Having examined the male shirt and collars and ties in previous months, here we cover the female equivalent of the shirt: the blouse. Technically, the word blouse derives from the French name for a workman’s loose smock and so was initially used in connection with male dress. However the feminine upper garment that we now understand by the term ‘blouse’ evolved from the female linen undergarment called a smock, chemise or shift – just as the male shirt originated as a man’s undergarment – and, similarly, initially served as a protective layer between the skin and outer clothes.

It was in the 1860s that women first wore a loose, full-sleeved blouse-like bodice as a principal garment to accompany the hooped crinoline skirt: fashioned usually in red or black wool, or white or striped cotton, this warm, practical, economical garment was dubbed the ‘Garibaldi shirt’, being inspired by the famous red shirt of the Italian nationalist, Guiseppe Garibaldi. This innovation had introduced the concept of comfortable separates for women, although a formally-styled bodice that complemented the skirt was the usual mode until the late 19th century.

During the 1890s the female blouse began to come into its own, as the perfect accompaniment to the modern ‘tailor-made’ costume (jacket and skirt) that most women favoured for work and everyday wear, even semi-formal occasions. Growing increasingly popular during the early-1900s, a smartly-tailored, functional shirt or shirtwaist (as it was then often called) directly mirrored men’s shirts with its detachable starched collar and cuffs and might even be worn with a masculine necktie for the office. Plain shirts were also worn by women for sports like cycling, tennis and gymnastics, or when at home engaged in housework. Conversely, more feminine blouses of fine, lightweight material, ornamented with tucks, lace, embroidered insertions and other embellishments, and featuring a high choker-like stiffened collar, were suitably ‘dressy’ for formal occasions, even evening events.

By the First World War, the typical blouse (this term now more common) was a simple front-buttoning garment with a revere collar – a convenient garment that could be put on quickly (and without extra help) by busy mothers and female war workers. Throughout the 20th century the blouse was adapted to suit every occasion, proving one of the most versatile items in the female wardrobe.