Before I get started on today's lookbook I have to give a huge shout out to @anachrosims for graciously making a separated top version of her newest British Royal Navy uniform, without which putting these ensembles together would have been a real struggle and a half.
While women's fashions of the early 19th century looked toward classical Greek and Roman antiquity for style inspiration, there was a growing Anglomania among fashionable men, who turned to the tailors of Britain for a new, refined look. The restrained riding costumes worn by English gentlemen on their country estates started to permeate into everyday clothing. Outfits were mostly un-ornamented and colours subdued, with court dress being the only exception to this turn away from ostentatious excess. Instead, luxury was outwardly expressed through the perfect fit of each element of a manâs wardrobe.
The Napoleonic Wars had a great influence on menswear, as military uniforms became some of the most lavish and elaborate in history. Braid, frogging, Brandenburg buttons, and tassels found their way into civilian menâs and womenswear for years and the prevailing fashion for pantaloons tucked into boots was, at least in part, inspired by the military.
While pantaloons and breeches were the dominate style of bottoms for men, trousers started to creep their way into male fashion, albeit only in the most informal of occasions. Initially worn by boys and sailors, they became a more relaxed option for men to don during leisurely past times such as seaside promenading. CC links under the cut.
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1300s âş 1400s âş 1500s âş 1600s âş 1700s âş 1800s
