Doppelganger Dresses, Part 7: Scarlett's White Ruffled Dress

Doppelganger Dresses returns from a small foray into accessories and back to our main focus--that's right, dresses! And this week we're highlighting one of my favorite dresses from Gone with the Wind, the white ruffled dress that Scarlett wears in the opening scene. It's such a great 'statement' dress, conveying volumes about Scarlett's pampered existence and coquettish personality from the very first moments of the film. I love it because it's so full and flouncy. It's also a familiar find in fashion plates.

After the jump, you'll find two period styles that resemble Scarlett's white ruffled frock. One exception to note, though: both of our look-a-like dresses are long-sleeved. Day dresses were universally long-sleeved in the 1860s. But don't let the discrepancy between history and Hollywood keep you from enjoying the fashion plates.  

And as always, we welcome your thoughts. Which one looks more like Scarlett's dress to you? Let us know in the comments. 

White dress, August 1862. Godey's Lady's Book.

A close up of the dress.

Description from Godey's Lady's Book: White muslin dress, with five embroidered flounces. Corsage high, and made with a yoke; sleeves only reaching the elbow, and the undersleeve just made sufficiently wide to pass the hand through. The neck of  the dress is finished with a box-plaited ruff. Green ribbon sash, with fringed ends. Belgian straw hat, trimmed with green ribbons and roses.

White dress, 1861. Petit courrier des dames.

Screenshots of Scarlett's white ruffled dress in Gone with the Wind.

Publicity still of Scarlett's white ruffled dress in Gone with the Wind.