Fashion+in+the+Restoration

**Female Attire **  The shaping of the female waist occurred in the early Renaissance period where “a long, rigid, almost cone-shaped corset reaching well below the waist to a V[-shape]” was used to create a painfully slimming allusion; the corset was “used before to emphasize, but never to distort the feminine form.” Whalebone petticoats were used in to promote more comfort and replace of metal stays of clothing, yet there was still an increase of general discomfort in female clothing due to “the widespread practice of artificially shaping the skirts with underpinnings varying from bags of bran to elaborate metal cages.” As a result of this narrowing waist trend, the “breasts were forced upward above the corset and remained there until fashions changed with the French Revolution in 1789” (//Costume//).  The heavy layers of women’s dresses were lightened in the eighteenth century as “light silks and colors and the loose gown,” otherwise known as the mantua, were introduced. These loose skirts were “[s]pread over panniers” to create a flowy and billowing illusion (//Costume//). Women of the elite made these “loose gowns... worn for [their] comfort on certain occasion” (Ribeiro, 208).  Women’s choices in attire dictated “their ability to negotiate the city environment” (Reinke-Williams). Women who choose to be fashionable on their city outings “could either lift their gowns up, thus running the risk of being chided for possible impropriety, or leave them to rail on the ground and be accused of profligacy and [untidiness]” (Ribeiro, 207). Female thieves were said to “[dress] well to gain access to wealthy households,” while “[s]ome elite women dressed down to slum it on the streets” (Reinke-Williams). Women were closely paid attention to from their choice of dress; they “were recognised by their clothes, and if they wore their best attire or anything unusual it attracted curiosity.” Additionally, in order to get away with attending festivities, some women “cross-dressed to participate in festive entertainments” (Reinke-Williams).  Masks, that were worn often by women while traveling or on casual outings, either covered the “brow, eyes, and nose or the whole face;” prostitutes were noted to often wear masks. The mask was used for purposes of concealing identity, as well as in efforts of protecting the complexion; they were made of “black velvet in winter [and] satin in the warmer months” (Ribeiro, 263).  The feminine accessory of a fan was not only a staple to most daytime outfits but known as “[t]he single most important accessory for the Restoration woman” as it served “as a weapon in the game of love” (Russell, 250). There were “different ways women used their fans” and a certain art to it; there was the “‘angry Flutter, the modest Flutter, the timorous Flutter, the confused Flutter, the merry Flutter, and the amorous Flutter’” (Ribeiro, quoted from //The Spectator//, no. 102, 27 June 1711, 333). The use of these fans acted as a serious prop for reinforcing the female character’s emotions by adding the physical action of a certain flutter being associated with their mood; flirtatious motions of fanning could “act as a language of sexual invitation” in some cases (Ribeiro, 333). Notably, the character Mrs. Loveit in Act II scene ii of Etheredge's play //The Man of Mode// causes a scene while arguing with her lover Dorimant in her action that cues her to “//[t]ear her fan in pieces.”// Her extreme fury can be visually imagined for the way she forcefully takes her rage on the fan, to which Dorimant responds with wit: “Spare your fan, madam. You are growing hot, and will want it to cool you.” Dorimant indicates the actual purpose of a fan being for means of cooling down “an overheated complexion” (Ribeiro, 250) especially while being in heavy costuming.  A grand variety of quality fabrics, featuring the latest styles and trends, were marketed at the Royal Exchange and the New Exchange. It was “customary for [these] fabrics to be bought and taken to a tailor or dressmaker” and women were noted to gradually take “over the making of all women’s clothing” (Ribeiro, 254). //Marcure Gallant// was the name of first French magazine, established in 1672, that was well known in helping to “promote French styles through Europe” (Sterlacci). //The Ladies Dictionary// makes a notable comment of the French influence in elite fashions in saying: “‘We [e]at, [d]rink, and [s]leep in plain English, but we manage the rest of our [a]ctions in French’” indicating how France was known to “‘infect the lifestyles of elite men and women” (Ribeiro, 334).
 * Fashion in the Restoration Period **



**Male Attire **  Basic garments that were worn by all men included the doublet, a short, padded, and tight-fitting jacket that had “a high neckband to support the collar or the ruff,” and breeches that came in various styles, most of them “being the padded and rounded trunk-hose” (Ribeiro, 42-43). These clothes were “more decorated for formal occasions, and more muted for everyday wear” (Ribeiro, 42). Male neckwear, in reference to the collar/ruff, was generally signified as the “band” and came in various styles including: “a plain band, a laced band,... a Spanish ruff, a falling ruff, [and] a round ruff” (Ribeiro, 49). While indoors, “men often wore long gowns that were both comfortable and luxurious” featuring fabrics such as Italian purple silk, or velvets lined with fur (Ribeiro, 47). The seventeenth century held “the most radical change” for men’s clothes. They still continued wearing late Middle Age garb such as “doublet, breeches and hose, and a cape,” yet started making a conventional changes along with adding “ decorative emphasis” on their clothing items such as and in “the lengthening of breeches, which were… elaborately decorated once exposed” (//Costume//). The Restoration period additionally “witnessed exciting developments in watchmaking... [t]hus a technological development became a fashionable development that significantly changed Londoners’ relationship with time.” <span style="color: #333333; font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">The doublet made transition into becoming more of a “waistcoat or vest,” which became <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">popularized by Charles II, and soon they “introduced... a small interior pocket in which to carry a pocket watch” (Atwood, 91).

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> Wigs were the ultimate male accessory “of all the aspects of male dress” for “the wig [became] by far the most dominant element in men’s appearance” (Ribeiro, 336). It replaced “men’s natural hair at any social occasion” (//Costume//). Men exhibited their elite status by wearing wigs that were “vast and heavily powdered;” this was known to “sometimes provoke class confrontations” (Ribeiro, 337). It was between 1700-1710 where “[w]igs reached their maximum size.” The wigs were held up and thickened from “pomatum (gum or grease) which could turn rancid, so perfume” was used in efforts to mask the scent. The character of Lord Foppington in the play //The Relapse// interestingly remarks how: “‘a Perriwig to a Man should be like a Mask to a Woman; nothing should be seen but his eyes,’” (Ribeiro, 337) indicating the traces of identity that both accessories give to each gender – one being used to flaunt, while the other to conceal. <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">The character of a fop was depicted in a male who had “an obsessive interest in dress was regarded as somewhat suspect, even an indication of effeminacy.” (Ribeiro, 336) They were generally wealthy enough to afford such lavish attention to their dress, “[t]hose who could afford it went to Paris for their clothes,” (Ribeiro, 256) but “often [became] impoverished through borrowing to keep up appearances” (Ribeiro, 183).



<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> The image above presents how “[m]oral concerns regarding men’s dress were not so much to do with sexuality… but [rather] involved [concern in] pride, vanity, and excessive expenditure” (Ribeiro, 182). The image shows a male dressed quite heavily with excessive detail in his clothing while posing beside a peacock. The peacock is possible symbolization of the ostentatious character that is manifested in males who overindulge in fashion, and additionally, a peacock being the male species of the peafowl, is esteemed for its glorious array of patterned feathers and vibrant colors, as opposed to the peahen (female) that is rather a dull, simple bird. Steele indicates in //The Spectator// how: “‘much Cloaths contribute to make us agreeable Objects, and how much we owe it to ourselves that we should appear so.’ (//The Spectator//, no. 478, 8 September 1712),” proving that while it is necessary for both men and women to “follow the happy medium in fashion,” it is also important to avoid extremes in appearing too pretentious (Ribeiro, 338).

**Costuming in //The School for Scandal//** <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> The period of the eighteenth century “showed great interest in more archeological correctness in stage dress” by displaying a “number if innovations and changes in theatrical costume” (Russell, 272-275).” Richard Brinsley Sheridan's play //The School for Scandal// held two characteristics in its costume design: one being “a very detailed, psychologically based character approach to costume” and two “a much more limited, abstracted decorative approach to costume” (Russell, 279). The play’s focus on the elite class of eighteenth-century English society called for a certain fabric selection that was able to “reflect the social level and personal taste of each character and the artistic ideals of the society” (Russell, 280). Fabrics used to create costumes were in the ranges of: “tafetas, moiréd silks, satins, hard wool gabardines... heavy velvets, and dull cottons.” Soft touches of velvet and lace were only apparent in “collars, cuffs, and vests.” The use of this selection of textures is said to “[reflect] the nature of the script, which makes its first impression through its hard, clever, witty dialogue and sophisticated urbanity” and further progresses on “a secondary impression through its softer underlying accents of sentiment and subtle sermonizing” (Russell, 280). <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> Color selection of the pieces were noted to be more light and pastel-like capturing a casual “and subtle[ty] decorative” mood. The use of a light color scheme was in effort to reflect the “lack of seriousness in the treatment of the theme” of the play. There were only minuscule instances of “muddied or dark color[s]” that were used in the representation of “minor character[s] or someone of a lower social order” (Russell, 280). <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> The usage of ornament is said to communicate “the comic tone” with decorations such as “ribbons and bows, braid edging a man’s coat, floral accents, and the treatment of buttons and buckles” that made a statement through their “size and placement” on the garments. (Russell, 280-281) <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;"> The costuming for the character of Maria can be best visualized from this portrait of Sheridan’s wife by Thomas Gainsborough. The piece, titled //Mrs. Richard Brinsley Sheridan//, features a “new chemise gown [that was] introduced into English fashion in the 1780’s.” The soft and delicate dress “gives a simple, sentimental, windblown outdoor look” that is perceived to be “very appropriate” for Maria’s sensitive character (281, Russell).

Bibliography <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Atwood, Emma Katherine. "Fashionably Late: Queer Temporality and the Restoration Fop." Comparative Drama, vol. 47, no. 1, Spring2013, pp. 85-111. EBSCOhost. Web. []

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">"Costume." Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 2017, p. 1p. 1. EBSCOhost. Web. [|http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=8275be1d-cca0-46e0-a41c-e95b86b43176%40sessionmgr103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=CO225700&db=funk]

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Reinke-Williams, Tim. "Women's Clothes and Female Honour in Early Modern London." Continuity & Change, vol. 26, no. 1, May 2011, pp. 69-88. EBSCOhost. Web. <span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">[]

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Ribeiro, Aileen. Fashion and Fiction : Dress in Art and Literature in Stuart England. Yale University Press, 2005. Print.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Russell, Douglas A. Period Style for the Theatre. Allyn and Bacon, 1980. Print.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Russell, Douglas A. Stage Costume Design : Theory, Technique, and Style. 2nd ed. Prentice-Hall, 1985. Print.

<span style="font-family: &#39;Times New Roman&#39;;">Sterlacci, Francesca and Joanne Arbuckle. Historical Dictionary of the Fashion Industry. vol. Second edition, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2017. Historical Dictionaries of Professions and Industries. EBSCOhost. Web.