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Bridgerton Has Made Us Fall in Love With Regency Fashion
The Regency Period drama, Bridgerton, is one of the most-watched shows on Netflix. For this reason, today, we are talking about the fashion of the Regency Era in Bridgerton. Although it is not 100 per cent historically accurate, it takes on Regency Era with a modern twist.
John Glaser, one of the costume designers, when asked about the style of clothing, said, “Fashion is cyclical — everything comes back around. So, we’d have our basis to start and the more modern designer’s interpretation of it, and then we’d construct it with all that in our minds”.
What Else Was Happening in the Bridgerton Era?
The Regency Era started in 1811-1830 after King George suffered from mental health and Prince George IV Regent took over hence the name Regency Era. Fashion during the Regency Era drastically changed in just 19 years.
Indeed, there was a lot of poverty and increasing support to abolish slavery. In fact, by 1807, the act passed, so the slave trade was abolished, and the British Empire could no longer carry out the slave trade.
How Bridgerton Fashion Changed Over the Years.
There are many subsections of the Regency style, and they changed drastically over the years. However, today we are just looking at three. Undergarments, in particular, were an essential part of the style, which continued for many decades until the 1920s.
1795-1805
During the Georgian era, fashion was over the top with wide skirts and wide hoop dresses.
In the first episode of the first season of Bridgerton, Queen Charlotte, wife of King George, is wearing a gaudy opulent dress. This is the Robe à française, and the Queen loved it. So, she made all her staff wear similar styles despite not being in fashion anymore. For this reason, society does not consider Queen Charlotte fashionable.
Greek and Roman inspirations
We can also see a style of clothing inspired by the Greeks and Romans in this episode. In fact, in the first episode, we meet Siena Anthony’s lover, an opera singer who does not come from money. She wears a chemise gown that is very sexy and low cut compared to the demure empire waist dress seen on the other ladies.
Some ladies wore sheer muslin dresses but got very sick in colder months. People called it the Muslin Disease because many women died from Pneumonia.
The dresses worn mainly were white as the Greek Statues inspired them. They sometimes added little touches of colour on the hemline or around the waist or tunics.
Other popular colours were yellow, blue, green, roses, and light purple. Yellow was one of the most popular colours; many shades, such as primrose, Jonquil, and canary, were popular. During the Regency Era, women wore day and evening dresses for evening dresses.
Different Layers of the Bridgerton Dresses
There were many layers to dress during the Regency Era, which included
- The chemise
- Stockings
- The “stay”
- The Petticoat
The “stay” is a particular type of undergarment that we can see in the 7th episode of the second season. When Kate and Anthony finally decide to explore their chemistry in a passionate encounter, we glimpse her undergarment, the “stay”.
Violet Bridgerton’s Tucker
Violet Bridgerton, in the first episode of the first season, often wears a material called the tucker. Seamstresses sometimes added this fabric to the dress to hide the cleavage and make it proper for women. Evening dresses followed similar rules to the day dresses. However, some added tunics to the dress in the evening, and the bust could be lower.
The Men of Bridgerton
In the show, the men wear overcoats and waistcoats, which were all part of the look and remained similar throughout the decade. Here we see the Duke of Hastings wearing the traditional men’s wear of the time.
1806-1817
This specific period is used most in period dramas such as Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and Bridgerton by Julia Quinn.
The dresses became narrower, and the sleeves became shorter as well. Trains were still prevalent in the UK, not every dress had a train, but most dresses opted to have one added.
Daphne Bridgerton is being presented to the Queen in the very first episode of the series. At this event, she wears a fashionable gown. Her neckline is higher to hide her cleavage, as she must be presentable to the Queen. In addition, her dress, compared to the Featheringtons, is more demure.
Different Necklines
Dresses had three main necklines: a rounder neckline, a v-neckline, or a square. Trims on the hemline became more decorative, and the hemlines got shorter to show off the ankles. The Empire’s waist continued throughout this decade.
Women preferred comfortable looks, whereas men preferred tighter suiting. The empire line hid the waist but highlighted the cleavage. For this reason, they were some pushback against this style of clothing.
1818-1830
The waistline dropped from the super high core to the natural waist. By the 1820s, the empire waistline started to decline, so New Romanticism became the popular style.
When the royal family members died, people wore mourning dress. The undergarments were the same, but more petticoats were added to create a fuller figure. The hemlines became very decorative with lace or embroidered flowers.
The Regency Era ended in 1830 after King George IV passed away.
