Housedress
Dress
1940-1950
Blue
Linen
39 in. (bust), 28 in. (waist), 40 in. (hip)
Cáy Artley
Johnstown, Cambria, Pennsylvania, United States
2013.09
This short-sleeved women’s housedress, in blue linen has a turn down collar and opens with 11 buttons center front. The white molded plastic buttons have raised daisy motif and contrast with the light blue fabric. The front bodice is shaped with yoke with bust and waist darts. The sleeves have a fitted cap and turn-back cuffs. Two belt loops on the sides of the waist indicate that the dress once had a matching belt, likely made of the same fabric. The skirt has two side front pleats that resolve into the pockets. The skirt back has side back darts, is seamed center back and resolves in kick pleat at the hem to allow for freedom of movement. The label in the back of collar reads, “Imported from Ireland. Pure Irish linen. Tebilized...Fully Shrunk. Cáy Artley.”
Located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the Cáy Artley Apparel Company emerged, in the late 1930s, as the budget-minded subsidiary of the Goldstein and Levin Women’s Dress Company. The pinked seams and finished facings of this dress were consistent with the brand’s advertisement of "superb tailoring." The company closed in 1975. The word "Tebilized" on the label of the dress refers to a trademark British textile.
-Huard
References
“Vintage Fashion Guild: Label Resource: Artley, Cay.” n.d. Vintagefashionguild.org. Accessed July 7, 2023. https://vintagefashionguild.org/label-resource/cay-artley/.
