This cotton dress with lawn chemisette is block printed with floral trails on a background of soft stripes. The textile was probably printed in Lancashire, and this style of prints was possibly influenced by wallpapers of the period. This dress shows how Europe dress textiles admired and imitated Indian chintz (printed cotton, usually floral designs) textiles that was popularly exported around the world – although the design here is more localised. The cotton fabric is gathered at the ‘gigot’ sleeves and the back waist to create volume - showing how European (and Indian) chintz were fashioned into silhouettes for the western market. From the late 18th to early 19th centuries, Europe’s mechanisation and advanced technology in producing chintz posed strong competition to Indian chintz, leading to the latter’s decline in trade. It comes with a lawn cotton chemisette with wide, rounded white collar.
