Engageantes are false
sleeves worn with women's
clothing in the 18th and
19th centuries.
In the 18th century, engageantes took the form of ruffles or flounces of linen, cotton, or lace, tacked to the elbow-length sleeves then fashionable.
In the mid-19th century, the term engageante was used for separate false sleeves, usually with fullness gathered tight at the wrist, worn under the open bell-shaped "pagoda" sleeves of day dresses. This fashion reappeared briefly just after the turn of the 20th century.
