| During the last decade of the nineteenth century young Victorian boys continued to wear variations of the sailor suit, a favorite Victorian boy's clothing since the 1870s. When a young boy of two discarded his white nainsook gowns of infancy he graduated to a more boyish frock with box pleats. |
Often Victorian clothing for children was styled with the nautical theme by the addition of a deep sailor collar falling broadly across the back. Typically the front was V shaped with an embroidered nautical shield insert. A belt of the same material closed at the front with a buckle or buttons. Among the materials appropriate for this little boy's frock was cloth, wool, pique, linen, and duck. Braid and buttons were applied for decoration on woolen dresses, while embroidered insertion, edging and washable fancy braid garnished those of cotton.
This jacket was typically worn open over a pair of knee length trousers with ornamental buttons on the lower leg. Pique and linen in blue or white was fashionable for summer sailor suits. In winter boys were dressed in black or navy velvet outfits. 
