I bet you didn’t know that bloomers were a feminist development (and if you did know shut up and try not to ruin it for everyone else, heh).

The Victorian era was obsessed with decency and propriety (at least in public), womens’ dress was intended to cover as much of the figure as possible, while still creating a pleasing feminine silhouette (dramatically nipped in waist, full hips and bust). Drastic measures were taken to do this- from elaborate and uncomfortable underpinnings like garters and severe corsetry to floor sweeping skirts and high collars. Imagine doing all your daily tasks cinched within a hare’s breath, even ducking out to the shop or walking uphill would be difficult. Hot summer days in a high collar and long sleeves is enough to send any lady to her fainting couch. The long flouncy skirts, while totally gorgeous, were impractical and restricted movement.

During the mid-Victorian era many people rebelled against these strict codes of attire and started making and wearing clothing that allowed them to move freely as well as be properly covered. This was primarily happening in the United States at the time (U-S-A! U-S-A!). Suiting the fashionable silhouette but allowing them to participate comfortably in sports or swim or just not pass out from overheating in the hot Georgia summer. Sometimes this shift is referred to as the “rational dress movement”, which I quite like as it implies all the clothing worn prior was irrational (way to give the finger to centuries of garb). This is the change that made possible the adorable striped Victorian swimming costumes and bloomers!

The Bloomer Suit is probably my favorite example of this development. It is essentially a cute dress (like our Comely Belle dress) worn over long bloomers that cinch at the ankle. Many women started wearing this combination of clothing (I bet it was a huge relief after years strapped in like one is on an amusement ride) and were even referred to as the “Bloomers”. Can we start calling the people wearing those tacky denim tights the “Jeggings”?

The word “bloomer” is said to be coined after Amelia Bloomer who wrote on women’s rights and encouraged women to wear clothes that allowed them to live to the fullest:

“The costume of women should be suited to her wants and necessities. It should conduce at once to her health, comfort, and usefulness; and, while it should not fail also to conduce to her personal adornment, it should make that end of secondary importance.”

Gloomth’s Bloomers are a shortened version of the “rational dress movement” sort with a more modern shape. They are not crotch-less and have a comfy elastic waist and adjustable ties at the leg.

-Tae