As to their probable toilets, one could not give purer pleasure than by quoting Mrs.
Delany's description of one of them:-- 'The Duchess's dress was of white satin embroidered, the bottom of the petticoat brown hills covered with all sorts of weeds, and every breadth had an old stump of a tree, that ran up almost to the top of the petticoat, broken and ragged, and worked with brown chenille, round which twined nasturtiums, ivy, honeysuckles, periwinkles, and all sorts of running flowers, which spread and covered the petticoat....

The robings and facings were little green banks covered with all sorts of weeds, and the sleeves and the rest of the gown loose twining branches of the same sort as those on the petticoat.

Many of the leaves were finished with gold, and part of the stumps of the trees looked like the gilding of the sun.

I never saw a piece of work so prettily fancied.' She adds a few other details for the instruction of her sister Anne:-- 'Heads are variously adorned; pompons with some accompaniment of feathers, ribbons, or flowers; lappets in all sorts of curli-murlis; long hoods are worn close under the chin; the ear-rings go round the neck( !), and tie with bows and ends behind.

Night-gowns are worn without hoops.'.