Australian Dress Register

 This dress is an excellent example of the re- use of materials in a time of scarcity and hardship. It is believed that the fabric was donated by a textile manufacturing firm, possibly from the Hunter Valley, to the Red Cross. They then decide where best to send their donations and parceled it off to Papua New Guinea, to the Australian Army Nurses working there. Unfortunately am unable to find out the name and position of their station. It was said that the fabric had been intended to be made up as curtains for their mess area. Perhapes as it is so light weight? No, it was decided that new dresses were higher up the list of items needed, not new curtains! One can only guess that a formal gown was needed to be deemed dressed appropriately to attend formal occasions even in PNG!

The design of the dress is iconic of the time, featuring an over full, long formal length skirt and the bodice style called an Opera top with the gathered centre front seam for fitting. An experienced home sewer/ dress maker would have been quite capable of cutting out this design without a pattern. The construction is basic enough, although the pin tucks could be quite tedious. There may have been a bolero made to match as would suit the time and garment. I have no doubt that the Australian Army Nurses were a highly resourceful and creative group of women.

Have a closer look, it is not the most pretty of dresses or the best constructed, but what is important is that is was made and cherished by its owner and survives to this day to tell its story. The fact that this gown made it back home to Australia and was then put back into service as a gown to attend Balls and dances at Maitland Town Hall, and that it has survived to this day, shows that it was a much lived item of clothing and contains many memorys.

Author: Justine Malinowski, 8.8.2013.

Long formal length light weight cotton gown. Features numerous pintucks around the waist. Over full skirt. Left side opening with hook and eye placket. Front has a waist panel with opera top and central horizontal pin tucks and bust darts, bias cut back bodice panel with hand bound edges and fine shoe string rouleau straps.