During the 1860s two important innovations affected (= influenzarono) seriously fashion: the invention of the sewing machine (= macchina da cucire) and the synthetic dyes ( colorazioni sintetiche) which created intense colours.
Besides fashion started being designed (= disegnati).
In the same period the crinoline (= crinoline, sottogonna rigida che rendeva gonfie le gonne) changed. Mr Charles Worth – the Father of Haute couture – manipulated the crinoline design and moved the wider part at the back like a train (= strascico) while the front became flat (= l’ampiezza si spostò sul dietro, e il davanti divenne più piatto). The bustle became very popular: it was a sort of framework (= struttura) which expanded and supported the drapery (= drappeggio) at the back of the dresses.
In 1866 another novelty was the New Princess Line: the gown (= vestito) was made of many panels seamed (= cuciti) from shoulders (= spalle) to hem (=orlo). The collar (= colletto) was small and white and the sleeves (= maniche) had a banana shape (= a forma di banana). Usually this dress is worn by the protagonist of Jane Eyre’s films to underline her rigid and repressed personality.
Later on, this dress became slimmer and more form fitting (= più sottile e più attillato)