Within Leicestershire Museums Service lies one of the most vibrant costume collections in the country. From 18th century gowns to post-war couture, occupational uniforms to current trends, the Collections Resources Centre in Barrow-on-Soar is a treasure trove for fashion researchers and enthusiasts.
Many of the garments in the collection have been donated by generous individuals or organisations with a local connection - providing a stylish insight into life in Leicester over the centuries.
One of the most magnificent examples is the archive of R & W.H Symington & Co., Ltd, a local corsetry manufacture in Market Harborough with Victorian roots.
A comprehensive archive of corsetry, foundation wear and swimwear, the Symington Collection contains over a thousand garments supported by advertising materials, photographs, factory equipment and recorded memories.
From a small family business to an internationally renowned company, Symington’s helped millions of women maintain fashionable figures over decades of changing silhouettes.
This exhibition will look at a range of garments from the archive, focusing on those which showcase pioneering designs or technological advancements and influenced the foundations of fashion.
In partnership with Leicestershire Museums Service. Based on Foundations of Fashion: the Symington Corsetry Collection 1860 - 1990, by Philip Warren and Sarah Nicol.
'The Pretty Housemaid', 1890
A Symington’s specialty garment and a fantastic example of how the company utilised consumer demand to develop new products - plus clever advertising to sell them. The Pretty Housemaid was directed towards young women in domestic service, the largest employment sector in Britain at the time, and was sold as being the ‘strongest and cheapest corset ever made’. What made it particularly unique was the addition of a busk protector stitched to the underside of the busk which stopped it from breaking as the wearer stopped or bent over.
Ventilated Corset, 1895
Symington’s produced garments not just for customers in Britain but those across the expanding Empire. This corset was made for ‘coolness during wear in tropical zones’ and catered to those who insisted on maintaining the fashionable image of a European lady even in the extreme heat. There are 22 supports in this corset, but traditional whalebone is replaced with lightweight cane.
Lightweight busk front corset, 1900
Contrasting light brown and fawn sateen, this garment is an great example of the change in fashionable shape from the ‘wasp-waist’ of the late Victorian period to the ‘S’ silhouette that dominated throughout the early 1900s. It has a single straight front busk style, as opposed to the conventional spoon busk, which helped to push the waist and hips backwards. It is moderately boned with whalebone and split cane supporting the back lacing.
A Family Firm
The Symington’s story began around 1830, when a nineteen-year-old James Symington opened a tailor, hatter and woollen draper shop shortly after making a move to Market Harborough. He married seamstress and stay-maker Sarah Gold, whose family happened to own the shop next door, and the pair quickly developed a reputation amongst the local affluent clientele.
As the family shop grew and technology developed across the industry, James and Sarah recognised that a change of vision was necessary in order to advance. The business was passed to their two sons Robert and William Henry in the 1860s.
Symington’s was a revolutionary company in many ways; they mass-produced corsets and foundation garments that were well-made and reasonably priced - in fact they closely monitored their competitors to ensure both of those statements were true! They also had an uncanny ability to respond to consumer and industry demand, adapting product lines to changing technologies and silhouettes. Furthermore, the company was a leader in advertising, creating targeted and successful campaigns in-house.
They remained a leading manufacturer of corsetry, foundation wear and swimwear for decades to come, working both in-house as well as with several partner brands. The company was sold to Courtaulds Group in 1967 with production officially ending in 1990.
Plunge front Corset, 1905
The deep plunge front of this style was designed to allow freedom to the bust and improve breathing. Yet, the panel shaping kept the body in the fashionable ‘S’ shape of the time.
Sporting Corset, 1900
This corset is double laced down either side of a central metal busk. It is heavily boned with 28 strips of whalebone, but despite its restrictive construction it was patented as having advantages for golfing and riding.
Sporting corset, 1900
An avant-garde design for the sportswoman, this corset includes many features and adaptations to make it suitable to wear for riding, cycling, tennis and golf. Cut low under the bust to allow for full arm movement and high over the hip for riding side-saddle, it also has limited full-size boning concentrated to the side-seams and half-sized boning on the stomach panel.
Madame Cave’s patent corset, 1884
This corset is supported by 64 whalebone strips and has an overbelt which controls a front stomach section attached by six buckles. It was medically recommended and advertised for pregnant women and those suffering from ‘embonpoint’ at a time when such delicate matters were not openly mentioned.
Jenyns’ patent corset, 1911
Designed in Australia and made under license by Symington, this corset has a distinctive lacing principle intended to provide concentrated support along and across the lower back. The front buckles allow the back section to be pulled tighter for additional control. Production of this style continued for many years and it was highly recommended for women engaging in war work during the First World War.
Health & Sport
Bodices, stays and corsets have been prominent in women’s fashion since the 1500s, with periods of style and popularity varying throughout the centuries. However, it was during the 19th century that corset-wearing reached its peak.
Corsets were heavily-boned and tightly-laced to accommodate the changes in fashionable shape, emphasising a ‘wasp-waisted’ figure with a prominent curved bust.
Throughout the Victorian period dress reformers, members of the aesthetic movement and health professionals debated on the negative effects of wearing such restrictive garments - arguing they were detrimental to physical wellbeing as well as impractical and unnecessarily debilitating.
By the end of the century, health, mixed with a social acceptance of ‘The New Women’ partaking in a sporting lifestyle, began to change the design and functionality of foundation wear.
Taking the Plunge
In 1937, Symington’s recognised an increasing demand for beach outfits to accommodate the popularity of sea holidays and leisurely swimming.
The company designed and made its first range of ‘corset tailored sports suits’ under the brand Peter Pan, a collection which remained popular until new technology emerged in the 1950s.
Technical corsetiere skill with the addition of new fabrics in the 60s, 70s and 80s (like stretch jersey and Lycra) allowed Symington swimwear operatives to produce very successful collections including bikinis, one piece swimsuits, swimming trunks for men and swimsuits for children - all in a wide variety of styles for different figure types with vibrant colours and patterns.
Fun Facts
• The bikini appeared in history much earlier than you think! Greek and Roman women are depicted in several accounts wearing bandeau style tops and brief bottoms for bathing, very similar to the styles of today.
• By the Middle Ages swimming and outdoor bathing was strongly discouraged - and into the 18th century was regarded as of ‘doubtful morality’ and had to be justified on health grounds.
• In the Victorian era bathing dresses emerged and women took to the water in long, cumbersome garments made from heavy fabric.
• By 1910, swimwear was less restrictive with styles exposing arms and hemlines shortening to the mid-thigh. Swimsuits continued to get smaller and tighter in the 1920s and popularity grew as Hollywood and Vogue glamourised beach wear.
• Two-piece suits were common in the years leading up to World War II, yet they were modest in comparison to the ‘first modern bikini’ introduced by French designer Louis Reard in 1946. As the story goes, he chose the name after the atomic tests at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean as he felt the new suit, featuring significantly less fabric, would have the same explosive effect... he was right!
Bust Improvers & the Brassiere
The ideal shape, size and position of a woman’s bust line has changed continuously according to the fashionable silhouette du jour.
From the overtly curved ‘pouter pigeon’ bust of the 1890s to the slim and flat figure of the 1920s, purpose made garments have helped women achieve their desired breast shape for centuries.
Different manufacturers, retailers and women’s magazines used various names for the many types of bust improvers that were available, yet advertisements tended to refer to them by the French term brassiere - which turned into a universal term by the First World War.
Traditionally, these garments were worn in addition to a corset but became popular stand-alone pieces by the 1920s when new styles of foundation wear were developed.
This was the direct result of the First World War when women were called upon to work in factories and in other jobs that contributed to the war effort. Those that were not issued uniforms needed clothing that was far more practical. As such, the natural waistline returned, bodices were less restrictive, and skirts were shorter - meaning a drastic change in undergarments was essential.
Despite the decline of traditional corset production, Symington’s had a period of great success during and following the First World War and went into full production to make garments to complement the new, more natural silhouette.
As the opulent curves of Edwardian fashion gave way to the straight, boyish figures young women desired post-war, flattening ‘bust bandeaux’ were introduced. These used improved rubber and elastic technology to give stretch and comfort whilst minimising the bust.
In 1923 Symington’s introduced the Avro range, their first truly branded collection, which included brassieres, bandeaux, corselets and health belts.
By the end of the 1930s the brassiere, or bra as it soon became known, came into its own and Symington’s produced over fifty different styles.
These varying garments gave shape, support and definition to a natural bust line which showed through the fluid, bias-cut dresses of the time.
During the Second World War, part of the Symington factory was dedicated to the war effort and clothing was strictly rationed. Old models of garments were often modified for production under Utility regulation until the scheme for clothing was abandoned in 1949.
In 1956 bra cup sizes were introduced, although there was no standardisation between manufacturers, and by the mid-1960s the bra was the staple foundation wear product for both manufacturer and customer.
The Très Secrète Inflatable Bra, 1952
There was a great emphasis on bust line throughout the 1950s thanks to Hollywood stars such as Jayne Mansfield and Marilyn Monroe. The Très Secrète Inflatable Bra was introduced into Britain from the United States by La Risista Corset Co and made under license by Symington. The bra was of conventional design but had pocket linings with small plastic pads that could be inflated by blowing through a small straw. Many women bought this bra to improve the shape or size of their bust, whilst for others it was important as a post-operative bra after breast surgery.
Dior's New Look
In 1947 Christian Dior launched his first fashion collection in Paris called ‘The Corolle Line’ which was dubbed ‘The New Look’ by American Vogue. Dior’s vision of the post-war woman was an elegant, feminine hourglass figure that persisted throughout the 1950s.
The New Look silhouette was an important development for Symington’s, as the drastic change in fashionable silhouette meant that there was a huge market for new foundation garments. In fact, some of these garments used elements from 1890s corset design, but were made with modern fabrics such as nylon.
***"Without proper foundations, there can be no fashion."*** - **Christian Dior**
—Christian Dior,
Additionally, in 1957, Symington’s won the license to produce ready-to-wear foundation garments for Dior. The range was partly designed in Paris, but much of the work was done in Symington’s own design rooms.
The range was very exclusive and sold in stores such as Harrods and Selfridges in London. Despite popularity, it was expensive to produce and in 1959 production transferred to Symington’s subsidiary company, Alcock and Priestly Ltd.
Fabric & Design Technology
By the 1920s women’s outerwear transitioned into simpler, lighter, shorter and more fluid pieces that weighed at least half as much as their pre-war counterparts. This meant that the heavily-boned design of the traditional corset needed to be replaced with undergarments that were thinner and smoother, such as the corselet made with lightweight steel.
Symington's, like all corsetry manufacturers, began to use elastics extensively in their foundation garments to help achieve this new shape.
The fabric originally found a mass market in sports corsets in the 1890s, but was significantly improved after the war and was widely used to create figure controlling panels in foundation wear.
The 1960s and 1970s were also a time of huge change for women's clothing. For the first time hem-lengths were above the knee and perhaps even more startling, women began to wear trousers! This completely negated the need for many of Symington's most successful products, such as the suspender belt and the skirted corselet, and prompted the company to react to a drastically shifting market. All-in-one garments and slimming separates were created in evolving fabrics, such as Du Pont's Spandex (later Elastane), which became integral to future foundation wear lines.
Acknowledgements
Exhibition curated by Elizabeth Wheelband (Heritage Centre Curator) and Steven Peachey (Archives Assistant).
A special thank you to Sarah Nicol at Leicestershire Museums Service for kindly loaning objects from the Symington Collection and providing exhibition support.
Notable mention to Mr Christopher Page, who curated the Symington Collection until 1980 and did much of the cataloguing, dating and interpreting of the materials.
If you wish to visit the Collections Resources Centre or enquire about the Symington Collection, please email sarah.nicol@leics.gov.uk or ring 0116 305 3720.
Printed by the DMU Print Centre.