Hope answered a Craigslist ad I posted looking for dancers. She was off at ballet school but was going to be back home for a bit during the summer. Since she is so petite, I thought she might be able to fit into our 1840 Ensemble which is not only the oldest piece in Lori’s vintage clothing collection, it is also the tiniest. Not only is it one of the rare ensembles we have, it is extra special because it has both the day and evening bodices.

Even with Hope corseted down, she still wasn’t able to close the back on the bodice. Also, at 5′-0″ tall, she’s probably a few inches taller than the original owner of this garment. The bodice fits a 20″ waist so that gives you some idea of how small of a person this dress was made to fit. We’ll probably never find someone able to wear this dress, but it was nice getting good photos of it in our parlor.