A fashion writer in 1886 referred to this garment as a Lady’s Pyjama. Whether you call it pyjama or pajamas, our family would call it a nightgown. It was a 5-piece pattern that was offered for sale in a magazine designed for girls.
It makes a great example of vintage fashions from the 1880s. Other than the teeny waist, often a side-effect of ridiculously tight corsets, this nightgown drawing doesn’t look all that different than some designs that are still popular for winter nightwear.
This drawing is from The Girl’s Own Paper, Vol. VIII: No. 356, October 23, 1886. It was a wonderful magazine but they unfortunately did not identify the many illustrators who decorated their pages with images like this one.
This image is copyright free and in the public domain anywhere that extends copyrights 70 years after death or at least 120 years after publication when the original illustrator is unknown.
