Regency day dresses and Pride & Prejudice gowns are often for sale on ebay, and it is very important to buy the correct ones.

Re-enactor Standard Clothing
If you are a re-enactor you need to purchase a gown that is either hand or machine sewn inside, with a lined bodice and with all exposed sewing completed by hand. The bodice lining should be whip-stitched inside. Be aware of what pattern is used because some out there are not historically accurate. Do not use zippers.
Cotton, linen and silk are the fabrics to use, avoid satin and polyesters. If you want to use a patterned fabric have a look at the period reproductions at Reproduction Fabrics and for fine swiss cottons visit Farmhouse Fabrics. Make sure the dressmaker pre-washes your fabric beforehand.

History of Regency Period Gowns
What we refer to as the Regency period was actually part of the Georgian era. King George III was insane after 1811, but alive until 1820. His son acted as Regent for nine years until his father's death, then reigned from 1820-1830. So influential was the Prince Regent during this time that we now refer to this period as the Regency Period - a period of classical revival and simplicity in dress.

Marie Antoinette was the first associated with the simple style of white muslin dress in the 1780s, when her friend Georgiana, duchess of Devonshire, imported the style "chemise à la reine" into England. A 1788 portrait of Mme Lavoisier shows this style.

The newly romantic and Grecian styles were lighter and simpler than of past periods. Hair styles gentled, stays & petticoats reduced and underwear minimalised. Pockets that ruined the smooth lines of the new Regency gowns were discarded in favour of the new reticule. Regency gowns in plain, subdued colours featured a high waistline - now just below the bust. Printed cottons with dainty spot, sprig or check patterns and white muslins were used in day dresses, which now looked long and slender. Long sleeves almost covered the hand and were sometimes gathered at the upper arm. Often the longer sleeves of the day dresses were detachable, allowing one to remove them if indoors. Pantalettes, or drawers adapted from male garments were worn underneath garments and consisted of two tubular legs open in the center and attached to a waistband. Often the top part was made of plain fabric and the bottom of the leg with fancier fabric so they could show when a lady lifted her skirts.

Early in the regency period dresses were bib-fronted, pinning near each front shoulder or tied together with numerous wrapping ties. Very soon though the back fastening method become very popular - hooks and eyes of flattened silver wire and drawstrings through both the neckline and under the bodice or handmade buttons and drawstrings. Buttons were made with either linen or cotton thread neatly covering brass wire rings or were covered with self-fabric.

Piped back seams didn't appear until 1815-22 and puffed, petal-shaped sleeves are often found in 1818-20, when the colours returned, particularly in silks. It was about this time, too, that the hems started to be quite thickly corded.

Spencers, pelisses, shawls and mantles were worn out of doors, along with broad-brimmed hats or bonnets tied under the chin with ribbon. Spencers were most often darker coloured, often dark blue or black, although light coloured ones have been found. Mostly made of thicker, warmer fabrics, they were sometimes made of fine lighter sheer fabrics.

Silk parasols were used in this period, with folding wooden handles and whalebone frames. By 1800 the heels had come off the shoes which were now being called "straights". After 1815 hints of newer styles appeared with the increasing use of frilled hems and more decoration on the bodice. As the hemlines widened, so the waistline lowered, although very slowly, moving us into the Romantic Era.

Men also dressed more soberly, with plain, dark cutaway coats and knee breeches or pantaloons tucked into high riding boots. Hair was now worn short and natural.

Fabrics Used in Regency Garments

COTTON - Printed cottons were block-printed by hand in the 1790s, with most designs being very complex florals. At the turn of the century the designs started becoming less complex, often featuring just one element of a pattern, and the colours became more subdued and dark.
With the advent of the roller-printer came the popularity of vertical designs, and in the teens and early twenties fabrics were also printed on the diagonal. As interest moved away from classical simplicity so the designs got bigger and dresses started featuring very detailed trims. During the twenties "turkey red" designs also became very popular.

MUSLIN / COTTON VOILE - Many dresses that sought to capture the classical look were made from white and off-white muslins, many of which featured a woven pattern. One of the more popular designs featured a small dot that was either embroidered or woven into the fabric. Other popular designs included a woven check or embroidered eyelet.

SILK - Silks provided women of the later Regency an opportunity to wear stronger colours. Softer silks were used, one dress dated 1806-10 was made of "fine soft twilled silk".

SATIN - Silk satin provided another opportunity to use a shiny fabric for evening dress. Creams, whites and other colours were used, and the fabric worked well gathered at the back of dresses. Silk satin was also used for outerwear, as evidenced by a "delicate cream satin pelisse and bonnet" in the collection of Nancy Bradfield. Embroidered net or gauze was increasingly used over satin ballgowns from about 1815, and was gathered with the fabric at the back.

Regency Undergarments & Accessories

Under most regency ball gowns were worn a body-hugging set of stays that extended past the hips and featured a wooden busk down the front to help hold the body erect and to separate the bust or bodiced petticoats, which were simply a sleeveless and lower neckline version of the dress, without the fullness of fabric at the back. Simpler shorter sleeved chemises were worn under the long-sleeved day dresses, together with fine lawn chemisettes or tuckers underneath to cover the bust and protect from sun. Underneath the gown was worn a pair of knee-high silk or woollen stockings, held up by ribbon garters. Often a small bustle pad helped lift the fuller dress back.

To make your own dress search for patterns on ebay - Sense & Sensibility patterns can often be found in ebay stores as can the new line of regency dress patterns from Simplicity. To buy a dress, search under 'regency dress' or 'regency gown'. On the internet, use the search word 'regency gown' and you'll find businesses that custom make regency gowns for you.

Please visit our Regency Gowns at our Earthly Delights Ebay Store! We have just listed some new gowns, spencers and petticoats to made with historically accurate patterns and fabrics at an affordable price. If we do not have any advertised, please feel free to contact us to find out when we will place more on ebay.

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Written by Aylwen Garden of Regency Reproductions,  87 Schlich Street, Yarralumla A.C.T. 2600 Australia