Victorian Fashions for Women explores the British styles and clothing throughout the long reign of Queen Victoria, from the late 1830s to the first years of the 20th century. Within are a superb overview of the dresses, hats, hair styles, corsetry, undergarments shoes and boots that combined to present the prevailing styles for each decade. From those who had enough money to have day and evening wear and clothes for sports and outdoor activities, to those with limited income and wardrobes or labouring folk with little more than the clothes they stood up in. All decades are illustrated with original photographs, adverts and contemporary magazine features from the authors’ own remarkable collections, accompanied by a knowledgeable and informative text that describes the fashions, their social history context and influences reflected in the clothes of the time. Laid out in a clear and easy-to-follow chronological order, the key features of styles, decoration and accoutrements will help family historians to date family photographs and will provide a useful resource for students and costume historians or for anyone with a love of fashion and style to enjoy.
AUTHOR: Neil R. Storey is an award-winning historian who specialises in the social history of Britain in the 19th and 20th centuries. He guest lectures for both academic and public audiences, at museums, English Heritage and National Trust properties. He has his own archive of over 20,000 original photographs to help illustrate his talks and publications. Neil has written over 45 books, countless articles for a variety of national periodicals and journals and regularly features on television and radio documentaries and factual programmes as guest expert including BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are? Fiona Kay has a lifelong interest in social history with a special focus on women and fashion. She has her own extensive collection of portrait and family photographs, books, magazines and ephemera that record the history of fashion and society from the mid-19th century to the 1950s. She also collects vintage clothing and has participated in historical events and exhibitions all over the UK. Fiona lectures on dating family photographs and was a regular member of family photograph interpretation expert team at the prestigious Who Do You Think You Are? Live! events.
20 colour, 50 b/w illustrations