Men! Their clothes, their beards and the ladies who love them...or not!

THIS!

THAT!

In the Regency period, male attire went from this....to that!


Simplicity was the greater rule, all folderol of lace and hair powder and male peacock colors swept away by the ideals of the French Revolution and equality, fraternity and lack of funds to pay for it all!

While the extravagant attire boiled down to slimmer silhouette and darker colors, so to did men hairstyles change.

Here we see a chronological illustration of that progress, some of which we still honor today. Certainly, shorter hair brings with it cleanliness, order and ease of fashion sense.

 These illustrations/paintings seem more in line with our current sensibilities as they certainly were with the ladies' fashions of the day. Here the simplicity of line in female attire corresponds to that of the men!

Too often when we authors write historical fiction fight with ourselves about what to include to give us the verisimilitude necessary. Fashion is definitely one I struggle with! Shall I talk about the fabric, its feel or cost, its hue, its suitability or NOT for the style. Certainly a dressmaker had to have knowledge of what she/ he created.

I remember that from when I was younger and often sewed my own clothes! Choosing the wrong flexibility of fabric or a thickness of warp could destroy the intent of the design. One should have swayed, perhaps, when one really only stalked!

You get me!

One young man who is currently the Rage in men's costume is Zack Pinsent! Who is he??? 

A tailor who lives in Brighton in UK who makes all his own clothes and sews period clothing for men who wish to dress correctly for historical representation! I hope to visit with him when next I go to Brighton!

Do read about him! https://metro.co.uk/2019/06/27/man-identifies-1820-wears-historical-clothes-10079418/

Fashion sources are a wonderful rabbit hole for research !

Here is one for many time periods but this is 1810-1819 (Regency definitely!)

https://fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu/1810-1819/

Here is another, most intriguing! 1810-1830 :

https://cdnhistorybits.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/mens-fashion-during-the-regency-era-1810s-to-1830s/

Lately, we see men wearing “runway scruff”. But beards became popular in the mid-19th century, approximately after Victoria came to the throne.

Here is an intriguing discussion of them:

https://www.theenglishshavingcompany.com/blog/history-of-beards-the-victorians

Beards implied masculinity! Here is a quote from a historian of beards: “Echoing later claims for the innate masculinity of beards, whiskers were said to be ‘grave and manly’. Whiskers had been venerated by ‘the ancients’, lending them an air of authority and wisdom. It was, as one commentator noted, ‘silly to oppose so ancient a custom in an age so attached to antiquity’.”

https://dralun.wordpress.com/2017/06/21/what-about-whiskers-the-forgotten-facial-hair-fashion-of-19th-century-britain/

A fellow making 2 points of things!

Do you see RED? Color in fashion in Regency romances! What great-great-grandma wore!

This charming number is dated approximately 1810
 and sits in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London

Creating fashion in our novels, we authors like to give stunning visuals. Sometimes, those require more research than we’d hope!

Recently on the Beau Monde RWA writers loop, we discussed the color red, the dyes and fabrics that could have existed at the time.

Here from one of my large references on fashion (let that read TOME), I thought it fun to list for you the very limited number of shades of red for that period! Note, too, that many come from the latter part of the period which is not officially the Regency, but indeed the late reign of George IV, once that notorious man, the Prince of Wales.

So this table reads as: the title of the color, the year the term was first used, the modern color description/name as per the British Color Council! (In alpha order!)

Aurora, 1809. Chilli.

Aurora, 1829.  Shell-Pink.

Eminence, 1829.  Crushed Strawberry.

Japanese Rose, 1826.  Crushed Strawberry.

Marsh Mallow, 1829. Crocus or Old Rose.

Morone, 1811. Peony Red.

Naccarat, 1800. Tangerine.

Terre D’Egypt, 1824. Brick Red.

What does this imply? That blood red, ruby red, cherry red and many more were not possible in this period. So when you read that your heroine wears a bright red gown to the ball, beware, she may not have been at all!

A #Regency lady must dress for breakfast, lunch, dinner in, dinner out, more. Cost of that is...?

Opera Dress, left. Promenade Dress, right.
From: 1811 Ackermann's Repository. Google books

     Readers of Regencies love their fashions. In an age marked by the simplicity of line, the simplicity of the look of the cloth, plus the growth of types of cloth available to dressmakers in Great Britain, women regarded their fashion as the key to their success socially.
     Fashion has always signaled status. The decrees of kings (think Louis XIV) and queens (think of Elizabeth I) and various injunctions of parliaments (think sumptuary laws during war times) have limited supply of types of fabrics and inspired protection of home-grown markets.
     But in Britain during the Regency, despite the harassment of a few French frigates and the Barbary pirates, those in Britain enjoyed the variety of fabrics shipped to their shores. Ladies adorned themselves in muslins and silks, satins and laces of all types from many ports of call.
     Here, for your enjoyment, I list a few types of garments and their accompanying costs. My aim is to show you what it might have cost a family to dress their darling girl or cost a lady to dress herself.

(Note well: I take these prices from Cunnington, C. Willett, English Women's Clothing in the Ninetheenth Century. 1990, pp. 34-73. These pages describe women's clothing during 1800-1821. In other words, this is the period of the Napoleonic Wars ending in 1821, the crowning of the Prince Regent in summer of 1821 as George the Fourth, and therefore by strict accounts, the end of the Regency. Also note as Cunnington says, that the costs he found here were ones he could find in advertisements and therefore, they may be the norm, not the most expensive nor least.)

Morning:
Nightgown: cambric muslin, 1+ pounds per yard (2-3 yards necessary)
Morning dress: 15-21 pounds each (ready made)

Undergarments:
Corset: 18+ pounds each
Drawers: cotton, at 3+ pounds each
Pantaloons: worsted, from 14+ pounds each
Petticoat: muslin, 3 pounds
Silk stockings with cotton feet: 7+ pounds a pair

Day gowns, at home:
A gown, muslin, 20+ pounds ready made
shoes: satin or kid, 4+ pounds a pair

Dinner attire, at home:
A gown, merino crepe at 5 pounds per yard
               sarcenet at 7/6 per yard
             
Dinner attire, party, full dress:
Gown:  5-7 pounds per yard  x 3 yards      
Hat/headdress: 4-7+ pounds each
Gloves: long over the elbow, 1+ pound per pair
Shoes: satin, silk, embroidered, 4+ pounds a pair
Cape/redingote: velvet at 7 pounds per yard

And to dress well, other accoutrements are necessary. They would include reticules, fans, parasols, handkerchiefs, and that final bit of embellishment, jewelry.

Now, at minimum of one each of these, we see that our lady's wardrobe costs 123+ pound sterling.
Note my summary here does not address the needs of a young gel making her first Season. Nor does it talk about levels of dress for different types of affairs each of which requires a degree of refinement, all translating to higher costs.
In today's money, how much does that translate to?
If the pound sterling in 1811 is now equal to 70+, then 123 is now equal to:
GBP = 8,622
And that amount in current USD = $13,081.00
With this kind of outlay, one can readily see why conserving fabric was not only a very good practice in all households, but protecting dresses with scarfs and collars and removable cuffs was sound financially. Then too, cutting down dresses to fit not only young girls in the household but also servants was a very practical matter.

Evening dress, left.  Promenade Costume, right.
1812 Ackermann's Repository. Google Books

Descriptions of above fashions, 1812 Ackermann's Repository.
Google books.