Printable Vintage Fashion Illustration for Collage, Graphic Design or Scrapbooking: Reading in the Playroom, 1857

It is what you read when you don't have to that determines
what you will be when you can't help it.
― Oscar Wilde

Books are the quietest and most constant of friends;
they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors,
and the most patient of teachers.
― Charles W. Eliot

A group of Victorian children fascinated by a book, 1857.
5.5" x 4.25" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.
Larger image size available for licensing. Please inquire.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Printable Vintage Fashion Illustration for Collage, Graphic Design or Scrapbooking: Conversation, 1850s

A conversation is a dialogue, not a monologue.
That's why there are so few good conversations:
due to scarcity, two intelligent talkers seldom meet.
― Truman Capote

Two ladies having a conversation in the garden, 1859.
Grungy 4" x 5" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.
Larger image size available for licensing. Please inquire.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Printable Vintage Fashion Illustration for Altered Art, Graphic Design, Papercrafts or Scrapbooking: Something Odd, 1859

Something Odd, 1859
High-res 8" x 10" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Free Printable Vintage Illustration for Cardmaking, Journaling, Scrapbooking or Wall Art: Conversation in the Conservatory, 1857

It is a wise thing to be polite; consequently, it is a stupid thing to be rude.
To make enemies by unnecessary and willful incivility,
is just as insane a proceeding as to set your house on fire.
For politeness is like a counter ― an avowedly false coin,
with which it is foolish to be stingy.
― Arthur Schopenhauer, The Wisdom of Life and Counsels and Maxims

Life is short, but there is always time enough for courtesy.
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Antique illustration originally published in 1857 showing two Victorian ladies in (one-sided?) conversation in a conservatory.

Free to download for use in cardmaking, journaling and scrapbooking projects or simply print and frame as wall art. You can find the high-res 8" x 10" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Printable Vintage Fashion Illustration: Victorian Birthday Party, 1857

May today be the best birthday of your life,
I give you my heart as the most precious gift I can give you
and I promise I always will love you.
― Oscar Auliq-Ice

Forget your voice, sing!
Forget your feet, dance!
Forget your life, live!
Forget yourself and be!
― Kamand Kojouri
Vintage fashion illustration of a Victorian family dressed in the fanciest fashions to celebrate a special occasion. Originally published in 1857.

Download and use in various altered art, graphic design, papercrafts or scrapbooking projects. You can download the high-res 8" x 10" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Printable Vintage Fashion Illustration: Victorian Ladies in Evening Gowns, 1857

...and the evening was so beautiful,
that it made a pain in my heart,
as when you cannot tell wether you are happy or sad;
and I thought that if I could have a wish,
it would be that nothing would ever change,
and we would stay that way forever.
― Margaret Atwood, Alias Grace
Vintage fashion illustration of two Victorian ladies in dazzlingly beautigul evening gowns. They are enjoying a quiet moment in front of a mirrored mantle. Originally published in 1857.

Download and use in various altered art, graphic design, papercrafts or scrapbooking projects. You can download the high-res 8" x 11" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark here.


For personal use only. Not for resale. All digitized work by The Real Victorian is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Please cite RealVictorian.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Free Printable Fashion History Illustration: Tears at Twilight, 1857

Tears shed for another person are not a sign of weakness.
They are a sign of a pure heart.
― José N. Harris, MI VIDA: A Story of Faith, Hope and Love

Hand-tinted colour illustration in an issue of Peterson's Magazine from 1857, showng two ladies in a garden at twilight. One of the ladies, wearing a richly beaded blue ball gown, is crying while the other lady, in a white gown adorned with roses, is trying to console her.

You can download a free ready-to-print 6" x 8" @ 300 ppi JPEG without any watermark for cardmaking, collage, craft or framed art projects by clicking here.


All digitized work by Victorian Trends.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Free for personal use only. Please link back to VictorianTrends.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Victorian Fashion History Illustration: Dresses of Silk, 1857

A fashion illustration in full colour from my collection of Peterson's Magazine, December 1857 issue. The magazine describes the dresses as:

On the left, a dress of black silk, trimmed with nine rows of black velvet, graduated in width, and edged with black lace. The body is made with a basque and berthe, and trimmed to correspond with the skirt. The sleeves are of the pagoda shape, open on the inside of the arm.

On the right is a dress of chestnut-colored heavy silk. The skirt is very full, and trimmed on each side with two rows of velvet of a darker shade of brown than the silk. A row of velvet buttons is placed down the side of each band of velvet. The body is made without a basque, but with lappets in front, edged with a brown silk fringe. There is also a berthe formed of velvet and fringe. The sleeves are very wide, made with a cap or jockey, and trimmed to correspond with the body.

To download a free, high-res 6" x 9" @ 300 ppi JPEG without a watermark, please click here.


All digitized work by Victorian Trends.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Free for personal use only. Please link back to VictorianTrends.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

Victorian Fashion History Illustration: Morning and Dinner Dresses, 1857

A fashion illustration from my collection of Peterson's Magazine, July 1857 issue. From the magazine, the description of the dresses are:

On the left, a morning dress of white cambric, trimmed in front in the apron style with insertions and heavy worked rufflings. The corsage is made with a basque and ornamented to correspond with the skirt.

On the right, a dinner dress of white muslin, trimmed with three flounces richly embroidered. Corsage high. A small mantle of white muslin, embroidered.


All digitized work by Victorian Trends.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Free for personal use only. Please link back to VictorianTrends.com as your source when sharing or publishing.

20 volumes of La Mode Illustrée to digitize!

Okay, I've bought huge lots of antique books from eBay before but this is the...biggest one ever! 20, yes, TWENTY bound volumes of full-year La Mode Illustrée magazines ranging from 1873 to 1903 - the originals, not reproductions. These books are huge, measuring approximately 15" x 11" bound - over 120 pounds of books that were shipped to me all the way from a dealer in Ireland! Swoon. With gorgeous illustrations of Victorian and Edwardian fashion on almost every single page, my rough calculation is that I have at least 25,000 images on my hands! What am I going to do with these? I haven't quite decided yet. I'm not even sure where to begin digitizing! As problems go, this is a very nice one to have, don't you think? :)