A Closer Look: 19th Century Fashion 1800s 1840s Part 1 Cultured Elegance Afternoon dress. Culture: American. Date: ca. 1862. The female silhouette of the middle of the 19th century consisted of a fitted corseted bodice and wide full skirts. The conical skirts developed between Dearest gentle readers, This author has been keeping a keen eye on the fashions of the early 19th century, and it would seem that puffed sleeves and daring silhouettes were very much 17th Empire Waist Gowns Regency Era Dress Jane Austen Vintage High Waistline eBay Empire Waists in 1893? witness2fashion Empire Regency epochs of fashion: Costume and Dress throughout History