Crinolinemania c. 1857-1867

There was never a fashion invented that was more sexy. How great to come into a room and occupy six feet of space.

Vivienne Westwood

When Fashion Goes to Extremes

Such was its popularity — described by satirical magazine Punch as "Crinolinemania" — that some steel factories catered exclusively to the crinoline market, churning out around 3,000 every day. Crinoline-only shops offered them for sale to an eager public. Yet it was, as is obvious, a very difficult object to wear.
It was also a deadly fire hazard. From the late 1850s to the late 1860s, around 3,000 women died in crinoline fires in England.