“Vanity working on a weak head, produces every sort of mischief.” — Jane Austen Emma (1815


“Vanity working on a weak head, produces every sort of mischief.” — Jane Austen Emma (1815
1810 ca. Spencer, Or Short Jacket, Of Printed Cotton, Europe. White base with rose and zigzag motifs in pink, red, yellow and green. via Mode Muze, Netherlands ~ modemuze.nl. Spencers were needed to cover the flimsy dresses made of lightweight fabrics of the Regency years, to provide warmth and some protection from windy conditions when the transparency of gowns might cause modesty issues. Jane Austen and her contemporaries often walked to places and so would have needed the warmth of a Spencer over her dress in the cold British winters.
Definition Spencer: Short body-hugging jacket worn for warmth and modesty. Said to have originated in an accident to Lord Spencer while hunting when his coat tails were torn off and he wore it as a short jacket.
1810 Green Wool Coat With Metal Buttons, European. Velvet collar, lined, cutaway front and two rows of metal buttons. Back has horizontal pockets and gusset and flap with buttons. The sort of coat worn by gentlemen in Britain and Europe in the times of Jane Austen via Metropolitan Museum, N.Y.C., U.S.A. metmuseum.org
1814 Couple In Walking Ensembles, French. Gentleman in a brown tailcoat with a notched collar and back pockets, vest, white breeches tied under his knees, red fob at the waist, white stockings, high white shirt collar, white cravat, top hat and cane. Lady in adorable pink Redingote with capes.
1818-1823 ca. Turban, London, U.K. Silk, silk thread, paper, cotton, wire,and hand-sewn. Cap is gathered and full to mimic the shape of a turban which became popular evening wear around 1820 when ‘exotic’ was fashionable.
Silk, silk thread, paper, cotton, wire and hand-sewn. A full cap of white satin gathered into a headband in imitation of a turban. The crown is inset with white net embroidered in circles with white silk thread. The headband is of white satin with three horizontal tucks and edged with white silk plush. Trimmed on one side with artificial flowers made of wired green paper leaves and white muslin rosebuds. via Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
Early 19th-century etiquette required a lady’s head to be covered at all times, even with evening dress. A cap such as this one, gathered and full to suggest the shape of a turban, was popular for evening wear about 1820. The Romantic movement created an interest in the dress of non-European countries, particularly North Africa and the Middle East. Decorative motifs and accessories were borrowed to make current fashions more ‘exotic’. Although knowledge of the proper proportions and construction of a turban was not available to British milliners, the overall shape was approximated for the most fashionable headwear.
1818-1823 ca. Silk Turban As Worn In Jane austen and Bridgerton Times. #Bridgerton #JaneAusten #RegencyEra #HistoricalFashion #Hats https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1815-1819 Share on X1800 ca. Brown Striped Trousers, American or European. Button front waistband, small drop down flap, or fall, pockets, and with extra fullness in the back for ease of movement. via Metropolitan Museum, N.Y.C., U.S.A. The style of men’s pants that replaced breeches as the fashionable pants item for men in Jane Austen’ times.
1810-1820 ca. Pantaloons, Probably Military, British. The type of pants worn by men in Jane Austen’s times when wars were being fought all over the world, especially in Europe. Machine-knitted white cotton decorated with cream silk braid on sides and fronts as seen on Hussar uniforms. Cut to fit the leg and button bottom at waist with three buttons. Front fall buttons over five buttoned fly, two horizontal pockets at front below waistband and fob pocket in waistband. Four metal buttons for braces, two front and two back. Cotton ‘puff’ centre back waist and two linen tapes for waist adjustment. via Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK. collections.vam.ac.uk.
Pair of men’s pantaloon trousers made of machine-knitted white cotton and decorated with cream silk braid applied down the sides and on the fronts. This imitates the hussar uniforms of the period and appeared on fashionable men’s dress. The pantaloons are cut to fit the leg and button at the bottom with three buttons. The pantaloons fasten at the front with front falls buttoning over a five buttoned fly. There are two horizontal pockets at the front below the waistband and a fob pocket in the waistband. There are four metal buttons for braces, two at the front and two at the back. These probably are original. There is a cotton ‘puff’ at the centre back waist and two linen tapes for waist adjustment.
Pantaloons also brought the glamour of military uniform into men’s fashionable dress, especially when teamed with Hessian boots. Uniforms worn by the various armies during the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815) were often very colourful and lavishly adorned with braid and tassels. It is hardly surprising that some of these attractive trimmings should have infiltrated fashion, particularly when nationalistic feelings ran high. Civilian pantaloons were often ornamented with military-style braid that was applied in a vertical band of topside Russia braiding. They were not, however, generally decorated on the front, which suggests that this pair was for military use. The silk braid is applied in the form of an Austrian knot, which was a popular motif on pantaloons of the light cavalry such as the hussars and light dragoons.
“Her own thoughts and reflections were habitually her best companions. ” Jane Austen Mansfield Park (1814)
Historic images, historical information, and funny anecdotes give an overview of life in the early 1800s. Information for history readers and writers of the Regency Years, for Jane Austen fans and all history buffs. Pictures help visualize the people and places of the long Regency period. https://books2read.com/suziloveROver Regency Overview Regency Life Series Book 1 by Suzi Love.
The Regency Life Series By Suzi Love depicts the ups and downs of life in the early 1800’s, or Jane Austen’s years, or the Regency Era. Fun pictures, historical information, and funny anecdotes show how people fill their days, where they go and with whom they spend their time. These light-hearted looks at the longer Regency years are an easy to read overview of what people did and wore, and where they worked and played. Plenty of information for history buffs and lots of pictures help readers and writers of historical fiction visualize the last years of the 18th Century until Queen Victoria took the throne.
1801 November 9th Playing Cards. Men and women play cards at round table. Supreme Bon Ton Plate 2. Published by S W Fores. Men and women play cards at round table. Man and woman talk to players. Woman sleeps in upright chair, two others, one with parasol and other fan, walk off arm-in-arm.Men: High-waisted coats, high collars, huge neck-cloths, with pumps or Hessian boots. Women: High-waisted dresses, short sleeves, long trains, very low necklines, short ringlets, two in caps. Via British Museum, London, UK. britishmuseum.org (PD-Art)
In Jane Austen’s times, cartoons posted in the windows of shops were one of the main ways people found news. Common people couldn’t afford newspapers so cartoonists ridiculed the people and the places with cartoons of the daily events happening in London and other cities. The ridiculous fashion trends of the late 1700s and early 1800s were easy targets for satirical cartoons as was the addiction to gambling by women and men alike.