For All Seasons- Victorian dressing jacket

Wrapping up warm before heading outside is usually one of the first signs that winter is on the way.

But as this fetching vintage jacket demonstrates, protection against the elements doesn’t mean sacrificing style.

The dressing jacket, currently on display in Leeds City Museum’s new For All Seasons exhibition, was made in 1875 by McLintocks and Sons of Barnsley.

Made of quilted layers of cotton fabric with a silk fibre filling, jackets like this were very popular in the 1870s.

The lining is filled with coils of silk fibres which was a technique patented by McLintocks.

Silk, like other natural fibres, is excellent for regulating body temperature, keeping the wearer warm in cold weather and cool in hot weather.

Ruth Martin, curator of exhibitions at Leeds City Museum, said: “This beautiful jacket is really eye-catching and elegant and dispels the idea that Victorian clothes were drab and boring.

“The fact that it was made to such a specialist, patented design shows how much influence the changing seasons have on fashion trends and the clothes we wear too.”

For All Seasons can be seen in Leeds City Museum’s special exhibitions gallery and examines the various ways the changing seasons shape the world around us.

Exhibits illustrating spring, summer, autumn and winter are displayed alongside imaginative centrepieces including a giant sandcastle, indoor tree, traditional sledge and hook-a-duck pond.

The exhibition also features animals, vintage fashion and paintings by world-famous Leeds artist John Atkinson Grimshaw and is accompanied by specially-recorded classical piano sheet music from the museum’s collection.

Councillor Brian Selby, Leeds City Council’s lead member for museums and galleries, said: “The seasons, and the profound effect they have on the world, have been an inspiration to some of history’s most celebrated artists, sculptors, composers and musicians and it’s wonderful that the museum will be celebrating this in such an interactive and accessible way.”

For All Seasons, which runs until August 28, will also feature a programme of talks and activities.

For more details about the exhibition and the programme of activities, please visit: http://www.leeds.gov.uk/museumsandgalleries/Pages/Seasons.aspx

ENDS