After stepping out of a warm shower, the first thing you want to do is to get into something snug and warm and what could be more snug than a dressing gown? A dressing gown is a loose and sometimes elegant robe generally with a sash or front buttons that is worn before dressing or while lounging around indoors.
Today, both men and women wear dressing gowns, although they began as a predominantly male garment. The Banyan, considered to be the precursor of the dressing gown, refers to a style of robes worn by men from the late 17th to early 19th century. It was basically an untailored robe with loose sleeves to be worn indoors while lounging and over the nightgown at night.
Over the centuries, the garment has been influenced by many cultures. Persia, Turkey, Japan and East India have given us different styles of dressing gown such as the Turkish or terry towel robe, the bed jacket and the bathrobe. The early American dressing gowns were largely influenced by the Japanese kimonos.
Dressing gowns are now tailored with fitted sleeves and a sash-like tie around the waist. Made out of lightweight fabrics like soft cotton, silk, chiffon, satin, and heavier fabrics like flannel or fleece, these can be plain, printed, floral, checkered,pinstriped or in plain or contrasting colours. They may also have embellishments on the neck, sleeves and sash. Today’s dressing gowns offer both elegance and comfort. There is a dressing gown available to suit everyone.
Women’s dressing gowns are largely classed as nightwear or lingerie and include the bed jacket, peignoir, negligee and kimono as well as the bathrobe. The bed jacket is a cover-up worn over pyjamas at bedtime. The peignoir is a loose-fitting gown worn over a negligee. It is available as a single piece or with a co-ordinated negligee made of soft and sheer fabric for sleeping in. The kimono style dressing gown is influenced by the Japanese kimono, but without a collar – it is worn for comfort in warm weather. The bathrobe is a dressing gown made out of cotton, silk or microfibres, woven with terry, velour or waffle weaves and is worn before a bath or immediately afterwards to dry the body.
Men's dressing gowns resemble bathrobes and are made of silk or heavier material such as flannel or fleece. Two-toned reversible gowns for men are available and have a luxurious feel. Cute-looking dressing gowns for children are often based on their favourite cartoon characters, and are mainly available in pastel shades like pink, blue, light yellow and soft green.
The length of dressing gowns varies from knee length to mid-calf length to ankle length. While the sleeves are generally loose and long, they are available with short sleeves too, with oversized collars, as singlets or with a negligee or pyjamas. There is a wide choice of dressing gowns available depending on your needs, and your preferred fabric, print, colour, style and budget.
