Engageantes are false sleeves worn with women's clothing. They were worn during the 18th and 19th centuries, with a brief revival in the 20th century. In the 18th century, engageantes took the form of ruffles or flounces of linen, cotton, or lace, tacked to the elbow-length sleeves then fashionable.[1]

Eleanor Frances Dixie by Henry Pickering, painted c. 1753. Sack-back gown worn with embroidered lawn engageantes.
Fashions of 1861 show linen or cotton engageantes worn under pagoda sleeves.

In the mid-19th century, the term engageante was used for separate false sleeves, usually with fullness gathered tight at the wrist, worn under the open bell-shaped "pagoda" sleeves of day dresses. The fashion reappeared briefly just after the turn of the 20th century.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ Powys, Marian (1953). Lace and Lace Making. Boston, C.T. Branford Co. p. 97.
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