Renaissance Clothing

 What To Wear?

When you think of the Renaissance, is the first thing that comes to mind fashion…style…? Probably not (unless you’re a Renaissance expert). While researching what Renaissance Faire costumes I could help a friend make, I came across some interesting styling information that would give the clothing the desired 16^th century England flavor.

Here’s some of the useful information I found:

Colors Matter

Green- the color of love which became popular among courtiers.
Gray- the color of sorrow, mostly worn when mourning or attending a funeral.
Yellow- the color of hostility (this one surprised me because today’s yellow is ‘sunshine’ and happiness).
Blue- the color of fidelity (did this mean they could always tell who the cheaters and thieves were?)

Along color lines, it’s important to note that Earth colors and muted tones were the most predominant and were the result of natural drying materials. The darker or deeper the colors indicated that the wearer was of a higher social status. White was often avoided as clothing rarely stayed white for long.
Black was reserved for nobility and purple was the Queen’s alone.

However, it’s no surprise that certain colors and fabrics also represented which social class you belonged to. The reds of the color spectrum were worn by royalty and usually accompanied silk, cotton, or velvet material. Grays and fabrics such as flax and wool denoted people who were members of a low social class or were in mourning.

Fancy and Fancier

Renaissance wear became much more decorated around the late 1400’s. Designers used heavier materials which resulted in puffier sleeves. Some countries even added their own touch to the ensemble. The northern European countries, for example, more padded sleeves while the Germans decorated everything in feathers.

Sounds like fun, right?  

If you want to make your own inexpensive outfit, click on this link.