A Bodice Through Womanhood - Black “relevailles” bodice
- maudebasskrueger
- May 18
- 3 min read
Updated: May 23
Isabelle Strivay, (°1844),
Robes, Rue Montagne aux
Herbes Potagères 27,
Bruxelles
Ca. 1885
Silk, lace, metal
Donated by Mme. Jean Limbosch De Bluts, 1994
Royal Museums of Art and History,
Brussels
C.1467.00
This black afternoon bodice was worn, according to the donor, for the “relevailles”—a Catholic ritual held after the 40-day postpartum period, marking the mother’s return to public and social life after a church blessing. According to the donor, and as confirmed by a material analysis, the garment was modified in order to accommodate a body in matrescence, meaning the process of change a woman undergoes as she becomes a mother.
Made of black woven silk taffeta and decorated with black machine-made lace and trimmings, the bodice was cut to fall well over the hips with a high, tight neckline. Its back is tailored with five seams and supported by inner whalebone, while the sleeves are fitted with a slight flare at the cuffs. The wide circumference of the hipline suggests space for a bustle in the back, which was fashionable at the time, as well as room for a softened, distended belly recovering from pregnancy. Two velvet straps on each side of the waist tighten in the front for both support? and decorative effect, accommodating the changing body.
The front of the bodice could be closed with a row of buttons running the full length, accompanied by black lace and two rows of repeating trimmings. However, additional lace was added at some point during matrescence, allowing the bodice to be left open from the chest upward. Metal clasps at the neckline and bust indicate that the lace was designed to be fastened at the neck and draped over the bust like a cravat, ensuring that it remained prominently visible. This alteration provides additional space for the fuller postpartum bust, allowing the bodice to remain slightly open while still elegantly covering the chest.
It is uncertain whether the mother wearing the bodice would have used the open bust area to breastfeed her child, as nineteenth-century bourgeois women typically hired a maid to nurse the baby and did not breastfeed in public. However, by the late nineteenth century, as recommended by medical professionals, there was a notable increase in the prevalence of breastfeeding among women, coinciding with its growing social acceptance. In any case, the added lace and sewn-shut buttonholes indicate that this garment evolved alongside its wearer, serving her through multiple stages of life.
Inside the bodice, a label reads: 'Isabelle Strivay Robes. 27 Rue Montagne aux Herbes Potagères. Bruxelles,' firmly placing the designer in central Brussels. Trade almanacs list her tailor shop at this address only in 1885, supporting the dating of the piece. After that, her name disappears from the Brussels records, reappearing only in 1891 in the Liège newspaper “La Meuse”, announcing the opening of a new store on Rue Université. Strivay's status as a single, unwed mother is confirmed by two sources: first, her son's birth certificate from 1878, which does not mention a father; and second, the Brussels trade almanac, which refers to her as "(Mlle)" (mademoiselle), a term used to denote unmarried women.
This black “relevailles” bodice shows how motherhood can change a woman’s body and needs, and how clothing can adapt in response. Its design—a bodice made by the working mother of a young child for another young mother—reflects the enduring strength that binds mothers through shared experience.
Written by Noor van Gielen
Bibliography
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