Figure 1.--This cabinet card portrait of an unidebtified America boy shows off the datails of his kilt suit jacket. Notice that it is especially designed as part of a kilt suit heavily decorated with frogging. The lower front part has been cut away. The portrait is undated, but klooks to have been taken in the early-1880s, perhaps the late-70s. Click on the image for more details about the boy's suit.

Some American boys wore kilt suit jackets that were especially designed for kilt suits. This was a variety of styles, most cut short in front or opened up, apparently to better show off the kilt in front. We are not entirely sure about the reason for this, but the cutting of the the jacket shorter in the front and longer in the back is apparent in the photographic record. The boy here is a good example (figure 1). These would have been the most expensive kilt suits. Other boys wore standard suit jackets. These soecial designs seem to have appeared as the kilt suit became increasingly popular in the 1870s. We are not sure to what extent these special designs were available in catalogs and stores as ready made wear. The kilt suit we see here is a style we have not seen commonly in the photographic record. Leading us to believe that it was tailor made by seamstress or a dress-making shop of some sort. The kilt suit, especially the jacket is probably too complicated for most home sewers.

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Created: 8:50 PM 7/28/2021
Last updated: 8:50 PM 7/28/2021