look first popularized in the 1930s’. Vogue (Apr 14 2020) https://www.vogue.com/article/waist-up-dressing-1930s-versus-for-zoom. Accessed 6 Apr 2022.
Christy, E.V.A (Eva). Modern Side-Saddle Riding: A Practical Handbook for Horsewomen. London: Vinton & Co, 1907.
Cochrane, Lauren. ‘Zoom! Power shoulders are back thanks to video meetings’. The Guardian, (Dec 11 2020) https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/dec/11/zoom-power-shoulders-back-thanks-video-meetings-waist-up. Accessed 6 Apr 2022.
Cranz, Galen. The Chair: Rethinking Culture, Body, and Design. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1998.
Cunningham, Patricia. Reforming Women’s Fashion, 1850–1920: Politics, Health and Art. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press, 2002.
Elan, Priya. ‘No sweat: how track suit bottoms became the height of lockdown fashion’. The Guardian (Apr 25 2020) https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/apr/25/no-sweat-how-tracksuit-bottoms-became-the-height-of-lockdown-fashion. Accessed 6 Apr 2022.
Eschner, Kat. ‘Although less deadly than crinolines, bustles were still a pain in the behind’. Smithsonian Magazine, (Apr 21 2017) https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/although-less-deadly-crinolines-bustles-were-still-pain-behind-180962919/. Accessed 10 Apr 2022.
Gell, Alfred. Art and Agency: An Anthropological Theory. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1998.
Goodrum, Alison. ‘A severity of plainness: the culture of female riding dress in America during the 1920s and 1930s’. Annals of Leisure Research 15, 1 (2012) 87–105.
Gordon, S. S. The ‘Standard’ Work on Cutting Ladies’ Tailor-Made Garments: A Complete Treatise on the Art and Science of Delineating All Garments for Women Made By Tailors. New York: Mitchell Co, 1908.
Halliday, Rebecca. ‘Four exhibitions in Toronto’. Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body & Culture 19:4 (2015) 519–539.
Hayes, Alice. The Horsewoman: A Practical Guide to Side-Saddle Riding. London: W. Thacker, 1903 [1893].
Houblon, Doreen. Side-Saddle. London and New York: Country Life and Charles Scribner’s, 1938.
IZAdaptive. ‘IZAdaptive home’. https://izadaptive.com. Accessed Mar 7, 2022.
Karr, Elizabeth. The American Horsewoman. Cambridge: The Riverside Press, 1884.
Kerr, William. Riding For Ladies. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1891.
Leech, John. John Leech’s Pictures of Life And Character, Volume II. London: Bradbury, Agnew & Co., 1887.
Linn, Lucy. Thirteen Hunts in Ireland: Feb 13 to Mar 13, 1948. Privately Printed in Chicago, 1949.
Marsh, Natasha. ‘What clothes will you wear when the pandemic is finally over?’ Byrdie. https://www.byrdie.com/fashion-trends-post-pandemic-5190627. 2021. Accessed 25 Mar 2022.
Matthews David, Alison. ‘Elegant amazons: victorian riding habits and the fashionable horsewoman’. Victorian Literature And Culture 30:1 (2002) 179–210.
Matthews David, Alison. Fashion Victims: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present. London: Bloomsbury, 2015.
Menkes, Suzy. ‘Blithe spirit: the Windsor set: a glimpse of the era before world war II: beauty on the eve of destruction’. International Herald Tribune (Dec 3 2002) https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/03/style/IHT-blithe-spiritthe-windsor-seta-glimpse-of-the-era-before-world-war.html. Accessed 2 May 2022.
Palmer, Alexandra. ‘Fashion follows form: patterning a relationship between function and fashion’. ROM Magazine Summer 2014. 18–23.
Pears, Matthew, Kola-Palmer, Susanna, and Beretta De Azevedo, Liane. ‘The impact of sitting time and physical activity on mental health during COVID-19 lockdown’. Sports Sciences for Health 18 (2022) 179–191.
Power O’Donoghue, Nannie. Ladies on Horseback: Learning, Park-Riding, and Hunting, with Hints Upon Costume, and Numerous Anecdotes. London: W.H. Allen, 1889.
Pullin, Graham. Design Meets Disability. Cambridge: MIT Press, 2009.
Royal Ontario Museum. ‘Fashion follows form: designs for sitting’. https://www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/fashion-follows-form-designs-for-sitting. 2014. Accessed 21 Mar 2022.
Sampson, Ellen. Worn: Footwear, Attachment and the Affects of Wear. London: Bloomsbury, 2020.
Sheddon, Diana and Apsley, Violet. To Whom The Goddess…: Hunting and Riding for Women. London: Hutchison and Co., 1932.
Steele, Valerie. The Corset: A Cultural History. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003.
Stirling Clarke, J. The Habit and The Horse: A Treatise on Female Equitation. London: The Authoress, 1857.
Stuart Menzies, A. C. Women in the Hunting Field. London: Vinton, 1913.
Thornton, J. P. The International System of Ladies’ Garment Cutting. London: The Thornton Institute, 1910 (fifth edition).
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Goodrum, A.L. (2024). Sitting Pretty: A Dress History of the L-Shaped Frame, the Side-Saddle Habit and the Design of Adaptive Wearables. In: Woolley, D., Johnstone, F., Sampson, E., Chambers, P. (eds) Wearable Objects and Curative Things. Palgrave Studies in Fashion and the Body. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40017-9_4
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