My Top Ten Favourite Period Drama Wardrobes

One of my favourite things about period dramas, and one of the many many reasons why I like them so much, are... you guessed it, the costumes! Costumes are one of the many things that really make a good movie, and they add so much to the films' accuracy and beauty. There are so many beautiful wardrobes in period dramas that it is often very difficult to pick favourites, but I have managed to compile a list of the top ten wardrobes I would most love to own, although there are certainly a great many more out there that I am also very partial to! Without further ado, here are my top ten favourites:


#10 Allie Hamilton of The Notebook

I have to laugh that I'm actually saying this, because this movie is one of those that I absolutely abhor (that is such a delicious word!) for numerous reasons, but Allie's dresses are so classic and pretty that I just had to put them on this list. These are the sort of dresses I would love to wear every day, because they're not overly fancy or ridiculous-- they're actually quite practical and sensible. The dark purple one above is one of my favourites, even though I'm not crazy about the matching headpiece, and Allie also wears a green dress(pictured below) that I absolutely love as well. I think these outfits would really suit me!

#9 Queen Victoria of The Young Victoria

 The costumes for this movie are some of the loveliest and most stunning I have ever seen! (It really is no wonder it received an Academy award for costume design!) Victoria's dresses especially are completely gorgeous, and suit her character so perfectly. Even though most of her dresses are rather impractical and are definitely not something even I would wear every day, they are nevertheless stunningly exquisite and I am sure no list of mine would be complete without them.

(Even though I'm not usually much for yellow, I can't help but love this dress! The hairstyle, however, I can live without.....)

# 8 Barbara Spooner of Amazing Grace

Barbara Spooner is one of my favourite historical heroines. I love how Romola Garai portrayed her in this film and her dresses also did not disappoint! She doesn't actually wear many dresses , mostly just two- the green one pictured at left and a blue one just like it-- but they're so simply lovely and classic. If I had to pick one word to describe Barbara's style, I would say classy. I also think her feathered hat is very impressive as well! I wasn't too keen on her wedding gown, because it seemed a bit too.....simple, but I really am no expert whatsoever on fashion, so maybe it was common to have simpler wedding dresses in those days. I also love her accessories, such as the shawl she's wearing in the picture and her reticule.

(See what I mean about the hat? It's rather reminiscent of Hello Dolly!)













#7 Lady Dedlock of Bleak House

One word that would easily describe Lady Dedlock is cold. Her life is dreary, her house is dreary, and she is bored to death with it all. So as one would expect, her wardrobe is not exactly bright and colourful, but all the same, her dresses are simply gorgeous. I love the dark colours and the simple style of most of her gowns, and her wardrobe suits her miserable disposition perfectly. Usually I don't like the fashions of this era quite as much as others, but Lady Dedlock's dresses are some of my favourites for their dark, mysterious, mournful appearance.

#6 Dr. Michaela Quinn of Dr. Quinn

This is very possibly my favourite television show ever, and Dr. Mike's dresses are among some of the most classic and practically pretty I have ever seen! Usually she wears skirts and shirtwaists like the outfit in the picture at right, but she wears dresses very often as well. In some episodes, while in Boston, she wears very different styles, which are simply stunning and fabulously impractical, like the one below.

(Sully bought it for her:)

















#5 Angel Deverell of Angel

First I must say that I do not endorse this movie. At all. In fact, I rather detest it and would not recommend it at all. Even if it does have Romola Garai and Michael Fassbender in it. But Angel's dresses.......ohhhhh. They're just so beautiful! Highly impractical and ridiculous and often immodest, but still beautiful. This red one, I think, is my favourite of all of them, but the green one comes in close second. Of course, I'd raise the neckline a few feet if I were to actually wear it, but still!

Thankfully this picture doesn't have such an explicit view of how low the neckline actually is! I like to say that I love these dresses against all reason and practicality, but truly, I think they're stunning.

Here's a better view of the red one. Gorgeous, isn't it?












#4 Gwendolen Harleth of Daniel Deronda

Another spoiled heroine played by Romola Garai! Gwendolen's dresses actually remind me very much of Angel's, although they're a bit more bright and cheerful and tasteful, I might add. My favourites were the blue one at the top of the picture and the green one she wore to the ball. (Unfortunately I can't exactly remember which ball, but it was a ball. ) Her dresses reflected, in a way, her spoiled and self- absorbed personality. Oh, here I go again! I don't exactly dislike Gwendolen-- I truly think she improved by the end of the story, but she had to learn all her lessons the hard way because of her pride. So, with that being said, I will again say that her wardrobe is one of the most exquisite I have ever seen! I also love how she always wears little hats that match her every outfit.

Poor Gwendolen!












#3 Jane Austen of Becoming Jane

Ah, the very controversial and inaccurate and prettied-up and disgraceful and lovely Becoming Jane! I won't go into all of my various and strong opinions on this movie right now, because right now I am simply going to talk about the costumes, and with that being said, I know that not all of the costumes in this drama are completely accurate to the time, but if you just forget that tiny little fact for a moment, Jane's dresses are just beautiful. I like how she mostly wears darker and subtle colours, but occasionally she does wear something lighter and cheerful. I don't know if I could pick a favourite of her dresses! This blue one is definitely one of my many favourites. I also have come to love her bonnet. I'm not really sure why. I suppose it's because it looks rather old and that makes it quite charming and pretty. I also love her red coat and her many shawls. Her ball gown at Lady Greshan's ball isn't my favourite, but is still very elegant and very classy. One word I think I would use to describe Jane's wardrobe would be practical, because that pretty much sums up her general style, but her dresses are also very pretty and (I think) fashionable.

Isn't her dark blue gown just so simply lovely? Cassandra's, however, I don't care for as much, but she has some other very pretty dresses.









#2 Molly Gibson of Wives and Daughters

Molly Gibson's dresses are some of the most sensible and still pretty on this list. They're the sort of dresses I would like to wear every day, because they are practical and not very fancy but lovely just the same. I didn't like Molly's ball gowns quite as much as her every-day dresses, but they were still lovely as well. She seemed to like wearing blue and orange and green (not at the same time, of course.) My favourite was probably the dark orange one she wore the day Cynthia arrived, but I couldn't find a very good picture of it. This blue one was one of my favourites as well, along with the green and white one she wore at Hamley Court.

She looks a lot better in this dress than Fanny Dorrit did! Just saying......

And last of all, my favourite period drama wardrobe of all......

#1 Emma Woodhouse of Emma (2009)

Emma's dresses are the some of the sweetest, most charming I have ever see. There really isn't a single one of hers that I don't like! It also would be rather impossible to pick a favourite, as they're all so adorable, but her blue "jumper" (for lack of a better word) , her pink dress with the green sash and the green gown she wears to the Weston's Christmas party are among some of my favourites. Her wardrobe perfectly suits her playful, charming, adorable nature!

I love this expression!

I think she likes pink. Can you tell?

 They're completely charming! Thus ends my list. I hope you've enjoyed it!




                     Very Truly Yours,

                      Emma Jane