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Every time we mock princess seams — which is something we do frequently — I always wonder, “Do the non-sewers/makers of historical dress know what we’re even talking about?”
Princess seams (allegedly named for Princess, later Queen, Alexandra of Britain) are a particular bodice-fitting technique that creates a seam that bisects the bust vertically (usually at an angle):
![1953 Young Bess snark week princess seams](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1953-Young-Bess.jpg?resize=400%2C600&ssl=1)
And, it’s very much a 19th-century-to-now fitting technique, so it’s one that gets snarked a lot by those who know! Let me try to explain:
There’s a bunch of intertwined issues here: how people in the past approached fitting and fabric cutout, as well as corsetry and bodice/bust silhouette.
Side note: I’m not going to get into medieval dressmaking here as I don’t know it as well. See Sarah’s post about Braveheart, as well as the discussion in the comments.
From the 16th century as corsetry came into fashion, women’s torso silhouettes ranged from flat to cone-shaped, without any particular curve over the bust. First, let’s look at corset shapes:
![1598-PfalzgrafinDorotheaSabina-stays](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/1598-PfalzgrafinDorotheaSabina-stays.jpg?resize=358%2C500&ssl=1)
![Stays made for the effigy of Queen Elizabeth I, c. 1603, Westminster Abbey](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/1603-effigycorset.jpg?resize=420%2C500&ssl=1)
![1660-80 stays at the V&A Museum](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/166080-stays-VA.jpg?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1)
![1750 - French silk brocade corset at Museum at FIT](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/1750-corset-FIT.jpg?resize=345%2C500&ssl=1)
![Stays, 1780-1789, From the V&A](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/1780s-stays-VandA.jpg?resize=355%2C355&ssl=1)
![1770-75 corset - Museu del Disseny](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1770-75-corset-Museu-del-Disseny.jpeg?resize=383%2C600&ssl=1)
![1795-1800 stays V&A](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1795-1800-stays-VA.jpeg?resize=450%2C600&ssl=1)
As a result, women’s torsos were smooth cones with varying levels of flare:
![Lady Alice More (c.1474 - c.1551), wife of Thomas More by Hans Holbein and workshop, c. 1530, The Weiss Gallery London](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ca-1530-lady-alice-more-by-2.jpeg?resize=369%2C500&ssl=1)
![1570s - Louise de Lorraine, after François Clouet](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/1570s-LouisedeLorraine-afterFrancoisClouet.jpg?resize=500%2C600&ssl=1)
!["Portrait of Princess Henrietta of Lorraine," Anthony Van Dyck, 1634.](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/VanDyck-Henrietta-of-Lorraine-1634.jpg?resize=388%2C640&ssl=1)
![Louise de Keroual, Duchess of Portsmouth by Henri Gascar, c. 1670, Auckland Art Gallery](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Henri_Gascard_-_Louise_de_Keroualle_Duchess_of_Portsmouth_-_Google_Art_Project.jpeg?resize=406%2C500&ssl=1)
![Antoine Pesne, Prinzessin Luise Ulrike von Preußen als Schäferin, 1738, Stiftung Preußische Schlösser und Gärten](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/1738-Prinzessin_Luise_Ulrike_von_Preußen_als_Schäferin_Pesne.jpg?resize=455%2C600&ssl=1)
![Marie Antoinette in a red hunting habit by Joseph Kranzinger, c. 1772, Schönbrunn Palace](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Marie_Antoinette_in_a_red_hunting_habit-1772.jpeg?resize=390%2C500&ssl=1)
![Lydia Henrietta Malortie, Mrs. Henry Hoare by George Romney (Killerton - Broadclyst, Exeter UK), 1784 | Gogmsite.net](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/1780-1784-lydia-henrietta_med.jpeg?resize=375%2C500&ssl=1)
So, point #1: When you are fitting a bodice or other garment over a woman’s torso, you’re working with a mostly smooth, cone-shaped silhouette.
Next: For many centuries, both men’s and women’s garments tended to be cut from rectangular shapes, but the invention of the wide horizontal loom in the 13th to 14th centuries meant that European tailors had more fabric to work with. As a result, they started to experiment with curved seams and volume. Nonetheless, fabric was SUPER expensive, and so every scrap possible was used when laying out patterns:
![Juan de Alcega's Tailor's Pattern book of 1589 p 55 a + b](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Juan-de-Alcegas-Tailors-Pattern-book-of-1589-p-55-a-b.jpeg?resize=600%2C334&ssl=1)
Get into later centuries — up through the 18th — and you still see that kind of very careful layout. Why? Fabric was super expensive, and you didn’t want to waste it!
So, point #2: Dressmakers were desperate to cut pattern shapes economically, wasting as little fabric as possible.
So how did they fit gowns to women’s torsos? Well, when you’re not dealing with a big change between the lower torso and the bust, things tend to be done with straight or slightly curved seams.
Let’s look at Eleanor di Toledo (1522-62), duchess of Florence, who wasn’t a terribly busty girl:
![1549 - Eleonora di Toledo with her son Francesco by Agnolo Bronzino](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/1549-EleonoradiToledowithsonFrancesco-byAgnoloBronzino.jpg?resize=514%2C600&ssl=1)
The dress she was buried in survives, and it gives a great idea of pattern layout in the 16th century:
![Eleanor di Toledo burial gown, Costume Gallery Pitti Palace, Florence](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Eleanor-di-Toledo-burial-gown.jpeg?resize=600%2C374&ssl=1)
![Eleanor di Toledo burial gown, 1562, Costume Gallery Pitti Palace, Florence](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Eleanor-di-Toledo-burial-gown1.jpeg?resize=600%2C308&ssl=1)
![1550-1560s - Eleonora di Toledo gown, Patterns of Fashion by Janet Arnold](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/1550-60s-EleonoradiToledo-PoF-JanetArnold.jpg?resize=426%2C500&ssl=1)
![1660s bodice pattern from Janet Arnold's Patterns of Fashion](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/IMG_8814-500x375-1.jpeg?resize=500%2C375&ssl=1)
![Silver Tissue Dress, 1660, Fashion Museum (Bath)](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Silver-dress-Fashion-Museum.jpg?resize=600%2C456&ssl=1)
![diderot francaise pattern](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/diderot-francaise-pattern.jpeg?resize=448%2C433&ssl=1)
![Janet Arnold francaise pattern](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Janet-Arnold-francaise-pattern.png?resize=600%2C496&ssl=1)
![1770s bodice pattern Janet Arnold](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1770s-bodice-pattern-Janet-Arnold.jpeg?resize=600%2C491&ssl=1)
![Fabric-Stretch-Test - The Spruce Crafts](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Fabric-Stretch-Test-582b46e03df78c6f6aabe847.jpeg?resize=600%2C600&ssl=1)
![1770s Nancy Bradfield Costume in Detail](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1770s-Nancy-Bradfield-Costume-in-Detail.jpg?resize=414%2C600&ssl=1)
Now, lots changed in the 19th century, as curved corsets come into fashion and women suddenly have individual BOOBS:
![Corset, 1880s, Kyoto Costume Institute](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Corset-1880s-Kyoto-Costume-Institute.jpeg?resize=401%2C500&ssl=1)
How do they fit all those curves? They use the same techniques we use today, darts and princess seams:
![1860s evening bodice](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1860s-evening-bodice.jpg?resize=485%2C600&ssl=1)
A bit more about darts: darts essentially tuck the fabric so that it’s smaller in some sections and larger in others, allowing room (in this case) for the bust:
![A darted bodice via The Couture Counselor](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/img_0856.jpeg?resize=600%2C429&ssl=1)
The other option is that princess seam, which does something similar to a dart but by cutting apart the pattern into two separate pieces, allowing you even more room for subtle shape changes:
![Godey's Lady's Book, 1880s](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1880s-Victorian-Goodys-Fashion-Book.jpeg?resize=474%2C600&ssl=1)
![Tygodnik Mód 1877.- Stylish basque bodice.](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Tygodnik-Mód-1877.-Stylish-basque-bodice..jpeg?resize=463%2C600&ssl=1)
![Princess seams via Craftsy](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/princess3-1.jpeg?resize=600%2C359&ssl=1)
![Princess seams via Craftsy](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/princess10-1.jpeg?resize=600%2C359&ssl=1)
So, point #3: Pre-19th century dressmakers pretty much never used princess seams, except for that weird blip in the 1660s, although even then they were working with a mostly cone-shaped silhouette.
Why do modern costume-makers, particularly those working in TV and film, use princess seams and darts when they technically shouldn’t?
There’s two major reasons:
Reason #1: They’re using a modern, curvy shape (either no corset or a 19th-century style) instead of a historically accurate cone-shaped silhouette on their actors:
![1984 Amadeus](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/amadeus_victorian.jpg?resize=460%2C600&ssl=1)
![1984 Amadeus](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/1984/03/1984-Amadeus3.jpeg?resize=334%2C500&ssl=1)
![1953 Young Bess](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1953-Young-Bess.jpeg?resize=428%2C600&ssl=1)
![youngbess1953](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/youngbess1953-cathparr2.jpg?resize=401%2C600&ssl=1)
![1955 The Virgin Queen](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/1955-The-Virgin-Queen3.jpg?resize=500%2C625&ssl=1)
![1954 Madame du Barry](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/1954-Madame-du-Barry44a.jpg?resize=283%2C500&ssl=1)
![1989 Valmont](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/1989-Valmont31.png?resize=428%2C498&ssl=1)
Reason #2: Princess seams make fitting easy, especially in a modern era when we’re not so concerned about fabric usage:
![2017 The White Princess snark week](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/2017-The-White-Princess13.jpg?resize=600%2C401&ssl=1)
![Isabel (2011–2014)](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Isabel-2011-seams.jpg?resize=400%2C600&ssl=1)
![Velikaya aka Catherine the Great (2015)](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/761c2a9fad900921ab51dd734cc0d1dd.png?resize=426%2C600&ssl=1)
![Ekaterina (2014)](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Ekaterina-2014-Ekat-orange2.png?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1)
![2015 Banished](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2015-Banished4.jpeg?resize=333%2C500&ssl=1)
![Outlander season 4](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Outlander-season-4-5.jpg?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1)
![Dangerous Liaisons (1988)](https://i0.wp.com/frockflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/1988-DL.jpg?resize=498%2C600&ssl=1)
I hope this post has been illuminating as to what the hell we’re talking about when we snark “princess seams”!
While I’m familiar with princess seams, I pretty much wasn’t with everything else! You guys must have worked your corseted tits off to create this crammed-full mini symposium. I learned a lot. Thank you.
Thanks! I was worried this was all obvious stuff, so I’m glad to hear my overdoing-it-as-per-usual was worth it!
Yes, but did all your organs shift, and/or did you ALMOST DIE from writing about stays & corsets? You know it’s nearly as dangerous as wearing them (Relax, I’m being a silly troll. I understand stays/corsets/bodies, and thoroughly enjoyed SnappyDragon’s video comparing corset shopping to bra shopping. Unintended plug, but she’s good!)
Thank you for this deep dive- so informative!
Whenever I ponder or read about corsets, I always wonder why they can’t be more of a thing nowadays: it seems they provide physical support, for more than just the bust, and make clothing fit and look much better.
I don’t know much about corsets, design, etc, but intuitively I sense that my curves would benefit, even just practically speaking, from the structure they provide.
I’d be curious to find out if anyone in this community knows of any resources that provide information on wearing corsets, or similar garments, in this day and age? Or, if anyone actually wears one themselves along with modern clothing?
Thank you Kendra and Sarah and Trystan for all the Snark!
Lucy’s Corsetry is (to my limited knowledge) sort of the OG internet corset site that isn’t meant to sensationalize or fetishize. It’s informative (https://lucycorsetry.com/).
Redthreaded is a good place to start. Technically a corset supplier, but their blog is good (https://redthreaded.com/).
Thank you so much, florenceandtheai! I will check them out!
wild applause – as I learn more about construction more of this sort of detail stands out to me. Lots of stuff with waistlines and sleeve construction also catch my eye now because of this blog.
Interestingly, and confusingly, there are a couple of bits of evidence for “princess seams” in the medieval period, although it’s not likely that they were really used in the way modern princess seams are.
There’s the famous / notorious image c. 1452 of Agnès Sorel (who was the mistress of Charles VII of France) as the Madonna, showing what seems to be a modern style of princess seam. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Melun-diptychon-detail.gif/719px-Melun-diptychon-detail.gif
And then there’s the so-called Greenland or Herjolfsnes dress (prior to 1430), which shows lots of vertical seams that might look like a princess seam — although people who’ve sewn it say that the actual dress is quite loose. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/5f/e2/ed/5fe2eda297f9d57ae4c1e8f49f3c7e7b.jpg
The 1300s-1400s were apparently a period of wild experimentation in garment construction, as fabric became more available, so I’m reluctant to rule out ANY technique (ask me about bias cutting!).
On the other hand (or bosom), it’s likely that a lot of those seams had to do with adapting / enlarging an existing dress for weight gain / pregnancy / breastfeeding, rather than the modern notion of fitting. Still, the existence of these images might have confused a costumer somewhere along the line?
But certainly later period (say 1550 forward) garments don’t show that fitting technique, and we DO have examples of those later garments, which can be matched to contemporary art and aesthetics.
So yeah, if you’re not cosplaying Agnès Sorel (or making a movie about her!), probably better leave the princess seams alone.
First, Kendra noted that she wasn’t getting into medieval “princess seams” bec. Sarah covered it in another post, that’s linked right here.
Second, in that post, Sarah said: “princess seams are not medieval (except for one possible depiction in that one portrait of Agnes Sorel where she has her boob out. And no, princess seams are not the same thing as the seaming treatment found in some bog clothing finds dating to the 14th-century.” Among other things.
I’ll add that the Agnès Sorel painting is allegorical, so it’s not a great representation of accurate clothing ;) And there’s a lot of discussion in medieval circles about those supposed “princess seams” & most lean towards no, it doesn’t align with the overwhelming use of rectangular construction. FWIW, I’ve made a couple 14th-c. gothic fitted gowns, & you get lovely & supportive bodices without princess seams.
Oh, I’m not arguing for princess seams, I just think it’s interesting — and a possible source of confusion — that’s all. And I absolutely agree about the Gothic fitted dress / kirtle, they are great! But now I want to cosplay as Agnès …. ;)
I mean, if ya got the figure for it to be, ehem, accurate, lol (or buy the appropriate falsie!).