Regency Attire and the Greeks: Looking at History Through Rose-Colored Glasses

This is a long-standing research project for me, and it has taken me to parts completely unknown. It all began with: what is historicism?

Historicism is a fascinating topic; it is derived from the idea that history long ago is influencing choices that we make today. Well duh! It can be as complicated or as simple as you choose to make it, but there as many different facets to historicism that are played out in different ways. In the world of fashion, we are constantly being influenced by things that have already been done, and finding new ways to make it "the new vogue"; in other words, taking something that was already tried, but in an exciting way that fits the newly adapted modern taste. Sort of a rose-colored glasses-type of thing.

When recreating historical clothing, most people agree that peering through a modern lense of any sort dilutes the true accuracy of any garment, simply because contemporary tastes are different than 100, 150,  or 300 years ago. But another question to ask yourself is, what if looking through a lense would actually benefit us, as long as the lense was situated in the correct position?

Consider this: looking at a garment without any context is rather boring. You can learn a lot with an open mind,  but with no expectation there is not really much to look at. When you look at a dress, you have no idea appreciation for why it is what it is. And we have already established that a timeline working backwards from where we are today is useless, as it tells us nothing we don't already know other than, "My, that dress is ugly!" of  "I can't believe people actually wore that!" or "Wow, I was born in the wrong century! Except for corsets...." You have no historical lense.

1830-34 dress from the V and A....1830's are probably the most misunderstood and most hated decade of fashion in the history of fashion.

To get into the correct mindset, it is important that you adjust your glasses to the date you are researching, and look both backwards and forwards. What has been accomplished at this current point in history? What is happening? What is everyone interested in? What was everyone interested 10 years ago? That is the backwards. Now the forwards: what can I do with this current dress in 2 years to keep it fashionable? Or 5? Is there a forseeable future for the next fashion-forward step, or is it unexpected? The most interesting thing I have learned in this research project is the importance of not only understanding the fashion timeline, but the previous 50 or so years in politics, art, music, religion, and mindset.

For a series of challenges which I sometimes participate in, one of the challenges was Historicism. Cool! I was excited to see what everyone came up with. A few who accepted the challenge chose to use Regency attire, simply because it's an easy default. Literally every costumer knows that as the 18th century came to a close, the good people of Europe and the America's looked to the Greeks for fashion inspiration, particularly when it came to color and a high-waisted, simple style. The Neoclassical era was born, and history was changed forever.

C. 1804 Neoclassical dress from the V and A

I began contemplating what I knew already about the Neoclassical era, which is pretty much summed up in the above statement. As it churned the idea around in my mind, it began to sound off. I pulled out my calculator and punched in some numbers. The amount of time that passed from the end of the Classical era of art (around 31 B. C.) to the beginning of the Neoclassical era was......


 1,826 YEARS!!!  Ludicrous! Hilarious! Actually, quite ridiculous. That's like us, looking to Jesus Christ for fashion inspiration. Or the Bayeaux tapestry.

Those helmets need to make a comeback....oh, and the shields. Note the blue horse.

What the heck were they looking at? No internet, 1,800 years after the fact. As seperated as we feel from even 100 years ago, with internet and resources, the Regency perspective of ancient Greece must have been even more romanticized that ours. Their rose-colored glasses were definitely on for this one as they examined the only source that they had: statues.

Next Up: The Neoclassical Era, and the Reality of 1800 years

Challenge #5: Holes Update

Even though it may seem as though I've dropped off the face of the blogging planet, my current project is a Regency corset. Yay! It's come along a little on the slow side; at first I thought the cording would be fun, but after the first panel....yeah, not so much. Actually, I do enjoy the cording, but it took me a little while to figure out what the best size cord channel was. After much pulling, yanking, and hand cramping, I finally ripped out and re-stitched a few from 1/8'' channel to 3/16''. What a difference!

Living in a dry climate, my air-erasable pen disappears REALLY fast. On my first panel, I was going along, taking my sweet time tracing and getting it all perfect. As I started pinning the pieces together to start sewing, I saw that the very first lines I had drawn were already disappearing. AAAHHH! So I sewed like the wind, and that was part of why some of the channels ended up so tight. But dang, they sure turned out nice!

On the next back panel, I had the sense to go through and sew the middle seam of each set of cords. Then it didn't matter too much if the lines were erased because I had a better idea of how far away to sew it. I also didn't try to force the cord in and went back and re-sewed a few. It was worth the time to re-do a few. Plus an entertaining story put me in a better mood to fix it, vs. watching Lord of the Rings which I was only partially paying attention to what I was doing. Hence the not perfectly even embroidery, lol. The sun has yet to cooperate with my tracing efforts, so the front has not even been started with the cording. 

Right now, I am in a bit of a slump because I got my wisdom teeth pulled two days ago. My brain is totally unmotivated with the pain-killers, so I'm guessing Historical Sew Fortnightly entry will be a little late. The dentist recommended a hot compress; this little gel pack was the only thing Walgreens had. I have named him Penguino, and he has been of great comfort to me in my time of suffering.

Plus I've had a friend ask me to make a few small items before the first week of June, so that is also slowing me down a little. She rides her horse side-saddle and enters in small competitions with her gorgeous Gypsy Vanner; she enters in costume classes and has a gypsy costume, but she wanted a headscarf that matched her outfit. I didn't take a picture of the finished product, but here is a picture of the pretty trim.

Also, last minute they changed the open 'costume class' to Edwardian side-saddle class, and needs a habit shirt to go under her riding jacket. So far, I've got a couple ideas.

A. A chemisette with a seperate stock tie. This is today a part of traditional dressage and fox hunting attire. She would need to find a stock pin, either fancy or plain. This is my favorite in the way it looks, as it isn't too complicated to tie and is acceptable in the modern show ring.

B. A chemisette with an actual cravat. Probably my least favorite option, as they are more complicated to tie and she doesn't prefer anything that rides up too high on the neck. Also, they are not very feminine. I know the cravat is hard to see in this fashion plate, but up close I am not entirely convinced that isn't a man.

C. A chemisette with a jabot, either lace or muslin. I think this might be the easiest option to make and wear as I think I can make them one piece, although the ruffles might be too fussy. I also don't think they are particularly Edwardian; when I think of Edwardian attire I think sleek and traditional (as far as riding habits), and jabots are really a Colonial garment. The below jabot is listed on the MET as circa 1900. Ok, so maybe it is an option. But I think I would like to avoid ruffles.