Add Some Timeless Elegance To Your Wardrobe With a Floral Tea Dress

There aren’t many things quite so quintessentially British as tea. It is often prescribed to cure all manner of ills, whether it be a shock or a broken heart, tea will be offered as a non-medicinal remedy. It is therefore not surprising that an entire culture has developed around tea and even today, tea is still a very important part of British society.

The culture of afternoon tea is as popular as it has ever been and the origins of the tea dress are linked with this very British pastime. The tradition of afternoon tea is thought to have been started by the seventh Duchess of Bedford in 1841. Lunch had always been traditionally served at midday and dinner was served much later in the evening, at around 8pm or 9pm. So the Duchess, who must have been feeling puckish and unable to wait for her evening meal, began enjoying her tea and some other nice delicacies at around 4pm.

The Duchess’s afternoon tea sessions soon caught on and very quickly there were ladies everywhere dressing up and going out to visit each other for afternoon tea. Of course, it was inevitable that a special wardrobe was required for this new occasion, so the tea dress was created. The tea dress was characterised by light fabrics and unstructured lines, which made the dress easy to wear and move around in. The floral tea dress was originally inspired by the Japanese Kimono and was worn without a corset. This also came at the beginning of the liberation of women’s dresses and the start of a more relaxed style of clothing for women.

The tea dress quickly became an essential part of many fashionable women’s wardrobes, and was also a way that women found that they could express their tastes. The floral tea dresses were relaxed and floaty and were often accompanied by accessories like handbags, jewels, fans, parasols and fur, which was one way a lady could show off her wealth and position in society.

The Audrey Hepburn style dresses, are another very attractive, timeless and elegant style of dresses for your wardrobe. The Audrey range of dresses were originally designed to fit the slender frame of the Hollywood actress, and the range has kept that design, even after two decades. The Audrey Hepburn dresses have captured the imagination of fashionable women so much they you still find them in high street stores and boutiques.