Victorian Fashion

VICTORIAN FASHION

The main feature of the Victorian epoch was the mix of the best of other styles. Victorian Era was a lively style of ornamentation.

Clothes on the Victorian Era were very elaborated and restrictived on the bodies of those who wore them. The Victorian Era was a time period between 1830 to the end of the XXth century. Queen Victoria ruled England. The rise of the economy allowed to make more elaborated clothes. Cloth making was made easier and cheaper during the industrial boom of this time. Victorian fashion created by Queen Victoria in England clocked a time completely austere in dress, almost in funeral dresses because since the death of her husband she remained in mourning the rest of her life. She established very strict rules in mourning which can be clearly seen in movies and in texts.

The women’s dress was very elaborated. Their dresses affected the way they walked, sat or moved her arms. Women wore a variety of colours for their stockings and dresses. Dresses and stockings undergarments were cut in a style to show off the figure in a modest way. The undergarments had whale-bones or flexible steel to make it more confortable. Here we can see what a woman of that time had to wear:

The dress was worn in two pieces and connected with hooks and ties. The style of sleeves changed many times throughout the Victorian Era. The neckline was worn in a high V-neck. Either one or two skirts were worn; with two skirts the underskirt was longer, forming a short train with the top skirt forming an apron. The underskirt flared from the knees down to create fullness. Around 1880, the skirt was cut narrow all around the body, forming a slim outline. The dress was made in different colors, from pastels to darker colors. Different shades of green were very popular. We can see the evolution of the fashion dresses in this picture:

In the early XIXth century shoes began to be made with a right foot and a left foot instead of being interchangeable. Men very often wore boots in the XIXth century and it became acceptable for women to wear them too. Firstly they were made of leather but since the 1850s they were made of rubber.However at the end of the century it became fashionable for women to wear shoes again. In the 19th century boots and shoes started to be mass-produced,so it was cheaper. However in the 19th century boots and shoes were still a luxury and some poor parents could not buy them for their children. Boots and shoes were almost always worn with heels and pointed or squared toes. HATS

Other important accessory were hats. Hats were primarily used as a protection from the sun, to avoid an injury... However, in the later years, hats became a symbol of style statement and authority. The kind of hats worn by women and men were different. Hats formed an essential part of a woman’s appearance and as a result, they always wear a hat when they went out. The hats were layered on a wire base covered with straw braids or twisted fabric and was made from velvet, satin or cotton. Birds were used as decorating piece on the hats and this was a fashion in the last half of the XIXth century. The most romantic looking hat of the 1850s was a leghorn straw with a wide brim dipped down at the back and slightly at the front. In the early 1900s, hats had wider-brim and were worn high on the head.

For men, the top hat or the tall silk hat was generally worn for formal days and evening wear. A light grey top hat was worn in the 1860s for racing parties. Since the 1870s, there was a rise in the number of hats that were considered appropriate for informal wear. Caps of firmly woven wool which were close-fitting were also worn by the Victorian men.

Shawls, cloaks, mantles, scarves and little aprons were also accessories. Gloves and parasols were popular. Large brooches were worn at the throat and large and small earrings were also worn. The use of fans was also very common. Boas made of feathers or fur were also very big.

HAIRSTYLES

Hairstyles were very complicated. Hair was thick, long, and luxuriant in many different styles. As we said before, hats were an important part of the outfit. Hair was parted down the middle, curled or braided, then tied or pinned back. Only in informal occasions we can see the Victorian lady leaving her hair fall loose around her shoulders. Later in the XIXth century, Victorian hairstyles became more elaborated. Bangs made their debut around 1880. Women began to use hot irons to wave their hair or add ringlets to it.

Victorian Clothes "The clothes make the man" is a phrase that could have been coined during the Victorian period. Victorian clothes were very much a symbol of who you were, what you did for a living, and how much money was in your bank account.

For Men and Woman For the wealthy, silk stockings covered the legs. For the less wealthy, it was wool socks. Beachwear in Victorian times consisted of a costume which covered the entire body with yards of material. There were exceptions though - arms could be bare from the elbows down. Ladies had to have their legs completely covered. This was either done by wearing black stockings or, later in the century, pants. Men were able to show their shins. Bathing bonnets were worn by both. Good quality leather shoes could always be made-to-order, but by 1850 manufactured shoes were available for purchase. Shoes were now made for the 'proper' feet. Etiquette played its part in Victorian clothing. It was considered 'good etiquette' to dress appropriately to ones age, and position in society. To own an umbrella was a social-scale barometer. The wealthy owned their own bumbershoots, while the general public would rent an umbrella if the weather turned wet. Victorian dress was not complete without a walking stick, or cane. Some canes contained compartments which were useful for holding vials of perfume. Victorian fashion did include eyeglasses, But, they were strictly for looks and not for the correction of vision. Often, if there were lenses in the frames, those lenses were removed and the empty frames would become part of the ensemble. Although the cloth for Victorian clothes was manufactured, ready-made outfits were unknown. Seamstresses and tailors were responsible for custom-made creations. Milliners, glovers, and hatters would help to complete the look. If the pocket-book didn't allow such individual attention, families would make their own Victorian clothes or find used garments. The poorer members of society would visit second-hand, even third and fourth-hand, shops for garments which still had some wear in them.

For Ladies Only Throughout the era, Victorian fashion changed dramatically. Skirts went from straight to being spread over large hoops. At the end of the era, the hoop disappeared from view and it was back to slimmer skirts, although now sporting a bustle. Sleeves made different fashion statements, also. Slim sleeves gave way to "leg o'mutton" sleeves by the end of Queen Victoria's reign. Head gear was a style all its own. From large lavishly decorated hats, covered with feathers and flowers, the close-fitting bonnet was soon the need-to-have garment. Not that these were any plainer - feathers, lace, and flowers would still be used for decoration. There was a constant, though; the corset. The design throughout the era would change, but the initial purpose never varied. To wear Victorian dress, it was necessary to have a cinched-in waist. For younger ladies, having a waist in inches the same as your age was the goal. Seventeen years old? That meant you would strive for a seventeen inch waist. Older ladies were allowed more leeway. The baring of the shoulder and upper part of the chest was strictly for evening apparel, and most usually this style was worn by upper and middle class ladies. Working-class women were more modest. Because of the exposure of flesh to cool air, shawls joined the Victorian costume. Satins, silks, and heavy velvets for the older generation were the norm. For younger society ladies who were on the look-out for "a good catch", the lighter the material, the better. Fragile gauze dresses, covered with bows or flowers, were made to catch a prospective husband's eye. On average, these dresses were worn only once or twice... and then thrown away! Middle-class women bought either garments, or ready-made clothes, with the idea that they would last. If necessary, the garment would at some point be cut-down so that it could be worn by children. For the well-dressed female tradesman (aka "monger"), a bright silk scarf would be worn around the neck, and a flower-strewn bonnet would adorn the head. Brightly polished boots would be proudly shown beneath a many petticoated skirt, which just reached to the ankles.

The Well-dressed Gentleman Victorian dress didn't go in for such radical changes with men. But coat lengths did vary over time and the cinching of the waist (yes, men would wear a type of corset) gave way to the ease-of-breathing loose jacket. Men's fashion history can be traced via the style of trousers. Early in Queen Victoria's reign, legs were covered in tight form-fitting cloth. This appearance soon changed to a looser tubular style. Straight slacks, with a crease in front and back, were common by the end of the century. The elegant dress-coat for the day slowly gave way to a long frock coat, usually black. The dress coat did continue to make appearances, though. 'White tie and tails' was the formal eveningwear for gentleman, the 'tails' being the former daytime coat. Games and cycling were the major catalysts for any change in male Victorian clothes. By the late 1800's, knickers were introduced and a more casual style was adopted for daytime wear. Plaids and checks were seen more often, although most often in the country. Like his female counterpart, a male monger would wear a bright silk scarf around his neck. Atop his head would be a closely fitting cap which completely covered his hair. A long waistcoat and seamed trousers would complete his Victorian costume, ending with the sight of polished boots. Article by "Tudor Rose"