Books by Sarah Jane Downing

From the etiquette of courtly dress to the evolution of the Elizabethan ruff, this title explores the sartorial world of the late-16th century, why people wore the clothes they did, and how the dizzyingly eclectic range of fashions (including ruffs, rebatos and French farthingales) transformed over time.

The source of tremendous power and focus of incredible devotion, throughout history notions of beauty have been integral to social life. Each age has had its own standards: a gleaming white brow during the Renaissance, the black eyebrows considered charming in the early eighteenth century, and the thin lips thought desirable by Victorians.

The broader Regency period 1795 to 1820, stands alone as an incredible moment in fashion history, unlike anything that went before it. This book explores the fashion revolution and the innovation that inspired a flood of fashions taking influence from far afield.