Behind the Scenes of Regency Fashion with Ella Quinn

Although I was reading Regencies for about forty years before I started writing them, and knew a great deal about the clothing. I soon discovered that reading about a gown was not the same as writing about it. Thus the research began. There are whole books and blogs concerning how a well-bred Regency lady would dress (please note that the word “dress” was a verb during the Regency, the garment was a “gown.”) Now, to go though the entire wardrobe would make for a very long post, so this is by no means exhaustive.

There were day gowns, usually of thin muslin and worn at home, walking gowns, carriage gowns, riding dress, evening gowns and ball gowns, and this list is not exhaustive. The typical Regency lady could change up to 6 times a day.

What young unmarried ladies wore differed in color and material from what older or married ladies could wear.

Let’s start with the undergarments. The first thing most women would don is a chemise, also called a shift, usually made of muslin. It tied in the front so it could be adjusted. Over that she’d wear stays. Some people like to call them corsets, but to me corsets are the heavy ones used during the Victorian era. Regency stays varied and could tie in the front or back, and be long or short. The one thing they had in common was that they were not tight.

Next came petticoats, also of thin muslin. Ladies wore up to five petticoats to add fullness to the gown.

At some point, she’d don stockings made of cotton, silk or wool. Cotton was usually worn during the day, unless it was cold, which is where wool comes in. For evening she’d want silk. These are not the fine thin silks we’re used to seeing today, but a fairly heavy silk that was quite opaque.

Lastly the gown. For everyday it might be muslin, cotton, or twill, and fine cashmere and velvet for cooler weather. For evening a young lady, just out, would most likely wear muslin in pastels. Strong colors weren’t considered proper for a young lady. An older or married lady would wear any of the wide verity of silks, or in colder weather velvets.

To accessorize, there were huge shawls, gloves, reticules, in the winter large muffs, and, of course, bonnets. A lady did not leave the house without wearing gloves and bonnet. Skirt pockets went out of fashion because of the line of the Regency gown, and reticules were used as a purse.

Generally ladies wore half-boots to go walking in. They were made of heavy cloth, such as jean, or leather. For evening they wore slippers.

Though there were second hand stores, ladies in the ton would have all their clothes and shoes custom made. Fabric was very expensive, so clothes were re-cut and styled, new trimmings added, and sometimes gowns were dyed.