The Evening News. October 26, 1916

24. Costumes in the Thirties and Forties

Spanish Californian women were fond of wearing black. They said that was the color for the Spanish. The older women thought it to be almost immoral to wear anything but black. But the younger women inclined to white. This was especially true of their taste in mantillas. The style never changed, either a black or white mantilla, rich as the purse could afford. The most beautiful mantillas were of lace. They came from the ships at Monterey and were made in Europe.

Some of the Spanish women were expert with the needle and made their own costumes, but the more coquettish and modish had their dressmaker come annually to the ranches from San Jose. Madame Stock was a fashionable dressmaker at the time. She was a French woman with all the French woman's chic. Madame Stock used to go to a ranch and stay weeks. In those days everything was done by hand. Work was slow, and it cost ten dollars to have a plain dress made. Fifteen dollars was the price for a handsome gown.

Madame Stock taught Senorita Teresita Gubote, who was also partly French, her trade. Senorita Gubote was a fashionable dressmaker in the later times in San Jose.

Men's tailors used to go to the great ranches and make suits. Their price was sixteen or seventeen dollars for the work. The cloth was all bought from the trading ships. Often a tailor took his family to the ranches and remained months. His was a long task. There were usually many men in a family, and no sewing machines; several suits were made for each man. One of the best known tailors in the old times was Santana Villagrana.

When there was a wedding there was a long siege with both the dressmakers and the tailors, especially in the house of the bridegroom. In the old Spanish Californian days the mother of the bridegroom gave the bride a donas. When the young man was blessed with acres and cattle this usually consisted of several silk dresses, including the wedding dress, dishes, chests and furniture. Modern California women have the vote, but in those days a wedding was certainly cheaper for the bride's parents than it is today.

Transcribed by Kitty LaFavor, for the Santa Clara Co. CAGenWeb Project. 2008

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