Early Victorian dresses could be told apart from…

.. mid Victorian as the sleeves worked in combination with the elongated front and back torso, overlapping flounced skirts, and wide sleeves (with engageantes – see February posts).  Ornamentation on the sleeves always brought the silhouette wide at shoulder and hip to emphasize the small waist.

(Photos: late 1840’s bodices with different sleeve trim typical of the late part of the Early Victorian era)