Perhaps my favorite part about writing fiction, whether it be fantasy or science fiction, is the clothing. I can imagine the regal wear of kings and the stylish yet agile garments of warriors. Yet whenever my pencil meets paper, all I can come up with to describe such intricate clothing is shirt and slacks. Not very interesting. Same thing with drapery or furniture; what colors make sense? What materials exist other than cotton?
Well, thanks to Sherrilyn Kenyon’s chapter in Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’ve got a nice resource of materials, colors, and clothing based on the fantasy genre. This book is an awesome resource, so if fantasy or science fiction is your genre, go ahead and get it. Note: some of these words below get a blank stare nowadays; when using them in your writing, describe the item as best you can and then use the term. Otherwise, customize however you please.
Clothing Materials
- Black-work – Black silk embroidery [Reniassance]
- Brocade – Woven fabric with raised pattern*
- Canvas – Coarse cloth (made of flax, hemp)
- Calico – White cotton from India*
- Cambric – white linen
- Damask – Silk fabric with woven designs*
- Embroidery – decorum for all classes
- Flannel – Lightweight wool (undergarment, bandage, wash rag)
- Freize – Thick wool (outer garment)
- Fustian – Lightweight silky scarlet cloth*
- Gold and Silver Tissue – Lightweight fabric with gold and silver threads woven in*
- Holland – Finely woven lawn material (shirts, undergarments)*
- Lersey – Ribbed wool cloth*
- Lawn – Finely woven linen*
- Linen – Cloth made from flax
- Musterdevilliers – Gray wool cloth (middle/upper class)
- Russet/Homespun – Coarse wool cloth, reddish brown or gray
- Samite – Silk cloth interwoven with gold*
- Satin – Made of silk, shiny on one side*
- Scarlet – Soft cloth, draped in folds, varying colors (nobility or outlaws)
- Serge – Multipurpose woolen fabric (clothes, bedcovers, hanging, funeral drapes, shrouds, etc.)
- Silk – Woven from silk threads in the Orient*
- Taffeta – Plain-woven glossy silk*
- Tartan – Twilled wool fabric
Everything with an * is either expensive or usually seen on the rich (royalty and nobility).
Color Meanings
- Black – Common; mourners, elderly, scholars
- Blue
- Light: everyone
- Dark: royalty and highly ranked, scholars, apprentices
- Crimson – Bright red; wealthy
- Flame – Bright red-orange; wealthy
- Gold Cloth – Royalty
- Green – Common
- Murrey – Deep purple red; rich
- Parti-Colored – Multicolored
- Purple – Royalty, high ranking nobles
- Red – Common
- Red-Browns – Popular, common
- Scarlet – Vibrant shade; nobility
- Silver Cloth – Royalty
- Siskin – Light greenish-yellow; wealthy
- Slate – Gray-blue; common
- Tan – Light brown; nobility
- Tartan – Plaid pattern; colors denote clan/family [Scottish]
- Tawny – Brownish-yellow; popular; common
- Watchet – Light greenish-blue, common
- White – Common; mainly nobility and royalty
- Yellow – Common
Clothing
Women
- Aprons – Middle/Lower classes
- Barbe – Pleated piece of linen, worn under chin of widows/over chin of noblewomen
- Barbette – Linen band wrapped around head/under chin, pinned
- Butterfly Headdress – Fabric-covered wire, worn back of head and draped veil over forehead and down back
- Caps – Linen, paired with fret, barbette, or wimple
- Caul/Fret/Crispinette – coarse hair net, silk, gold, or silver
- royalty, nobles
- Chaplet – Padded roll worn on head like hat; horn or heart-shaped to cover forehead
- Cloak – Outer garment, semicircular or square in shape, fastened with chord or brooch
- wealthy lined with fur
- Cote-Hardie – Fitted gown that fell in folds, row of buttons in front
- Fitchet – Cut hole for access to purse
- Dagged/Dagging – Scallops cut into fabric, decorum
- Diadem – Similar to chain mail, draped over forehead and back
- Fillet – Stiff linen molded into headband, worn over barbette or veil
- Girdle – Leather/metal belt, sometimes held purse
- Gloves – Leather/fabric, worn for cold
- Headdress – Wimple and veil; Fillet and barbette; Barbette and veil; Cap and veil/barbette
- Hennin – Pointed headdress
- Hose – Sock or stocking
- Houppelande – Long gown loose over shoulders, cinched at waist by belt, high collar
- Kirtle – Generic dress
- Lirapipe – Long streamer attached to headdress, usually hennin
- Mantle – Indoor cloak, noble wear
- Pelisse – Jacket-type covering for dress
- Purse – Sack with long chord for tie off.
- Sideless Surcoat – Outer dress, worn over smock or kirtle
- Noble wear
- Open sides, cut at hip
- Sleeves – Able to be removed and interchanged
- Sleeve could be given to knight or lover
- Smock/Undertunic – Gown worn under dress
- Supertunic – Strip of material with hole for head, lower class
- Tippet – White linen attached to upper arm, trailing floor (decorum)
- Veil – Varying styles
- Widows – Wimple over chin with pleats in front
- Wimple – Covered throat and tucked into neckline
Men
- Braies/Breeches – Pants with drawstring
- Lower Class – Loose
- Nobility/Wealthy – Form-fitting with feet or loop attached for boots
- Cap – Small brimless hat
- Chaperon – Similar to Chaplet; extra material draped from top to one side
- Chaplet – Padded roll worn on head like hat; horn or heart-shaped to cover forehead (same as women)
- Cloak – Same as women
- Codpiece – Small triangle piece that joined hose at waist
- Coif – Like barbette; white linen covering head and ears
- Black coif = scholar/elder
- Cote-Hardie – Similar to women, reached knees
- Cowl/Hood – Covered head, later draped over back
- Dagging – Decorum; scallops cut into Gorget, hem of Tunic, or Sleeves
- Doublet/Gypon – Tailored tunic, front stuffed
- Folly-Bells – Small bells hung off girdle, nobles and jesters
- Garnache – Supertunic draped over shoulders to elbows
- Gorget – Cape of Cowl/Hood
- Gloves – Leather or linen, similar to women
- Girdle – Belt around waist
- Hose – Linen or wool, pulled over braises to knee and gartered to shin
- Houppelande – Similar to women, calf-length for merchants and poor, slits in sides
- Jerkin – Houppelande with low cut collar
- Kilt – Knee-length pleated skirt (Scottish)
- Lirapipe – Hood whose point extended and dangled to wearer’s feet
- Pallium – Togalike, draped over shoulders and hip
- Phyrgian Cap – Cone-shape, wool or linen, brim folded up
- Purse – Same as women
- Supertunic – Similar to women
- Tippet – Long streamer from elbow down leg
- Tunic – Shirt
- Undertunic – Undershirt
Children wore identical clothing, just a smaller size. Babies were swaddled. Clergy wear (nuns, monks, priests/priestesses, wizards, etc.) wore simpler clothing. Everything was dictated by the order, so further research will determine specific orders or you can create your own.
Shoes
- Sandals
- Ankle-length Shoes
- Boots (shin to thigh-length)
Normally made of leather or fabric, shoes became more exquisite and specialized the more money a person had. Lower cases would normally have sandal or ankle-length shoes while noble men would have fur-lined boots. Depending on the environment and status of characters, these norms can change.
Final Thoughts: Make It Your Own
Sherrilyn Kenyon wrote this list based on fantasy, which usually focuses on medieval scenarios. I highly suggest reading her full descriptions in Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction AND doing additional research. Most of these garments will probably never appear in your work, but they can get you started with a character’s look. Once that is done, finding the right words is all it takes.
Another thing to note is that your story will have different systems of government and wealth, all of which you can define based on clothing. Change what history says is the poor man’s dress or the nun’s daily wear. It’s your world to create.