Jane Austen Fashion

by Penelope Byrde

Jane Austen loved clothes, and followed fashion with enthusiasm. She was also an expert needlewoman. Her novels use the clothes people wore and their attitudes to dress to convey their characters. Her lively letters, extensively quoted, are full of shopping trips and visits to dressmakers. Penelope Byrde, an expert in the costume of the time, explains all, from corsets to how clothes were made and bought, what they cost, and what was worn when and by whom.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Fashion, Fashion History, Regency, 19th Century

128 pages, Paperback

First published September 23, 1999

Reviews

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did I learn a lot? Yes. Did I enjoy reading it? Yes. Why not five stars? I would have preferred more images from Austen’s time that were photographs of what we have remaining to us, not just plates from magazines at the time, but I suppose it may have been image rights issues, or cost, that affected this decision. It also drove me mad that the same quotes were often used multiple times to illustrate points - if there simply was not enough mention of fashion in Austen’s novels to constitute the book, then perhaps it should have been a book about fashion in her novels PLUS fashion of the time - which in many ways it was, so the reader would understand what she referred to; but I think the book (first published as a pamphlet and here expanded) should have realized that its brief was that broader scope, rather than trying to keep itself small. Definitely recommended to any fans of Jane Austen or the period.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice thick, full colour pages with plenty of illustrations.

However most of the fashion plates are from the 1790s! I get that it's when she was growing up, but I'd rather see 1800-1815, which is when most of her books were written!

Still, it's a handy and small reference book.

[Phil Nicholls · Rating 3 out of 5]

As noted on the cover, this is an exploration of fashion and needlework in the books of Jane Austen. The book is full of period illustrations as well as a couple of pictures from the museum at Jane Austen’s House. I am interested in this period of history, although I wanted to read more about men’s fashion at the time. This is not a feature in the works of Jane Austen, so was only briefly covered in this book.

[Annie]

Found a nice copy of this book at my local library book store!