What is an Empire Waist Dress?
Women's fashion is a booming industry worldwide. Millions upon millions of dollars flow into the art and science of creating, designing, marketing and purchasing women's fashions. An ever-changing industry, styles change by the season, and clothing trends can be fleeting. How many styles can claim to have been popular in the time of Napoleon, and still remain popular today? The Empire waist dress is one such unusual item.
Other People Are Reading
-
The Empire Dress
-
The empire waist dress is a style of dress that has a raised waistline, sometimes so high that it sits directly below the bust.
History
-
The empire waist dress was most popular historically between the 1790s and the 1820s. The style was adapted from classical Greek female dress, in which a loosely draped, flowing robe, or "chiton," was gathered under the bustline.
-
The Name
-
Empire waist dresses are named for the first French empire, under Napoleon, the time period in which the dress became most pervasive. Napoleon's wife, the Empress Josephine, was frequently depicted wearing the empire waist style of dress, and contributed to its popularity.
Tradition
-
Originally, the empire waist dress consisted of a very low, square neckline, small cap sleeves, and a high waist with the fabric of the dress gathered together under the bust with a decorative ribbon or band.
Modern Popularity
-
The high-waisted empire dress is believed to create a lengthened, slimmer silhouette, and to disguise potential problem areas such as the stomach, hips and behind. It is for this reason that the 200-year-old dress style maintains its popularity today.
-
