The Roman Catholic War on Wigs
The Catholic Church’s ban on wigs in the 18th century was as revealing of attitudes towards disability as vanity and sanctity.
Fashion
‘Liberty, Equality, Fashion’ by Anne Higonnet review
In Liberty, Equality, Fashion: The Women Who Styled the French Revolution, Anne Higonnet brings three dedicated followers of fashion to the fore.
An Exhibition on Rational Dress for Victorian Women
On 19 May 1883 Eliza King and her Rational Dress Association held an exhibition to champion comfortable clothing for Victorian women.
‘Jane Austen’s Wardrobe’ by Hilary Davidson review
Jane Austen’s Wardrobe by Hilary Davidson seeks to provide the context that more than two centuries of changes in fashion have obscured.
What Can Historical Clothing Reveal That Other Sources Cannot?
From Elizabeth I’s intimate attire to fabrics that threatened social hierarchies, clothes tell us about more than just their wearers.
Crimes of Fashion
Clothes in early modern England could quite literally be to die for.
The Historian Embodied
Dressing in historical clothes can reveal things about the past that no book can.
A Feather in her Cap
A global trade in feathers, with London at its heart, saw hundreds of millions of birds killed every year. Emily Williamson waged a long and furious campaign against it.
Dedicated Followers
A thoughtful long view of men’s participation in, and consumption of, fashionable dress.
Perfume, History, Dreams
Perfumes and sweet scents affect our sense of smell, but their true realm is that of the imagination.