Steampunk Chronicles, Ep. 3 - Fashion from the top...

The tricky thing about Steampunk design is if you want a more historically accurate type of ladies' wear, what do you choose?  The world of Steampunk is a mix between Late Victorian/Edwardian, and women's fashion fluctuates largely within this timeframe, as in most eras.  Well, let's start from the top...

Hats- Fortunately, hats during these two eras are fairly similar: elaborate, wide brimmed, and heavily embellished with feathers and veils.  The main difference, as far as I can see, is that the Edwardian era hats had deeper crowns.  You can definitely see where the mini hat idea came from in the Victorian era, since women tended to have very long hair, but kept it up during the day.  The hat would have a smaller crown which they would pin to their hair, and the wider brim, feathers and veils would cover the rest of the hair, or at least most of it.  The first picture is of the popular Victorian-style hats, and the second is of a mid to late Edwardian-style hat.  Notice first that the second hat is worn lower on the head and has a much larger brim.  So when do you know what to wear?  Notice the dress collar.  Once the collars fell, the hats fell as well.  For Steampunk purposes, however, the hats kept to a more Victorian style.

Okay, I don't feel like doing any more right now.  More later...

I just realised I said that both had wide brims.  I'll find some wide-brimmed Victorian hats later and stick it in here.