Fans of the Regency era will, no doubt, be
quite familiar with terms like muslin and superfine, half boots and spencers.
It doesn’t matter in what era we set our novels, our characters need clothes,
at least for some of the time depending on how hot the romance is. The Regency fashions
were looser and less form fitting than in earlier eras emulating as they did
the flowing neoclassical styles of Greek and Roman statuary.
So what, exactly, did a Regency lady wear under
her gown? The fact is – not much! Short-legged drawers with a drawstring waist
were only just coming into fashion in the early 1800s but were more popular by
1811. Our Regency belle would also have worn a chemise designed to
protect the outer clothes from perspiration or prevent a silk or muslin dress
from being too revealing. A chemise rarely had any trimming as the coarse soap
and boiling water in which it was frequently washed would have reduced
trimmings to rags in no time.
The
chemise was worn next to the skin and the corset, either short or long stays over
it. The short stay fitted just below the bust and the long stays reached the hipbone
and created a smooth vertical line. Both styles of stays were kept in place by
shoulder straps. A petticoat, usually with a scooped neckline, short sleeves
and fastened at the back with hooks and eyelets, was worn over the chemise and stays.
Usually trimmed at the hem, it was meant to be seen when a lady lifted her
outer dress to avoid mud or to otherwise prevent it being soiled. Stockings were
made of silk, knitted cotton or wool and held up by garters.
Dresses
were often made of soft, clinging
muslins but the oft mentioned morning dress was high necked, long sleeved and
made from plain, serviceable fabrics such as wool and linen. The thin twilled
fabric sarsnet, or sarcenet, was woven with different colors in the warp and
weft so that when the fabric moved there was a subtle shift in color. Evening
dresses, or ball gowns, were satin and silk creations, fitted under the bust,
short sleeved and with low necklines. An apparent contradiction in terms was
that being fully dressed referred to evening wear which showed quite a bit of
skin and décolletage, and being underdressed meant wearing a high neckline as
in morning clothes. Colors indicated status as young ladies wore bright colors
such as pinks, pale blues and lilacs, while mature ladies dressed in purple,
deep blue, yellow, strong reds or black.
Outerwear
included capes, wraps, shawls, spencers (a short waisted fitted jacket) and
pelisses. Rather than a pocket, which was worn under a dress with a slit in the
side for access, ladies carried a reticule, or a bag closed with a drawstring
and often decorated with beads. This in essence was the lady’s handbag in which
she could keep her vinaigrette and handkerchief. No respectable lady would
dream of leaving the house without her hat or bonnet and, at home, married
women usually wore caps. Short gloves were worn at all times during the day and
long gloves reaching the elbow or higher during the evening. The latter would
be removed for dining.
Flimsy
flat soled slippers of silk, satin, kid or velvet would be worn indoors. Often
embroidered or otherwise decorated, they were usually tied with ribbons and
sometimes had a short heel. For walking, a lady had her half boots made of
kidskin or nankeen, a canvas type fabric. She might even resort to slipping a
pair of pattens over her shoes, which lifted her up out of the dirt and mud and
prevented both shoes and hem from getting dirty.
No lady would dream of leaving the house
without wearing a hat, usually some style of bonnet trimmed in numerous ways.
Chip straw was not actually straw, but thin slivers of wood woven into shape. Grosgrain,
a ribbon most often used for trimming hats and bonnets, is still in use today
and is a coarse weave, tightly
woven fabric. It resembles a fine cord that lies perpendicular to the long
edges with the warp (the threads which run lengthwise on the loom) being
lighter than the weft (the threads that run across the loom). Grosgrain has to
be sewn carefully as it frays easily and holds pin or needle marks. It was
usually made of silk or wool and occasionally a combination of the two. It was
most often used for trimming hats and bonnets.
Sources:
Tom
Tierney’s Fashions of the Regency Period Paper Dolls
Wikipedia
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