Adult Southern Belle Costume

She was young, beautiful, and the dream girl of every Southern man she encountered: Scarlet O’Hara is still the epitome of that Belle of the South and she’s shaped our modern day idea of a typical Southern Belle. However, as much as we love her persona, it’s the clothes that speak of romance.

There’s something special about the Southern Belle’s skirt. Before the Civil War, the typical adult Southern Belle costume featured a billowing skirt, which contained eleven yards of fabric fitted around a small waistband by tiny hand-sewn cartridge pleats. During the war, the generous yards of skirt fabric were reduced, as it was needed for more practical applications such as bandages.

Women of the era often changed their clothing several times daily. The usual adult Southern Belle costume for running errands might include a fitted jacket with full sleeves, fine laces, tassels, and frog-enclosures. Lace or soft leather gloves were required attire for duties outside the home. At home, women wore lace mitts with exposed fingers so they could complete chores, needlework, or read comfortably.

On the other hand, for parties an adult Southern Belle costume might be a one-piece dress of either a print or solid color sateen or silk taffeta. This was an event to daringly show off the shoulders, and most dresses featured laces around the bodice, neckline, sleeves, shoulders, or skirt. A rosette or large ribbon bow often tied around the waist and flowed down the skirt’s back.

Of course, the most intriguing part of the adult Southern Belle costume was not made of fabric. A good quality hoop was fashioned of whalebone and it held the skirt hem rigid and added to its fullness. It could be adjusted to make the skirt width vary for the occasion, but the trend of the Southern Belle costume was to wear the biggest circle possible. Less dependable inexpensive hoops were fashioned from dried stiff reeds and might be worn under an everyday dress.

Finally, every adult Southern Belle costume must include accessories. At home, a proper head covering would be a snood made of lace or crochet threads which held the hair into a neat and secure bundle. This prevented the hair from falling into the woman’s face and kept her neck cool on a hot day. During outdoor daytime activities, the Southern Belle typically wore a wide-brimmed straw hat tied under the chin with a ribbon. These large round straw hats allowed air to circulate and protected her from the sun’s rays. A cloth or felt hat might be worn on cooler evenings and would include embellishments such as dried flowers, feathers, laces, ribbon rosettes, and bows.

For indoor parties a simple wreath of flowers, lace, and ribbons often encircled the woman’s hairstyle or a beaded ornament or comb might be added to the hair to bring attention to the woman’s elaborate curls. Beaded and lace chokers, necklaces, and broaches were popular. A parasol or a fan acted as part of her flirting powers, as the way she held these items indicated her feelings toward an interested gentleman.

Yes, the Southern Belle is still a notable fashion icon. That’s one of the reasons why so many women enjoy emulating her by wearing today’s version of the adult Southern Belle costume.

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