Patterns of Fashion 3: The Cut and Construction of Clothes for Men and Women, C.1560-1620

Patterns of Fashion #3

by Janet Arnold

Originally published: London: MacMillan, 1985.

Pictures, descriptions and patterns of men and women's clothing from--1560-1620. While you can make the clothing, using the patterns given, be prepared for it to take a while.

Genres: Sewing, Fashion, Nonfiction, History, Reference, Fashion History, Art

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1985

About the author

Janet Arnold (6 October 1932 – 2 November 1998) was a British clothing historian, costume designer, teacher, conservator, and author. She is best known for her series of works called Patterns of Fashion, which included accurate scale sewing patterns, used by museums and theatres alike. She went on to write A Handbook of Costume, a book on the primary sources on costume study, and Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd, as well as many other books.

Arnold was awarded the inaugural Sam Wanamaker Award in 1998. After her death, the Society of Antiquaries of London who had previously made her a fellow, created a grant in her name, as did The Costume Society, which she helped to found.

Reviews

[Kat]

Janet Arnold was one of the most accomplished historians of fashion and garments that ever lived. She studied surviving garments from history, primarily 15th-17th century England, and re-created patterns from those garments. But she went further than that. She studied historical documents related to the clothing industry from the periods as well (See Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd). Not only are her patterns truly authentic, but this book includes detailed photographs and descriptions of the original garments the patterns re-create. The Globe theatre in London uses these and other Janet Arnold patterns in their historical re-creation productions where everything from the sets to the costumes are constructed exactly as they would have been in Shakespeare's time.

[Ash]

This is the one that was posthumously completed for Arnold by a collection of scholars. It's pretty much the only source text for costuming this era, and the front section where the extra source material is listed is partially in colour and more in depth than the 18th and 19th century Patterns of Fashion. As always, you need to have pretty good skills as a seamstress to interpet, re-size and put together the patterns, which have little to no instruction, but tutorials are not what you go to a Janet Arnold for.

[aslbk]

Step into the world of Shakespeare's England with Patterns of Fashion 3. This book explores the captivating fashions of the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras, with meticulously researched patterns, stunning photographs, and insights into the construction of these remarkable garments.

[Ella]

I would love to own a copy of this if only for the meticulous analysis of construction methods, but I’m probably too much of a novice sewist to get much use out of the patterns yet.

[frogromancer]

they had rly silly pants back then man

[Elsa Foston]

Interesting

I picked this book up out of curiosity. I'm not a seamstress but I found it understandable to follow the examples provided. It was an entertaining experience.

[Dymphy]

Yet another great book about the dress of 1560-1620.

[Its_me_its_P]

What do hot girls in academia do? They research books so equally hot yet dumb girls can trouble shoot their historical sewing projects.

slay

[Emma]

A wonderful and comprehensive resource for historians and sewists alike.

[Kate]

One of the BEST books for researching Renaissance era costuming. Accurate and it even has modern photos (though in black and white) of extant pieces from the era - it shows construction, weaves, buttons etc from the period and basic pattern instructions.

[Kris Olsen]

This is a must have for those who would like to recreate costumes accurately. The patterns are easy to follow and the detail is amazin. Very instructive. I made two of the items from this book and they turned out wonderfully.

[Zsofi]

Janet Arnold's books are a cult classic, so to speak, in the costuming world, university teachers refer to her books in Pattern Cutting classes. With this being said it proves how fantastic Janet Arnold's oeuvre is.

[Kathy]

A classic...

[Dana]

A great book full of patterns taken from actual articles of clothing from the Elizabethan period. Recommended for advanced costumers.

[Cody Young]

I love this book. I'm adapting some of the patterns to make costumes for Twelfth Night - and it's almost like time travel seeing how the garments go together and how they look on real people.

[Kathely]

Excellent resource. I just don't happen to particularly like the fashions of this era.

[Alys]

Excellent.

[Adam Zabell]

A great reference, one I'll use regularly. But not the kind of book I'll read cover to cover.