Sarah Jane Downing

The source of tremendous power and the focus of incredible devotion, throughout history notions of beauty have been integral to social life and culture. Each age has had its own standards: a gleaming white brow during the Renaissance, the black eyebrows considered charming in the early eighteenth century, and the thin lips thought desirable by Victorians. Beauty has ensured good...

The broader Regency period from 1795 to 1820 stands alone as an incredible moment in fashion history, unlike anything that went before it. For the first time, England became a fashion influence, especially in menswear, and became the toast of Paris, as court dress became secondary to the season-by-season flux of fashion as we know it today. Sarah Jane Downing...