A 'Tete a Tete'..............

The above hand colored engraving is from 'Le Supreme Bon Ton' c1815, plate no 16. Its one of my favorite images, and is a caricature exaggerating how long and straight the new 'poke' bonnets had become~ that in order to have a conversation, a "Tete a Tete" with someone, you would have to stick your head right down the bonnet! LOL The bonnets, of coarse, weren't that extreme.......wellllllllllllllll...........mabey

This is in turn, one of my favoritest pieces in the collection~ c1810~15, is an early poke for an infant! It measures just 7" from back to front, and is entirely hand smocked. The bonnet would extend past the face of the wearer nearly 4"!! In order to see this little baby's face, a person definitely would have had to stick their head right down in that bonnet!

Here is a similar one, adult size, in period fashion plate from the Journal des Dames et des Modes, 1806. Muslin bonnets like this were starched & also sometimes wired, to keep them jetting foreword without drooping down into the face.
The above view is our little baby poke from the outside. You can see the wonderful hand smocking, with a double frill around the face, all hand rolled.
Baby poke from the inside~ just look at the hours of love and work that went into this~ spectacular!
The crown has been corded in a circular pattern. Quite different from quilting~ the channels were stitched first, then several strands of yarn/thread passed thru to fill them.