The Bloomer costume was a style of dress adopted around 1849 by Mrs Amelia Jenks Bloomer of New York, a woman who crusaded for women's dress reform. The style consisted of a jacket with close sleeves, a skirt reaching a little below the knee, and a pair of Turkish trousers secured by bands around the ankles and often a broad-brimmed hat. Research Bloomer Costume
The Rational Dress Society was an organisation founded in 1881 at London. Its members wore Turkish trousers and resisted, on health grounds, any attempt by fashion to restrict or deform the body. The society was active in dress reform selling boneless stays and what it considered to be practical garments. It condemned high heels and advocated the wearing of no more than seven pounds in weight of underwear. Research Rational Dress Society
Turkish trousers are a form of women's trousers developed from the skirt and popularised by the sport of cycling. Turkish trousers are full bloomers, gathered or pleated around the waist and gathered into a band below the knee, giving the impression of a skirt. Research Turkish Trousers
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Bloomer Costume
