Victorian Life Style

Heels were added to boots in the late 1840s and the 1850s and to slippers between 1860 and 1865. On both shoes and boots, the heels were small. High, straight on the inner side and curved in from the back; the toe might be squared at the tip, rounded or pointed. Coloured satin or fine kid was used for formal slippers and boots, and kid, sometimes combined with cloth uppers in white, black or bronze for informal. Elastic-sided boots continued, but lacing on the inner side of the boot increased. The tops of boots might be decorated with bows or tassels, enchantingly glimpsed under the spreading skirts

Evening hoes were made of satin with many luminous colors and intricate designs that matched the dress a woman was wearing that evening. While these shoes were slightly more comfortable than the boot, the idea at that time was to fit into the smallest size possible in order to hide the feet below the large hoop skirt. During this era, a woman held an image of innocence.

Victorian Shoe

Buttoned up Boot - Victorian Elegance

The Victorian era was a time of great invention and innovation. This was also reflected in the toys of the times, since there were a lot of mechanical toys invented during this period, such as mechanical banks that would encourage children to save money. Money would be inserted into a slot and then a mechanical doll or dog would perform a trick.

Victorian Boy’s Toys

Poorer Victorian boys would play with marbles, spinning tops, kites, balls and cheap wooden toys or paper home-made boats.

Richer Victorian boys would have clockwork train sets, soldier sets, wooden blocks beautiful rocking horses with real horse hair manes and spinning tops.

Victorian Girl’s Toys

Poor Victorian girls would have cloth-peg dolls, skipping ropes and iron hoops.

Richer girls would be spoilt with china or wax dolls, dolls houses with beautiful miniature furniture made their own and tea sets. Drawing and reading was always encouraged.

During Victorian times, people became fascinated by toys that made pictures move.

Where Can I Find Vintage and Antique Victorian Toys?

There are many online stores specializing in Victorian collectibles and stores that buy and sell antique toys. An online search is a good place to start. Also, try looking out for antique toys at collectors fairs and antique fairs.

Try going through the attic, or grandma’s things or even garage sales and the search may reveal some interesting collectibles that can be quite valuable and that go back all the way to the Victorian era.

Many antique dolls were greatly loved and played with by little girls, inevitably clothes, bodies and hair would possibly be damaged. The biggest factor is to choose a doll that is not too badly damaged or cracked, even hairline cracks will lessen the value of the doll.


Replacing eyes and body parts or other restoration work can be very expensive as is finding original or period clothing. Even reproduction clothing and shoes can be very expensive.
It is a good idea to research carefully the antique doll market and see as many outfits to become reasonable judge of authenticity and quality. There are a plethora of Antique Doll Collector books and magazines on the subject and museums and doll auctions are good places to see the dolls in person.


New collectors should also consider that many lovely antique dolls can be purchased for prices that are equal or less than prices for current artist-made dolls, or late 20th century collectible dolls like Barbie. For instance, many, many lovely china dolls can be purchased for under $500, whereas a #3 Barbie mint in box will set you back $700 or so.
Decide on whether the purchase is intended as an investment or simply for personal pleasure. If the doll is for personal pleasure, it will not matter too much if it is damaged since a new set of clothes or hat may conceal the blemishes or damage. If the doll is to be an investment for the future, the very best quality one can afford would be the way to go and a great deal of research needs to go into the purchase.

Dolls created before 1930 are considered antique. Bisque, porcelain, paper mâché, wood, wax and cloth dolls are sought after by collectors. Unfortunately, most antique dolls are not found with their original clothing, shoes and undergarments, especially the very old ones.


Prices of antique dolls can vary enormously depending on the year, the make and the condition of the doll. For example Lenci dolls which were made between 1920 to 1940 can fetch a few hundred dollars for a doll in reasonable condition to over
$1000 for a doll in mint condition. Extremely old, rare and priceless porcelain dolls from France or Germany have been known to sell at around $40 000. Cloth dolls such as Izannah Walker of Rhode Island (c 1817) can bring as much as $16,000-$18,000, while early, unattributed folk art dolls from the 19th to early 20th century can bring as much as $1,500 or more, which puts them in the valuable antique doll category.

It is possible to start an antique doll collection or find valuable dolls just by looking around in one’s immediate area.
An attic, mom or grandmother or elderly aunt may have dolls from their childhood which they may or may not be interested in parting with and which are now considered antique.
The history and value of antique and Victorian era dolls is not an exact science, although some rules apply to finding out how valuable they are such as the condition of the doll (cracked or damaged dolls will be much lower in value), year made and rarity of the doll.

Where do I find Antique Dolls?


Besides raiding the attic or grandmother’s home, vintage and antique dolls can be found in specialist stores, on line stores and auctions, garage sales, car boot sales (seriously valuable antique dolls will not be found at a yard sale or car boot sale!), flea markets, antique markets, deceased estate sales and vintage fairs. Vintage or antique dolls clothes and shoes can be purchased separately.

Street vendors abounded in Victorian Cities. Hawkers would cry out loudly to sell their wares, usually fruit and vegetables. Covered markets had stalls selling all manner of meat and poultry. Small corner shops would sell items such as flour, sugar, rice, dried split peas and sago which were contained in big sacks and dispensed into paper bags as needed. Loaves of bread could also be obtained at the corner shop. Food would be stored in a larder in the kitchen, ice blocks would be delivered daily and stored in a zinc lined insulated wooden box.

Usually the cook would sally forth to the market, perhaps accompanied by a kitchen maid and it would be her responsibility to buy the best cuts of meat or fish and fresh vegetables at the best prices.

In the Americas, a small town store was a very important part of community life.  In the early twentieth century it was the place where people from outlying villages and settlements would come to buy all manner of goods besides food, such as fabric, paint, pots and pans – even tools.  A trip to the store was considered a day out for the family.

Lady of the House at Leisure

Many Victorian homes had a dedicated cook as well as other kitchen servants, who ruled the kitchen with an iron fist. Her uniform would consist of a white starched cap and apron over a black dress. Hers was a very responsible job and the pressure of a cooking for a dinner party would see her barking out orders to the kitchen and scullery maids all day, in order to get the job done.


* First duty of the day would be to see the mistress of the house and discuss the menu.
* The Victorian cook would make purchases of meat, poultry, vegetables within a budget, careful to make the best choices.
* The cook would prepare the meals for the day, ensuring that the preparation and cleaning was properly undertaken by the scullery maid and kitchen maid and other lowly domestic servants.
* The Victorian cook would preside over staff meals, which would usually be eaten in the kitchen at a large wooden table. Allowances were strictly laid down and fare was simple, with a treat on Sundays such as bacon and jam.
* Days were long and the cook in Victorian Times would usually retire exhausted at about 9 or 10 p.m., leaving the scullery maids to finish scouring pots and cleaning floors.

Antique kitchenware utensils would have comprised of copper pots and pans, proudly cleaned and polished almost every day until they gleamed were displayed in the kitchen.
These were used extensively in Victorian times to cook endless and elaborate meals as well as to preserve, boil, bake, steam and roast food on a daily basis.

Large Wooden Antique Kitchen Tables


The kitchen table in Victorian homes was the center of all work and activity. Wooden Antique Kitchen tables were usually made of beech, elm, sycamore or pine. Large rectangular kitchen tables often had square legs reinforced with stretchers a few inches above floor level. These stretchers would provide extra storage space for kitchenware such as pots, pans and other large kitchen equipment.