Figure 1.--This CDV portrait shows two unidentified English children wearing pinafores over their dresses. They are identiclly dressed except only one has a waist sash. The childrn look to be about 3-8 years old. The short hair syggests they are boy, but some girls also had short hair, although usually not as short as the childrn here. The portrait is indated, but the studio mount suggests the 1890s. The studio was Lugg in Okehampton, a small town in Devon.

We continue to see English chldren wearing pinafores in the 1890s, both at home and at school. We note many examples in the photographic record. The pinafore were primarily, but not exclusively worn by girls. Many girls of all ages wore them to school over dresses. They were as iconic for girls as the school cap was for boys. This was not a school requirement, but a widely accepted convention of the time. We notice many different styles. White continued to be the dominant color. The cost of clothing and the labor intensive nature of laundry all were factirs in the pinafore continuing to be so commonly worn. Youger boys might wear them at home, but we only see nursery school/kindrgarten boys wering them to school. We have found quite a number of examples in the photographic record.

Created: 5:25 AM 7/24/2017
Last updated: 5:25 AM 7/24/2017