Here are a few interesting posts about men’s clothing, two Regency related from the fairly new [since May 2010] multi-author blog, Historical Belles and Beaus, and the other on Victorian men’s fashions from the Victorian Magazine Blog.
Regency author Linda Banche has written two posts on “Gorgeous Men in Tight Breeches and Ruffled Shirts” – where she addresses the often frustrating-to-the-reader mistakes in the cover depictions [those open shirts were really not the thing!] and the descriptions of the man’s dress [trousers, not pants]
Gorgeous Men, Post #1 and Gorgeous Men, Post #2
The Victorian Magazine blog, Victoriana, offers a collection of men’s various fashion options for their various activities in “Guys ‘Just Want to Have Fun'”:
The Jane Austen Centre Online Magazine offers a number of articles and images on Regency men’s fashions:
And a number of men’s fashion plates at The Regency Fashion Page
and ALL those images of Men Dressing at the Costumer’s Manifesto and Jessamyn’s Regency Costume Companion
I could go on, and on.. if you search google for “Regency Men’s Fashions”, a mere 402,00 are retrieved – certainly a daunting task… this just gives a small taste of what is out there – and see also the post at Historical Hussies, on “Pants Breeches and Pantaloons, Oh My!”
[Posted by Deb]
Jane Austen in Vermont 
“The Vanishing Viscountess” I presume the countess is vanishing with the bloke doing the striptease. These countess’s. I don’t know.Can’t get enough at home.Must be bored.
The Historical Hussies post is very revealing. Do you know, that flap at the front of the mens trousers should make a comeback. It looks so, “useful.”
Hope your keeping well, Deb.
All the best,
Tony
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I read the book THE VANISHING VISCOUNTESS. The news sheets dubbed the heroine with that name when she fled after being falsely accused of murdering her vile husband. The hero helps her escape until they can prove her innocence.
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Thank you Linda for stopping by and clarifying the plot – another reason to take issue with the covers! the storyline sounds far more interesting than the cover indicates…a wonderful topic for a full article.
Best,
deb
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Thanks Tony for visiting! – not sure about the plot of that book – see Linda Banche’s comment below – it looks though she was “vanishing” for a very good reason and not just for a tryst with the hero!
I think most of these men’s fashions look exceedingly uncomfortable, esp the neckcloths – a good pair of jeans would have been most welcome I would think!
Hope you are well also!
Deb
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You’re welcome, Deb. All too often, romance covers are about grabbing the reader’s attention. And a gorgeous, bare-chested man will grab a woman’s attention. In general, Mills and Boon and Harlequin Historical, both of which published THE VANISHING VISCOUNTESS, do covers that pretty much keep with the tone of the story. There’s a scene in the book where the unmarried hero and heroine, pretending to be married, take a room in a Scottish inn. Maybe that’s where the cover came from.
As for fashions being uncomfortable–you have to suffer to be beautiful! In general, clothes then were made for the person, so they fit well. Nowadays, we take issue with corsets, but a corset were made for a lady, and she was comfortable wearing it. I assume the same was true for men’s clothes. But there are always exceptions.
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