A New Book on Regency-Era Fashions

©Cheryl Bolen

As an author of historcial books, I have found Jody Gayle's first book, Fashions in the Era of Jane Austen, an invaluable research resource. I have it both in print and ebook. Now I am delighted to have her newest release, Fashions in the Era after Jane Austen. Discerning readers won't find dramatic differences in the two eras since they are separated by just a few years. The first book covers 1809-1820; the second, 1821-1828.

Ms. Gayle has given us another gem. She goes directly to the source: Ackermann's Repository of the Arts, a popular woman's magazine in Georgian England. Moreover, each of these stunning fashion prints is accompanied by its original text, carefully presented with sometimes-archaic spellings that lend (if possible) even more authenticity.

"The illustrations need to be described in the language of their time," Ms. Gayle writes in her preface. "The words add a whole new depth to the illustrations and, most importantly, a glimpse into the culture."

I concur. One particularly vital reason for including these rather comprehensive written descriptions is that they describe what types of fabrics were used in each facet of the dress. This is of immense importance to historical writers.

In addition, each hairstyle depicted is described. Here's an example: "The hind hair is arranged in braids and bows, which do not rise much above the crown of the head. The front hair is brought very low at the sides of the face in light curls: the forehead is left bare, with the exception of a single ringlet in the middle. A coral wreath is placed rather far back."

Fabrics of gloves and shoes are also given, as well as explanations of jewelry worn.

An added bonus for us historical writers is little plugs—with locations—of various tradespersons associated with the dress.

 

The above is an illustration of Ms. Gayle's first book next to my last mass-market paperback, used to illustrate the size of Ms. Gayle's books.

The oversized paper-bound book features just about one hundred fashion plates, and these include morning dress, promenade dress, wedding dress, evening dress, ball dress, carriage dress, head dress (which features multiple prints of head wear), full dress, walking dress, and garden costume. The prints in this new book are of considerably higher quality than the ones in the first.

 

I am indebted to Ms. Gayle and to my fellow author of historical romance, Candice Hern, for making this book possible: Ms. Gayle, for dedicating herself to unearthing publications from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and bringing them to life; Candice, whose wonderful website inspired Ms. Gayle's passion for early nineteenth-century fashion.—Cheryl Bolen, whose newest release is Duchess by Mistake, a House of Haverstock book

Fashions in Era of Jane Austen

Jody Gayle is the editor/designer of Fashions in the Era of Jane Austen, and it is solely through her efforts that this wonderful resource is now available both electronically and as an oversized paperback with hundreds of color illustrations.

 

Cheryl Bolen: Thank you, Jody, for being our guest today, and thank you for introducing a whole new generation (and more) to Ackermann's Repository. First, will you tell us what Ackermann's Repository was?

 

The Ackermann’s Repository of the Arts was a monthly British periodical published from 1809-1829 by Rudolph Ackermann.  It was a highly popular nineteenth-century publication devoted to the study of the arts, literature, commerce, manufacturing, politics and fashion.  I believe a contemporary example could be a monthly version of the New York Times with somewhere between 60-80 pages.  However, the Repository of the Arts included a significant amount of information provided by the readers including personal letters, poems, opinion pieces and general articles. 

 

Each monthly issue contained several illustrations produced by artists using a technique called etching. Two of the illustrations were always hand-painted prints normally featuring the whole body of a woman dressed in the latest fashions.  Every fashion print included a detailed description of the type of clothing shown, its style, cut, trim, color, type of fabric and the accompanying accessories. 

 

 

Cheryl Bolen: In compiling your book, why did you make the decision to reproduce all the illustrations with the exact same language that was used in their original publication?

 

There were a couple reasons why it was important to include the language of the time to accompany the fashion plates.  When I began my research I found books with tons of beautiful fashion prints.  Then I began reading Ackermann’s Repository that included the descriptions and discovered a whole new dimension and depth to the illustrations.  It seemed sad that the words of the past were being forgotten and I felt there would be others who might like to read the descriptions.  Plus, I wanted to provide a convenient means for scholars and authors to access this information.  There are over 240 issues of Ackermann’s Repository and over 16,000 pages!  It can take months to research or find all the fashion prints.  

 

 

Cheryl Bolen: Can you describe for us the some of the steps you had to take in order to produce your incomparable work?

 

Just a few years ago I worked for a local newspaper company and they also published a bridal magazine so I had some idea of the process of printing and design.  I was able to publish my book due to the fantastic program through Amazon.  It allows authors to self-publish their own digital and paperback books but then every little detail and decision has to be made by the author without the assistance of a publishing house.

I began by contacting the Philadelphia Museum of Art Library for the permission to use their copies of Ackermann’s Repository of Arts.   Then I spent my time searching, scanning, and organizing the illustrations and then searching, typing and organizing all of the text.  Developing the organization system was crucial to keep the illustrations and the accompanying descriptions straight.  I had to be meticulous since one of my goals was to provide a resource to scholars and authors.  Everything had to be exactly right and accurate.   There wasn’t an easy way to accomplishing this task other than pure determination and hard work.  Then I had the whole book professionally proofread and compared to the original documents. 

 

The Kindle book was designed by me but I paid an experienced company to format the book but for future projects I can format the book myself.  A critical decision in designing the paperback book was choosing the size of the book.  This decision impacted everything from the fashion plate quality and detail, the book design, and ultimately the price of the book and shipping costs.  In the end I chose the largest book size available and the size is similar to a textbook. 

 

    

Cheryl Bolen: Just how many pages are in your book, and how many illustrations?

 

Well, since you asked I counted and there are 291 illustrations and 376 total pages.  When I first uploaded my book to Amazon it was too many pages and I had to redesign the book so some of the illustrations included the descriptions on the same page.  When you purchase the Kindle version there is a note to readers that due to its large file size, this book may take longer to download.  Fashions in the Era of Jane Austen are the fashion plates from 1809 to 1820.  My next project will contain the next nine years I was unable to include in the in the first book.  I am having a difficult time deciding on a title. 

Cheryl Bolen: Thank you, Jody, for visiting with us -- and for making this fabulous resource available to us.

 

Regency Men's Clothing; pants, breeches, pantaloons, oh my!

Any well-heeled gentleman knows the importance of being well-turned out, if he hopes to catch the ladies' eyes, or even be accepted among their peers. Here are what Regency Romance Novel heroes would wear, based on what they really wore in Regency England.

BREECHES
Breeches, (pronounced britches) by the Regency era were considered old-fashioned. They are very baggy through the hips and seat. The exception was buckskin breeches, which are made of leather, and were quite tight, even being well molded to the body, like Levi's. That actually paints a nice visual, doesn't it? ;-)

Most breeches had a front fall which is a flap that covers the front opening. Early in the era the flap was a wide fall, going all the way across from hip to hip (think of the outer seam of the pants we wear today). Later, the fall narrowed, going only from hip-bone to hip-bone. Both falls worked in exactly the same way; the waistband buttoned, usually with 2-3 buttons, then the fall closed like a bib over the otherwise open front area of the pants.
Side by side drawing of wide and narrow falls which comes from:
http://www.pemberley.com/images/Clothes/widefall-and-narrowfall2.jpg

There was a style called the "French fly", which is a simply a center front fly, but most Regency Englishmen didn't wear this style because they felt the French fly was somehow indecent and shouldn't be seen. In the painting "Passer Payez", Boilly c. 1803. The gentleman in the center is wearing breeches with a "French fly" which, isn't a suprise since it's a French painting. I think it's more flattering. This picture was taken from http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/passpaye.jpg

Men in Regency England didn't use belts. Instead, pants of all types would have been held up by "X" crossed braces (suspenders). In England it had to do with the length of the waistcoat. When the waistcoat was long enough to cover the front of the trouser, you saw both front-fall and French fly configurations. When fashion shortened the waistcoat, the front-fall was the most popular method of closure. Personally, I don't see much difference in modesty but at the time, it mattered. Shrug.

A pair of breeches, front view, close, c. 1770s.
http://www.pemberley.com/images/Clothes/breeches-c1770s.jpg

Back views of same. See how baggy it is?
http://www.pemberley.com/images/Clothes/back-of-breeches.jpg

Buckskin breeches, c. 1790s
http://www.pemberley.com/images/Clothes/buckskin-breeches-1790s.jpg
http://www.pemberley.com/images/Clothes/close-up-of-pocket.jpg

1790s breeches, with a close up of the fastening which hides a pocket.


These are the slimmest breeches I've ever seen, and these were made by a reenactor. See how they are still much baggier through the hip than pantaloons?


These breeches are from Sense and Sensibility. Note now baggy they are, and how the fall gapes when the man bends over; Edwards are baggier than Willoughby's, Edward being more conservative in manners and dress, so that's a nice detail.


Buckskin breeches were the jeans of the 19th century. They were comfortable and generally fairly form-fitting, so in my humble opinion, flattering. This is circa 1815. In the detail shots that the waistband comes up higher than the fall, and that the knee has both buttons and ties. This one is my favorite.



On my next post, we'll discuss pantaloons for the Regency Gentleman. 'til then!