Ramsay & Edinburgh Fashion

The exhibition Ramsay & Edinburgh Fashion, at the Georgian House in Edinburgh looks at the importance of fashion as a key signifier of good taste in the 1700s. It brings together a number of portraits by the artist Allan Ramsay, and looks at the fashion trade in the city in the middle of the century. Also on display are two items of dress from the period, as well as a modern recreation of the dress worn by Katherine Anne Mure when she sat for her Ramsay portrait.

The portrait and the newly-made dress

The dress was made over the course of six days in early June by a team of volunteers led by Rebecca Olds, who also ran the Wedding Dress in a Weekend project. As with that project (and as would have been the case when the original dress was created) it was made on the intended wearer - in this case another National Trust for Scotland volunteer. The work was carried out in the Georgian House, and was open to the public to watch. Unfortunately for me, this took place while Taylor Swift was performing in Edinburgh, so accommodation was impossible to find! Instead I had to visit a little later. However, this had the advantage that by then the dress was on display on a mannequin, where visitors were encouraged to examine it in detail.

Not the sort of label one usually sees

Dress front and stomacher

Dress back

The trimming was all made by Rebecca from strips of silk. She used a cutting tool like a shaped chisel, which was hammered into the silk to cut out a single scalloped shape. More details can be found on Rebecca's Instagram account here.

Trim detail

The other items on display are an exquisitely embroidered apron from 1740s and a sacque gown from the 1760s.

Apron

Sacque dress

The sleeve flounce shows the underside of the silk

Fly braid and patterned sections of the silk are used in the trimming

Ramsay & Edinburgh Fashion runs until 24 November 2024, and entry to the exhibition is included in the admission to the Georgian House.