I’ve posted about female Regency era fashion a few times. Today, I want to talk about male fashions–specifically the wacky ones. You probably have something close to this in your head for male clothing of the era.
I’ve gone through a lot of fashion prints and these are pretty standard examples of the era. Oh, but there’s more. I wonder what Mr. Bennet would say about the lace some of these men wore.
Like this guy…
There’s also the issue of hats. Here’s what we think of for Mr. Darcy
Instead, there’s this:
Ben Franklin wouldn’t have needed a kite for his electrical experiment. He could have waited a few decades and just used his ginormous hat! They’ll fly away in a gust of wind!
For ladies, the Regency era was generally light on embellishments. They certainly had them but nothing compared to the finery of decades past or that the Victorians would bring back. Making this set of trousers all the more curious.
Speaking of trousers, there were high waters in the 19th century. Steve Urkel would be proud!
Well, there’s a taste of the wacky male costuming I’ve discovered this week. To be honest, though, I would surely prefer any of these to skinny jeans or sagging. Sigh.
However, to solve the recent debate of what Mr. Darcy must have looked like in which “historians” gave a rendition of a sickly looking man with a powdered wig looking more akin to George Washington than any contemporary hearth throb, we luckily have portraits and fashion plates! Thankfully, they prove the adaptions more likely to be correct. Thank heavens!
Rose Fairbanks 
Chortle Chortle!
In the 1995 P&P, Darcy, Bingley and Hurst arrive at the Meryton assembly in Bi-Corn Hats. Maybe that is why Miss Bingley doubted their safety!
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I tried so hard to find a pic of that scene! Their hats did not look as big, though. I’m not sure if that’s artistic license or if some Bi-Corn hats really were so gigantic.
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I loved this article. I had no idea that some of the men’s coats were so big and outlandish
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Yeah, the fashion plates can be a bit crazy. Kind of like the runway styles of today!
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I understand that shoulder capelets that could be buttoned on to great coats were quite a thing at one point. The original idea was one more layer of wool against the downcoming rain or snow, that much longer until the wetness soaked through to the wearer. But the fashionable, who would likely be inside the house or travelling by carriage, wore not just one like you might still see today, not even two, but 3 or 4 or a half dozen such extra layers!
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Wacky indeed!
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And evidently, modern Navy peacoats, a part of their formal uniform which dates right back to this era, still have buttons under the collar for capelets that have long since disappeared. (My source is my son in law asking about the buttons on used Navy uniform coat he bought.)
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