History of the Christening Gown
Nov 28th 2008Guest AuthorBabies
Until the seventeenth century, young babies were carried to the font in a "bearing cloth"; a large square piece of silk, edged with trimmings of gold lace and braid and wrapped tightly in swaddling clothes.
As we now know it as the "Christening Robe"; it evolved when babies were freed of swaddling at a younger age in the mid-eighteenth century. The earliest example to survive were made of white silk and consisted of a front opening which could be fastened with ribbon ties or left open to reveal a petticoat underneath. Like the women's gowns of the period, the robe had similar decorative curving lines of braid.
The early Christening robes were made in the same style as worn by every day eighteenth century boys and girls. Both boy and girl babies wore "slip" dresses combined with a long flowing skirt that fell from a short tucked bodice with a low neck and short sleeves. Additional items of clothing were added to go with the robe, items such as bonnets and bootees. A small number of delicate Christening sets from the seventeenth and eighteenth century managed to survive, amongst the sets included mittens, bibs, head bands, pincushion covers or handkerchiefs in embroidered linen.
Victorian babies were dressed in gowns decorated with Ayrshire work, a delicate form of white-on-white embroidery that originated in the Scottish Lowlands.
An old Scottish custom involved pinning a piece of shortbread to the Christening robe, to be worn throughout the ceremony. An unmarried girl who ate the shortbread after wards was sure to dream of her future husband that night. It was also thought essential for the baby to sleep in its Christening robe for the first night after baptism, to bring luck and good health in the future.
An endless tradition
The same fashion has remained popular for Christenings ever since. This is partly due to the tradition of handling Christening robes down from one generation to the next, so that dozens of babies may wear the same gown over many years.
If there's no antique gown in your family, you can create an heirloom for future generations with a gown from our range which has been made in the traditional method in fine natural pure silk, embellished with delicate embroidery and tucking.
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