Kate Reily was a noted British

dressmaker A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes custom clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and gown, evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua (clothing), mantua-makers, and are also known as a mod ...

, active in the late 19th- and early 20th-century. She had a shop at 11-12

Dover Street Dover Street is a street in Mayfair, London. The street is notable for its Georgian architecture as well as the location of historic London clubs and hotels, which have been frequented by world leaders and historic figures in the arts. It also ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. A New York branch of the enterprise was located at 277 Fifth Avenue, and a Chicago store was at 1305 Michigan Avenue. Reily designed dresses worn by bridesmaids at the elaborate 1889 wedding of Lord William Nevill and Miss Luisa Maria Carmen de Murrieta, at

Brompton Oratory Brompton Oratory is a large neo-classical Roman Catholic church in the Knightsbridge area of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London. Its full name is the Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, or as named in its Grade II* archite ...

in London. The dresses were described in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' as "white silk dresses edged with otter fur" worn with "mouse-colored velvet hats with ostrich plumes." The ''New York Times'' reported in 1894 that the American branch of the business was purchased by the New York firm of Ehrich Brothers, which made "magnificent costumes" available "for only a fraction of the original price." A labeled dress by Reily, a pale green silk satin with a brocaded floral and vine design, lace trim at the neckline and cuffs, net inserts at the neckline, and a wide satin sash with metal tassels, is in the collection of the

Staten Island Historical Society Staten Island Historical Society is an organization devoted to the history of Staten Island and its neighboring communities, from the colonial period to the present day. The Society operates and interpreting Historic Richmond Town, the largest and ...

(

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

, New York City). Early in her career, the French designer

Madeleine Vionnet Madeleine Vionnet (; June 22, 1876, Loiret, France – March 2, 1975) was a French fashion designer. Vionnet trained in London before returning to France to establish her first fashion house in Paris in 1912. Although it was forced to close in 1 ...

(1876–1975) worked as a fitter with Reily.

References

External links

Two-piece dress by Kate Reily in the Staten Island Historical Society Online Collections Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reily, Kate British fashion designers 19th-century British businesspeople 19th-century British businesswomen 20th-century British businesspeople 20th-century British businesswomen British women fashion designers