Clothing. Women's knee length white cotton bloomers with 6cm waistband dipping to a V at centre front. Two side openings (30 cm). Originally fastened with cotton tape ties attached to waistband. Ties have been removed. Leg sections gathered into waistband. Legs trimmed at hem with cream coloured crocheted lace (10 cm) edged with light blue.costume, female underwear, women's white cotton bloomers

Clothing. Women's knee length white cotton bloomers with straight waistband (6 cm wide). Two side openings (21 cm). Originally fastened with cotton tape ties attached to waistband. Ties have been removed. Leg sections gathered into waistband with pleating. Triangular gusset n back seam. Legs trimmed at hem with cream coloured crocheted lace (11.5 cm) edged with light blue.costume, female underwear, women's white cotton bloomers

Handmade white cotton pantaloons typical of underclothing from the late 19th and early 20th century.White cotton pantaloons or bloomers worn as women's underwear. A button at both sides of the waist/top. The legs are trimmed with broderie anglais lace. This item is handmade (homemade). womens-underwear

This handmade women’s combination undergarment features hand-worked lace panels and trim, and fine pintucks. It is one of seven handmade items of white cotton underwear, all made with beautiful needlework and embroidery skill. The lingerie once belonged to the donor’s great-grandmother’s family, the Paton family of ‘Trefnant’, Yangery, in southwest Victoria. The design of this combination undergarment, or ‘combination’, includes a chemise attached to a pair of drawers or bloomers. The combination is divided, or bifurcated, from the waist to the crutch for easier urinating. This one-piece type of underwear was worn by females from the 1860s and into the early 1900s. The 19th Century garments had front button closures like this one, and those made in the 1900s more often had back closures. Combination underwear was popular because the all-in-one design had far fewer gathers and bulk, making the other clothing look much smoother. The collection of women’s late-19th-century undergarments is an example of clothing that women would include in their wardrobes. The garments add to the study of the evolution of women's fashions and practicality for the early Australian settlers. The fine linen fabric and the careful needlework in these handmade garments and hand-worked lace trims reflect the maker’s dedication to making even serviceable garments beautiful to look at and wear. Women’s white cotton and lace all-In-one combination undergarment. The handmade underwear is a combined chemise and bloomers. It has a front button closure and is trimmed with hand-worked lace panels on the bodice and lace edging around armholes, the neck, and the bottom of the legs. The left and right sides are divided from the waist to the crutch.flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, maritime museum, maritime village, warrnambool, great ocean road, southwest victoria, victorian era, combination undergarment, all-in-one underwear, combination, ‘combinations’, one-piece underwear, one-piece undergarment, chemise and bloomers, combination chemise and bloomers, divided, bifurcated, split, chemise and drawers, women’s underwear, ladies’ underwear, undergarment, women’s clothing, women’s fashion, lingerie, under-structure, 1900s undergarments, 19th-century undergarment, 20th century, handmade clothing, handmade lace, hand-worked lace, paton family, trefnant, yangery, lady's combinations, ladies combinations

This handmade women’s pair of bloomers, or drawers, features hand-worked Broderie Anglaise and applique trim and a drawstring rear closure at the waist. It is one of seven handmade items of white cotton underwear, all made with beautiful needlework and embroidery skill. The lingerie once belonged to the donor’s great-grandmother’s family, the Paton family of ‘Trefnant’, Yangery, in southwest Victoria. The collection of women’s late-19th-century undergarments is an example of clothing that women would include in their wardrobes. The garments add to the study of the evolution of women's fashions and practicality for the early Australian settlers. The fine linen fabric and the careful needlework in these handmade garments and hand-worked lace trims reflect the maker’s dedication to making even serviceable garments beautiful to look at and wear. Women's bloomers or drawers, handmade from white cotton fabric, with hand-worked Broderie-Anglaise trim around the bottom of legs with applique motifs. Bloomers have a drawstring, back of waist closure.flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, maritime museum, maritime village, warrnambool, great ocean road, southwest victoria, victorian era, women’s underwear, ladies’ underwear, undergarment, under-structure, 1900s undergarments, 19th-century undergarment, women’s clothing, women’s fashion, lingerie, 19th century, handmade clothing, broderie anglaise, hand-made broderie anglaise, paton family, trefnant, yangery, bloomers, drawers, underpants

Fine white cotton, with a drawstring in a 1.5xcm deep casing around the waistline. Completely opened at centre front, through crotch, and up the centre back to within 14cm of the waistline. One dart on either side of front, and two darts on either side of back. Machine stitched. A 2.5cm wide cotton lace is inset into a zig zag pattern around each leg. In each V shape a 1.5cm lace insert in a fan,under the V shapes are inserted needle woven bows, shape is inserted. Seven extremely fine pin tucks border the edge of the legs, which have a three cm wide lace edging. Split drawers were worn in the era when women wore corsets. The split front and back allowed women to go to the toilet, as the corsets could not be removed to allow for an act of nature.Accompanying note - No date. The bloomers belonged to Miss Antoinette Catling of Bendigo and were part of her trousseaux. They would be 80+ years old. The linen bed jacket (11400.930) would be about the same age.costume, female, fine white cotton split drawers

This item of underclothing, called a "combination" is one of several linen and clothing items that were made and belonged to Mrs. Eliza Towns and donated to Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum and Village. Eliza was born Eliza Gould in 1857 in South Melbourne (Emerald Hill) and in 1879 married Charles Towns. In the early 1880's they moved to Nhill in western Victoria and remained there for the rest of their married life. Charles was a jeweller and later became an accountant and for many years was involved with the Shire Council, the local show committee (A & P Society), the Hospital Committee and the Board of the local newspaper (the Nhill Free Press). They had three children and lived a life that would be regarded as comfortably "middle class". Eliza probably had a treadle sewing machine and would have made many of her own clothes as well as clothes for her children - adding her own handmade embroidered or crocheted decorative trim. Combination undergarments combined the chemise and drawers into one garment. The combination is divided, or bifurcated, from the waist to the crutch for easier urinating. This one-piece type of underwear was worn by females from the 1860s and into the early 1900s. The 19th Century garments had front button closures like this one, and those made in the 1900s more often had back closures. Combination underwear was popular because the all-in-one design had far fewer gathers and bulk, making the other clothing look much smoother. Their primary use was to protect clothing from perspiration and because they were made with cotton or linen, were easy to wash. Although they were worn under the corset, next to the skin (and therefore not meant to be seen), they were often decorated with lace and embroidery. Although these combinations are made with a plain cotton fabric, Eliza Towns has incorporated pin tucks, hand embroidery and crocheted lace to embellish her garment. The collection of women’s late-19th-century undergarments is an example of clothing that women would include in their wardrobes. The garments add to the study of the evolution of women's fashions and practicality for the early Australian settlers. The careful needlework in these handmade garments and hand-worked lace trims reflect the maker’s dedication to making even serviceable garments beautiful to look at and wear.Women’s white cotton and lace all-In-one combination undergarment. The handmade underwear is a combined chemise and bloomers. It has three buttons in the front and a handmade drawstring cord around the square neckline. It is trimmed with crocheted lace (with a floral design) on the neckline, sleeves and pants. It had pintucks and feather stitching on the bodice and the left and right sides are divided from the waist to the crutch. The back of the garment is plain with a gathered section at the lower back.flagstaff hill maritime museum and village, maritime museum, maritime village, warrnambool, great ocean road, victorian era, combination undergarment, all-in-one underwear, combination, ‘combinations’, one-piece underwear, one-piece undergarment, chemise and bloomers, combination chemise and bloomers, divided, bifurcated, split, chemise and drawers, women’s underwear, ladies’ underwear, undergarment, women’s clothing, women’s fashion, lingerie, 19th-century undergarment, handmade clothing, handmade lace, crocheted lace, towns family, nhill, eliza towns