Tuesday, November 2, 2010

How to Ensure that You Go to Hell, or Clothes in the Middle Ages

People in this modern age have a picture of how people dressed in the Middle Ages. They wore long, ruffled silks and velvets. Right? No! Those were for nobility! Most people just wore simple clothes. Very simple. Mind you, there's nothing wrong with that. However, it was considered vain to pluck your eyebrows, dye your hair and wear makeup. Back then, the priests told the women they would go to Hell for doing that! I disagree, although the white makeup that was popular at the time contained lead, and, as a minor consequence, could kill you. The women didn't listen to the priests. The priests had a lot to say on that topic, however. They said steeple hats (those pointed hats queens always wear in pictures) were signs of deadly pride and should be burned. The women did that until the monk who said that died. They sort of revived the fashion, and the hats were taller than ever. Women also wore platform shoes, which the church said were ridiculous because dresses had to be made longer.
The rich women wore dresses with trains. Their clothes had tight bodices and sleeves, and sometimes sleeveless coats. Later on in the Middle Ages, they wore dresses with wide, stiff sleeves. Men wore stiff, starched collars called ruffs. Aside from the 'evil' steeple caps, women wore jeweled caps, wimples (which nuns wear) and stiff, shaped headdresses.
Fashions in the Medieval times weren't what they are now. We at least care if our vests are cutting off circulation now (which is what corsets did.) But we still admire the clothes they wore then, and sometimes we dress up in them.

2 comments:

  1. I prefer jeans, t-shirts, tank tops, shorts, hoodies, sport socks, and runners.
    Although my mom makes me wear dresses, skirts, tights, pretty shoes, etc. She insists that I dress "Appropriate" for church. And holidays.
    You'll rarely see me wearing a dress that I chose to wear.

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  2. Although I would have to agree with Scezzle, I would defintately not mind wearing the clothes in the Middle Ages. They don't sound that bad.

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