1580s
Although the silhouette of the 80s didn't change dramatically from that of the 1570s, it did become broader. Shoulders of gowns became wider, due in part to the picadils (small tabs) which replaced rolls as the fashionable form of shoulder decoration. Sleeves became fuller as well. More high-bodied bodices, which came up to the neck and sported a collar, began to show up in pictures and portraits.

Lettice Knollys <picture 1> is wearing a gown which is the height of mid-1580s fashion. It has picadils at the shoulders, is closed up to the neck, and has puffed undersleeves and oversleeves of a style known as "Spanish" sleeves. On the whole, the bodices and overskirts of the 1580s were one color, with the sleeves and forepart of a different fabric.

The high-necked bodice was popular in Spain from the 1560s onward, and travelled to England from there. The infanta Clara Eugenia Isabella is wearing an example of this Spanish type of gown. The skirt is very bell-shaped, the bodice fitted up to the neck, and the trumpet-shaped oversleeves (called "Spanish great sleeves") slashed and caught at the wrist over closely-fitted, striped undersleeves. <picture 2>

the later 1570s & early 1580s are when the doublet bodice came into fashion. It was based on and shaped like a man's doublet, and, unlike gowns of previous eras, was a separate item not attached to a skirt. Queen Elizabeth's Darnley portrait shows her wearing a gown of this type. <picture 3> A separate skirt and doublet bodice could be worn over a petticoat or kirtle.

In the 1580s, the English skirt shape began to change from the long-popular bell-shaped skirt, created by the Spanish farthingale, to a more dome-shaped skirt, created by the French Farthingale. The French farthingale was popular in France through the 1570s, and finally made it to England in the mid 1580s. Queen Elizabeth is wearing a French farthingale in her Armada Portrait<picture 4>. We will discuss the Spanish and French farthingale in more detail during next week's lesson.

1590s
In the 1590s, feminine fashion became more and more extreme. Features already present in 1580s dress became exaggerated: the puffed sleeves became so large that some of them were boned with bents to keep their shape (although narrow sleeves are seen in a few portraits of the time.) The point of the bodice descended as far as female anatomy would allow, and the dome-shaped french farthingale flattened out to create a flat, circular shelf around the gown. The low, square neckline became fashionable again. Queen Elizabeth's portrait of 1592 is an example of current 1590s fashion. <picture 6>

The skirt could be tucked up in a flounce by pinning it to the French farthingale beneath. <picture 7> The stomacher, which had faded from fashion, made a reappearence. It was pinned over front lacing bodices, or in some cases either sewn or hooked-and-eyed to the front sides of the bodice. Sleeves and stomacher were often decorated in a similar fashion. <picture 8>

Another, more informal style which was worn in the 1590s was a jacket and petticoat combination. The petticoat was worn as an outer skirt rather than an underskirt. The jacket was often embroidered in multicolored silk and metallic embroidery, had close-fitting sleeves and flared out over the hips. Arnold shows examples of two of these jackets in her book Patterns of Fashion.

The loose gown, or night gown, continued to be worn as a casual at-home item of dress by both men and women through to the end of the 16th century. Like the loose gown of the mid-16th century , it fell from the shoulders to the floor and had a turned-back collar. The long sleeves, however, were close-fitted and often slashed to hang open, rather than being puffed and boned. Picadils were commonly seen at the armholes. It was worn over a undergown/kirtle or over a petticoat and jacket. There are several examples of loose gowns in Arnold's Patterns of Fashion.

   

Patterns of Fashion has a (German) doublet bodice with rolls on page 107 and a number of gowns dating to the end of the 16th century.

Movies
Elizabeth R, Vol 4-6
The videos do a great job of portraying changes in fashion through the 1580s to 1600. Several of Elizabeth's portrait gowns are shown.

Shakespeare in Love
Although the women's dress in this movie isn't quite as accurate as the men's (gowns may have a 1590s bodice point with 1570s sleeves and a 1580s domed French Farthingale skirt), it does have some breathtaking ensembles. The wedding dress and the riding dress of Viola's are among two of my favorites.

Pictures

• Renaissance Fashion, 1560-1600
• Elizabeth I Portrait Gallery
• Pictures of Queen Elizabeth at TudorHistory.com
• Portraits of Elizabeth at Tudor-Portraits.com

Timeline:
16th Century
Dress