Costumes for Romeo and Juliet

Costumes for Romeo and Juliet

By: Avalon, Emilee, Sara, Val

In Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet,the costumes were based on Elizabethan clothing.The costumes were often more decorative then historically correct.Costumes were important to the audience as you would be able to tell the era, the setting and the class of the characters.

Shoes

First they would start of by using leather made waterproof by soaking in a liquor and application of grease

then they sewed using hot needles and threads. the Material they used were stubbes which insisted that cat skin were used for inside of shoe and they used calves leather for cow leather,

horsehides for oxe hides, sheep skins for better materials. Then they stitched finely, pinked, cut and carved and by the end they heated the shoes by the fire to harden them.

Elizabethan shoes came in many styles:

Chopines: were slip-on heel shoes made of wood and covered with leather

Boots: boots were made of smooth or wrinkled leather, fitting were loose or tight

Pumps: pumps were light or single soled shoes

Romeo:"why, then is my pump well flowered" (2.4.60)

Dancing shoes: made out of leather and wood with a accessory on top that's silver with a heel for men.

Romeo: "not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes with nimble soles: I have soul of lead so stakes me to the ground i cannot move" (1.4.14)

Women

A Tabard was worn over a loose under-dress, which often had sleeves that were the same material as the tabard, with loops or buttons, or lacing round the armhole. A white top, with long full sleeves, was worn.

The tabard must be interlined with stiff linen, and it was laced over the hips with cords or braids; The shoulders were often tied together with ribbons. Another tabard was used to give fullness to the skirt; it is open in a deep V, showing the square-cut under-dress.

Another late fifteenth-century under-dress was a very short tight bodice cut round and very low, generally opening over a white under-skirt and laced widely over it with contrasting sleeves, opened all down the back and laced or tied at intervals over the white ones,

Juliet: high-waisted empire dress made from thick, plush velvet, also with flowy sleeves. Dresses had low, scooped necklines, sometimes squared, but never V-cut. If she wore a vest over her dress, the vest would have laced up the front. Almost like a corset

Nurse:Houppelande (an outer clothing, with a long, full body and flaring sleeves),

Lady Montague: A more decorative outfit then Juliets

Upperclass men

cloths were trimmed with ermine.

The French hose:was short and full-bodied, (less than halfway between the hip and knee)

shirt:nice material, most of the time there was a vest over top the shirt.

hat:all sizes,shapes,and colors. a popular material to use was velvet. Feathers were also added.

Men also wore boots

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Lower Class Men

In Romeo and Juliet, Servants Sampson and Gregory were lower class men who were subjected to what they could wear.

Hats worn by lower class men were low or flat caps, made of wool

Shirts were made of rough fabrics and became very easily cut up due to the cheap materials.

Breeches were pants that were tights that all man wore.Lower class men wore breeches that were round and broad also made of cheap materials.

There were clearly two categories of shoes during the Elizabethan era - those for the lower class and those for the upper class. They were made of stout or fine leather or, for the Upper Class velvet or silk. Shoes with high heels were created during the end of the Elizabethan era but were only worn by the nobility. Shoes could be slipped on or fastened with ribbons or laces. They were sometimes decorated with trims, embroidery or jewels and 'pinked' with tiny holes.

How shoes were made in ELizabethan Era:

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In Romeo and Juliet, Servants Sampson and Gregory were lower class men who were subjected to what they wore.

Hats worn by lower class men were low or flat caps, made of wool.

Shirts were made of rough fabrics and became very easily cut up due to the cheap materials.

Breeches were pant like tights that all men wore. Lower class men wore breeches that were round and broad also made up of cheap materials.

Unlike the upper class who wore clothes bright in colour, the lower class were restricted to dull boring colours like brown, beige and yellow. Popular materials were sheepskin, wool and cheap linen for the lower class. Materials and colours helped represent men and show what class they belonged to.