Historical Fancy Dress | Accessories

Clothes during Medieval times were worn, to show the status of the wearer. Such emphasis on clothing and what they could or couldn't wear meant that it was decreed by government in a 14th Century law that...

"...All labourers and lower classes shall wear no kind of cloth but blankets and russets, nor use any girdles than such as those made of linen"

It was also stated that wives and children of tradesman were to wear...

"...No veils, but such as are made with thread, nor any kinds of fur except those of lambs, rabbits, cats and fox..."

It was not just the lowest classes, ermine fur was only allowed to be worn by royalty.

A typical lady would wear:
Velvet, fur, silk, taffeta, lace and cotton. Knights returning from the Crusades would bring exotic materials back with them.

The ladies would wear many layers to protect them from the draughts in the castles. Under tunics were covered by a longer over dress which often trailed on the floor. The dress had very wide sleeves. The necklines were often decorated with expensive jewels. A full, fur mantel would be fastened at the shoulder. Hair was worn long and plaited. Only young girls, brides and a Queen at her coronation wore their hair loose. It was covered by a layer of silk or linen that wrapped around the neck and tucked into the dress. These later developed into pointy hats, some of which look like horns.

The following just gives a glimpse of what may have been worn and has been simplified due to the complexes of the dress codes of the day. If you are planning to make an accurate Elizabethan costume, I would advise you to take a look at the many websites that specialise in this era.

Elizabethan dress was actually specified by law 15 June 1574 and was enforced by Queen Elizabeth I. To violate the law you could actually be fined, lose your title or even our life! Even colours were specified, see list below to see who could wear what:

Red - lower and upper classes
Gold -Duchesses, Marquises, and Countesses. Dukes, Marquises, and Earls
Crimson - Royalty, Nobility and members of the Council
Indigo - Royalty, Nobility and members of the Council
Purple - Queen, Queen's mother, children, and sisters, and aunts. The King, King's mother, children and uncles
White - lower and upper classes
Black - although expensive to produce, lower and upper classes
Blue - lower and upper classes
Orange - lower and upper classes
Brown - lower and upper classes
Grey - lower and upper classes
Green - were lower and upper classes
Yellow - lower and upper classes
Pink - lower and upper classes

An Elizabethan peasant lady would have worn an undergarment, called a shift, that was basically a T shaped tunic. This would be worn in bed as well. A blouse would be worn over the top. To be historically accurate, the top should not be pulled down over the shoulders, this would have been looked upon as having one's fly open today. Skirts were worn to the ankle bone, or longer. They were made from wool or linen. It was normal to wear two skirts. A bodice would cover the blouse. This needed to be tight enough for support but not so tight that it was uncomfortable. The bodice is the equivalent of our modern day bras. Most traditional bodices lace up. The strapless bodice or the lace up cumberband are a modern invention and will be found on fancy dress costumes, not historically correct garments.

An Elizabethan Peasant man would also wear similar item to the lady peasant, as in a long undergarment called a shift. The shift had fuller sleeves and were front opening to the chest. The opening would not be laced in an historically accurate costume. Short trousers, breeches were worn on the legs to the knee. They had a front fly, but also a flap, called a 'codpiece' which buttoned at the front. Peasants also wore a jerkin, normally made from leather. In bad weather arms could be attached by ties to the jerkin. Jerkins were either laced or tied at the front or belted at the waist. Woollen cloaks were worn in bad weather.

An Elizabethan Lady would go through the following process to get dressed :
Put on her under garments (a shift, the same as the peasant and another shift that had a higher neckline).
A farthingale, or hoop would be used to give the skirt the required fashionable style. The fashion did vary with the farthingale being very popular towards the end of the century. The farthingale gave a bell type of shape where the hoop gave a more sloping angle to the skirt.
Put on a petticoat, called a Kirtle
A bum roll would sit over the petticoat.
Cover the petticoat with an overskirt (this may be attached to the bodice). Upper class overskirts were normally split at the front, so you can see the underskirt underneath.
A bodice would fit over a corset. Normally the bodice would match the colour of the overskirt to give the impression of a dress. The front of the bodice would be fastened or laced. In Elizabethan times, the lacing would not be a design feature like our modern fancy dress copies.
A surcoat would be worn in colder weather. Normally full length, they would go over all the other clothes.
Sleeves were tied onto the garments as and when required.

An Elizabethan Nobleman would wear a shift, similar to the peasant man, but the sleeves would be tighter fitting, so that they would fit under the doublet (jacket). The shift would be heavily decorated, usually by the wife, no matter what her standing was in society. Two types of short trousers were worn. The first, called Venetian Breeches, tapered to the knee where they were tied. The second style called Slops, or paned breeches were padded and varied in length from top of the thigh to the knee. A padded and decorated 'codpiece' was sewn to the front - although this style was starting to decline at this time. A doublet (a close fitting jacket) would be worn on top of the shift or shirt. Eyelet holes or ties are normally fitted at the bottom of the doublet, the breeches would be tied to doublet to stop them falling down. Similar ties were also stitched at the shoulder, to attach sleeves, if the need arised. Cloaks were always worn by Upperclass men and were an option for Middle class men. Many were fur lined and ornately decorated, another way to show off how wealthy you were. Bare legs would never be on show and the men would wear woollen or silk stockings. The stockings would be tied to the doublet with the breeches.

As far as fancy dress is concerned, we do not seperate Elizabethan & Tudor costumes. Our only exception to this would be our actual Elizabeth I costumes (both hire and for sale). If you have been invited to a Elizabethan themed function, please check with your hosts to make sure that they are happy with your choosen costume.

Elizabethan Fancy Dress Costume Suggestions:
Elizabethan Peasant Lady
Elizabethan Peasant Man
Elizabethan Lady
Elizabethan Nobleman
Elizabeth I Costume
William Shakespear
Sir Walter Raleigh

Show me the Elizabethan fancy dress costumes

Oliver Cromwell's government rose up against Charles I, who was executed in 1649. Charles II was crowned monarch in 1660. During this volatile time English styles were very simple. With the Monarchy restored fashion became more elaborate.

The farthingale went out of fashion and although the ladies skirts were still full, they looked far softer, with a tight bodice and an emphasis on a small waist. A shift was still worn against the skin and some ladies started to wear drawers. Stockings were attached to the bottom of these knee length, tight knickers. Stays or corsets pulled in the waist. The corset had a low, curving neckline and were cut to a point at the front of the skirt. The skirt was attached to the corset by hooks. Over this went a padded, bum roll which helped to support the weight of the skirt and petticoats that went underneath. Sleeves begun to get shorter and by 1650 were elbow length. Some overskirts were slashed to show off elaborate underskirts underneath. Hats were not that important to women at this time. Ladies wore their hair drawn back with a curled fringe. Bunches of curls were tied on either side of the head. Pale skin was still 'en vogue' and eyebrows were darkened. Beauty spots (little patches of velvet or silk) were stuck to the sides of the eyes or mouth.

Unusually, it was the male costume that changed more dramatically during this moment of history. Men started to wear linen drawers under their breeches. Shirts begun to get more full and the sleeves were gathered at the wrist and finished with lace and turned back up the jacket (doublet). The doublet had a pointed waistband and a small skirt. The sleeves were sometimes slashed to reveal the shirt underneath. Breeches became fuller and attached to the doublet by being tied on, as in Elizabethan times. A ruff or collar was worn around the neck. Tight fitting boots with a wide top were worn, boot hose (or stockings) were worn underneath he boots.

The 'Periwig' was introduced in the 1660's and by the 1670's the fashion was to have enormous wigs, hanging all over the back in masses of corkscrew curls. Natural hair would be shaved off or cut very short to enable the wearer to get a good fit for his wig. By the end of the century the hair was tied back into a low ponytail, a fashion that continued. Small neat beards and moustaches (with turned up ends) were popular, but progressively got smaller and smaller until they went out of fashion by 1680.

As far as fancy dress is concerned, there is really not much difference between the Tudor, Elizabethan and 17th Century costume as ladies fashion did not change that dramatically. As described above, mens fashion, unusually changed more than ladies, the result being the cavalier costumes and the wearing of wigs. Although, we stock cavalier ladies, these didn't actually exist, but are a fancy dress invention, to invent a couple costume. Peasants (often called wench for a lady) remain unchanged. In fact a wench costume could be used for each of these eras in our history with no problem (although a fancy dress wench costume would be a lot nicer than an actual peasant costume).

17th Century Fancy Dress Costume Suggestions:
Cavalier Lady
Cavalier Man
Musketeer
Elizabethan Lady
Peasant Lady
Peasant Man

Show me the 17th Century fancy dress costumes

Until the 1770s ladies dresses were very wide with tiny waists. Panniers (padded rolls or made from bone) were used to give the dresses their width. Some examples were truly so wide that they made the dresses a nightmare to wear. The shift, or chemise was still being worn and was decorated at the neck with lace. Long, legged bloomers were optional.

The lady would then put on her petticoat followed by a panniered petticoat (or panniers on their own). A matching sleeveless bodice would then be put on. All of this was then covered by the gown. The gown may be open at the front to reveal the ornate petticoats and bodice. The sleeves had layers of lace or ruffles. At the beginning of the century hair was worn in a chignon and crimped with curling irons. After 1730, it was piled high to an enormous height. Powder was added to make the hair look ash blond. False curls and decorations were added.

By the mid 1700s dresses had begun to look softer, although still boned, it was much softer outline. Creole dresses became popular. A creole gown had integral bodices which were only lightly boned. Panniers were being replaced by a softer bustle and the waistline begun to get higher.

Hats started to become popular. Straw hats were worn in the summer and large brimmed hats adorned with feathers and flowers were popular in the winter.

Male doublets had disappeared and the longer length jacket emerged. The outer jacket was collarless with buttons down the front and on turned back cuffs and pocket flaps. An under jacket or waistcoat was worn underneath, these were normally elaborately decorated and worn open to show the shirt. The shirt was decorated at the neck by a jabot, made from ruffles or lace. Loose breeches which tied or fastened just below the knee were worn with stockings. Buckled shoes were worn.

Children were still dressed as miniature adults. Small girls were put into tight bodices and hopped skirts as soon as they came out of baby clothes. Sailor suits were popular for young boys.

This is also a very popular era for fancy dress costumes. If you think of a Prince Charming, or Pirate Captain costume, you will probably be thinking of a type of Georgian costume. It has many uses as far as fancy dress is concerned.

The Georgian era is also thought of of being quite romantic, so again, this helps to keep this theme popular - just think of cinderella and her Prince, even her ugly sisters tend to wear flamboyant georgian costumes.

There are lots of couple costumes for this theme (check the list below) but, like much of our history, the rich were very rich and the poor were very poor, so yes, you can still use the peasant man and wench costumes for this period of time as well.

18th Century Fancy Dress Suggestions:
Marie Antoinette
Louise XVi
Horatio Nelson
Lady Hamilton
Napolean
Josephine
George II
Sir Robert Walpole

Show me the 18th Century fancy dress costumes

The Industrial Revolution made England a wealthy nation and nations traded raw materials. More materials became available from cashmere, cottons from India and more choice of velvets and silks. Machines were invented to manufacture lace and embroidery. In 1850's synthetic dyes were produced.

In the early part of the century women wore 18th century fashions but without the corsets. The skirt came from under the bust line. In 1830 ladies fashion changed completely and the waistline dropped to the normal position. Corsets were worn to emphasise the small waist and to support the bust. Skirts become fuller and slightly shorter, ending at the ankle. Please see Victorian Costume History for more information.

Men wore tailcoats with high collars, white shirts and cravats. Very tight trousers or breeches were worn tucked into long boots. They tended to wear their hair short and were usually clean shaven. Moustaches begun to be popular around 1830.

Children were dressed elaborately in ankle length pantaloons with high waisted dresses over the top. At the age of 6 or 7 the young children were dressed like miniature adults.

With films like Pride & Prejudice, featuring Mr. Darcy have helped to keep this theme very popular for a fancy dress party. The dress design makes this costume a good choice whatever your shape and size as it is very flattering. Although still flamboyant, costumes tend to start looking a bit more modern, although we find many ladies unsure of wearing their dresses shorter than they would do normally.

Early 19th Century Fancy Dress Suggestions:
Mr. Darcy
Jane Austen

Show me the 19th Century fancy dress costumes