Fashion with Nola
The fashions of the Regency Period are very distinctive and quite different from those of the mid-18th century. New manufacturing processes made clothing more affordable. Ease of movement, especially for women, informed some styles. Men eschewed colorful evening wear for severe, but elegant black and white ensembles.
Where is a Lady to Shop?
Are you thinking of hosting a Regency Tea Party and you want to appear in appropriate period dress? You might consider dropping into the Historical Emporium on line only at www.historicalemporium.com. Based in San Jose, California, the Historical Emporium offers Regency, Victorian, Edwardian clothing, western and steampunk clothing. These items are real clothing for “real life.” There is a wide range of items to choose from. The items are sold separately, so if you only want a shawl or a sash for your dress, you can buy it. The prices are quite reasonable for period fashions.
One of the nice aspects of the Historical Emporium is that their fashion experts have curated a number of complete “looks.” Should a writer wish to make sure that she or he is properly describing a character’s outfit, one can look closely at the pictures of Regency ladies and gentlemen on this site to make sure that every detail is correct.
The fashions in the Regency section at the Historical Emporium are all day wear. For evening dresses, one might want to investigate ieie Bridal, an online couture atelier based in New Jersey. They have a collection of Regency Style “Bridgerton Ball Gowns” that are very lovely and quite reasonably priced. These can be customized to one’s specifications. All the gowns are made by hand. www.ieiebridal.com
Men’s Regency evening wear is somewhat more difficult to come by. Etsy has a Regency Fashion store that has a limited selection of men’s fashions. They also feature women’s Regency fashions and Regency jewelry.
Enjoy shopping!