The Baby Doll Dress - Hot Fashion Item for 2012?

Baby Doll Prom Dress

Once again Spring is in the air and we can look forward to that time of year, in the UK, when we hear the satisfying 'dunk' of tennis balls on grass and the unfeminine grunts of energetic ladies' volleys. This is that special time when the rich and famous gather at Centre Court, Wimbledon to eat Strawberries and Cream, drink champagne and sometimes watch a little tennis. 

The warmer weather also signals that it is time to abandon coats and find something cooler to wear.  This year the Baby Doll dress is making a big comeback.  “What on earth is a baby doll dress?” I hear some of you ask.  Where did the name come from? Well here is Gina’s take on the Baby Doll, its history and what’s hot in 2012 with the Baby Doll Dress.

Baby Doll the Movie

It all began with a style of nightgown designed in the 50’s by couturier Nancy Mecher. Her first design was in light transparent nylon and this type of negligee is often associated with pin-ups of the time. You can trace the name Baby Doll right back to Carroll Baker who wore the revealing garment in the form of a nightie in the 1956 movie "Baby Doll."

!960s Baby Doll Nightie

Baker’s 19 year old ‘Baby Doll’ is a real tease, not helped by her habit of sleeping in a child’s crib in the nursery in her short nightie whilst waiting for her newly acquired middle-aged husband to consummate the marriage!  Pretty hot stuff for a 1956 audience.  The film brought Baker instant fame plus lots of notoriety. Both the film and the lingerie were a smash hit.

The 1950s Baby Doll was a simple flared negligee with a hemline that reached approximately six inches above the knee.  “But why baby doll?” I hear you ask.

Baby Doll relates back to the style of dress worn by a baby and therefore also by baby dolls. The short, flared hemline made nappy changing easy. Incidentally, Gina loves kids but not nappy changing.  I don’t want to think about it so lets move on quickly!

Baby Doll Lingerie

Babydoll lingerie continues to be popular to the present day but the design has evolved to match current fashions. Pastel colours and simple chiffon or lace have evolved into more raunchy colours such as red and black. Baby-doll lingerie is also often low cut to show off the cleavage.

The 2012 versions typically have shaped, supportive cups and are much more figure hugging than the 1950’s originals. This year you’ll often find a Burlesque feel to the baby doll nightie. The hemlines of the lingerie have also risen and are typically somewhere between the upper thigh or even navel height.

Baby Doll Nightie with a Hint of Burlesque

In which case, some of you may wonder why a girl would bother to wear them at all?  If you don’t know the answer to that then ask your husband, boyfriend or latest squeeze for their opinion!

So Where Does the Baby Doll Dress Fit In?

Come with me now back to the mid 1960’s when the fashion world went through a cataclysmic shift. Welcome to the era of free love, letting it all hang out when anything goes (or should that be went?).

Liberated ladies dispensed with stockings and suspenders, corsets and even the bra. Clothes were suddenly providing covering but nothing in the way of support. Think simple mini dresses, mini skirts and little if any underwear.

In 1969, Germaine Greer, Feminist Writer, described the Liberation of Women in the following flowery prose:

"The women kept on dancing while their long skirts crept up, and their girdles dissolved, and their n*****s burst through like hyacinth tips and their clothes withered away to the mere wisps and ghosts of draperies to adorn and glorify .."

Can you see from this why every teenage girl of the 1960s wanted to sleep in a baby doll?  Even if her parents banned her miniskirt and she had to wear a school uniform with a long skirt at least she could be liberated at nighttime in her own bedroom.

What Makes a Dress a Baby Doll?

Baby doll dresses first appeared in around 1966. They were more substantial than the baby doll nightie but were based on the same style. The Baby Doll Dress was flared from below the bust with cutaway armholes and/or a halter neck. They were typically made of transparent tulles, lace or chiffon mounted over a matching lining or crinkled cotton crepe fabrics.

Early 1970s Baby Doll Dress

The baby doll dress survives to this day and is undergoing a fresh surge in popularity just like baby doll lingerie. What makes a dress a baby doll? One of the key features is a raised waistline to just below the bust. The dress then hangs straight outward to the hem. In other words it isn’t figure hugging.

This is also known as the Empire Line and the baby doll dress is sometimes known as an empire line dress. Typically, however, baby doll dresses are shorter and more flared than empire line dresses.

Personally I think the Baby Doll Dress looks better with a lower hemline. Mid thigh is my absolute limit. But I do have a good friend (who shall remain nameless) who wears her baby doll dresses with the hem just below her bum.

Classic Modern Baby Doll Dress - Innocent Yet Sexy

As the evening wears on her knickers become all too visible below the hem.  Not a good thing if you want to be taken seriously.  I’ve told Cloe this several times but she takes no notice.  Damn now I’ve told you who she is.

The baby doll neck can be high, low cut or even be strapless. Alternatively it can look great with spaghetti straps or a halter neck.

The baby doll is, in some ways, similar to a maternity dress and can be used to hide other bulges such as those caused by excessive chocolate or too much cake.

Halter Neck Baby Doll Dress

It is also a very young look and can be surprisingly innocent depending on styling and length. But, like the lingerie of the same name, it can also be incredibly sexy (back to my friend and her knickers!). A current favourite of mine is the Burlesque look. The Baby Doll Burlesque Dress is typically black and red with a risque feel, decidedly saucy and looks hot with long black gloves.

Baby Doll Dress with Burlesque Feel

There are plenty of Baby Dolls around this spring in the shops and online. The baby Doll Dress is an ideal style to wear in order to let the summer breeze caress your limbs and blow away the last vestiges of winter.

So why not treat yourself to a Baby Doll Dress?  Just remember, unlike my ex-friend Cloe, to choose a style that keeps your underwear hidden.  Go on, you know you want to!