“Bridgerton,” best known for its historical fashion and dramatic retelling of life in the Regency Era, has done it again, stunning audiences with both an enchanting love story and decadent costume designs.
Season 3 of the series, which kicked off on Netflix — part 1 on May 16 and will continue part 2 on June 13 — revolves around the unfolding love story between Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan), also known as Lady Whistledown, and Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton), the third oldest son of the Bridgerton family.
The show’s fashion takes inspiration from the Regency Era, known to encompass the years from 1811 to 1820 in London, England, although many claim it lasted until 1837 when Queen Victoria’s reign began and with it the Victorian Era. The Regency Era is best known for its elegance and for its connection with the arts including architecture, music, theater and sports. It’s also widely recognized from the strict social life and simplistic fashion.
Fashion in the Regency Era was a more simplistic style than that of its predecessor, the Georgian Era, which encompassed the years 1713 to 1830. The fashion of the period was influenced by the Napoleonic Wars, leading much of a British woman’s wardrobe at the time to include French influences, including the popular high waistline, which is featured on nearly every gown worn throughout the series.
This era was also defined by muslin dresses, chemisettes — a sleeveless undergarment that covers the neck and shoulder area of a gown — mutton sleeves and columnar skirts. The empire silhouette, recognized for its high waistline that sat underneath the bust and for its lower neckline, was the most popular of this era. Bonnets and parasols were a few popular accessories of the era. Hair was often pinned up during the day, out of one’s face.
Men’s fashion consisted of high-collared shirts and waistcoats, often paired with M-shaped double or single-breasted tailcoats underneath. A few different pants were available for men including breeches, pantaloons and buckskins. This era was dubbed the “Great Male Renunciation,” given the name due to the muted color palette and simple cuts worn by men of the period.
There were a few changes from actual Regency fashion to the fashion seen in this season of “Bridgerton.” When compared to women’s fashion from the era, “Bridgerton” is simply a more modernized version of the fashion of the period, with brighter colors and more cleavage, something that would not have been seen in 1811. The show does however lack some of the popular accessories of the period, including bonnets, which were replaced by wide-brimmed hats in the series. The most historically accurate fashion statement seen in the show is the spencer — a waist-length, close-fitted and tight-sleeved jacket often worn by men.
The men’s fashion is more accurate to the Regency Era than the women’s fashion in the series. The fobs for watches and top hats, streamlined waistcoats and tailcoats were all items that would have been popular during the era. A few inaccuracies, however, are the light-colored trousers, often worn by Colin and Gregory Bridgerton (Will Tilston) throughout the series, instead of the black and more fitted ones that men wore in the Regency Era.
This season of “Bridgerton” emphasizes the change in Penelope’s character, as trades in the yellows and pinks and floral patterns her family adorned in previous seasons for shades of darker blues and greens. According to an article from Fashionista, Penelope’s debut new look, an emerald green gown worn to the first ball of this season, signifies her need for change and empowerment.
The green worn by Penelope throughout the season is a mix of blue and yellow, the two trademark colors for the main families in the story, explained the show’s costume designer John Glacier in an interview with Fashionista.
"We pulled back to neutralize her color, and we used layers of fabrics — [including] blue, green, lavender and pink — so that, when you look at her dress, you're not really sure what color it is," Glaser said. "We didn't want to give away Easter eggs like, 'This is towards the Bridgertons,' or, 'This is towards the Featheringtons.' We wanted her, not the clothes, to lead us on the journey."
This season was focused on enhancing Penelope’s body as well as her fashion choices, a trend all previous seasons of Bridgerton have done in order to highlight the stars of the season — Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevorand) Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page) in season 1, Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathon Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) and now Penelope and Colin in season 3.
Colin Bridgerton, the other half of this season’s focus, spent the previous two seasons of the show wearing pastel yellows, pinks and blues but in this season dressed in darker shades of blue throughout the season, a signature for the Bridgeton family. Colin is a traveler and as shown at the beginning of the season he is just back from his travels and ready for the season as one of the most eligible bachelors of the Ton — the high society.
"His fabrics have more texture, and they've been aged so they don't look all brand new,” Glaser said in the same interview with Fashionista. “His clothes have some history now, which gives you a little mystery into what he's been up to."
The rest of the cast has also gotten new makeovers, including Francesca Bridgerton (Ruby Stokes) — Colin’s sister — and Kate Bridgerton — Anthony Bridgerton’s wife. Francesa’s wardrobe is full of textures and emphasizes her quieter nature compared to her siblings. According to Glaser, she wears lots of sheer fabrics “so as to not disguise the character, but also not reveal the character.”
Kate, on the other hand, is shown in more clothing reminiscent of India, her home and also where she and Anthony, have come back from their honeymoon following their courtship in the previous season. Her clothing uses more natural colors, reminiscent of the colors of water or that of her skin tone. The goal, Glaser said, was to make her look warm and give the illusion that she'd come back from somewhere in a warm climate, which she had.
This season has a lot more to look forward to in part 2 of this season, from the regal clothing to the romantic storyline that follows the friends-to-lovers trope.
