Men's Renissance Clothing

A doublet, jerkin, knee-breeches or hose made up a man's suit. Underneath his suit a man would wear a shirt and underwear, which looks like jockey shorts. You are probably wondering, what did this kind of clothing look like? Doublets were like jackets and had many styles, depending on your station in life and income. One style was the peascod doublet, it had a pointy waist and a skirt of tabs most of the time. Level waists or natural waists, comfortable sleeves and a longer skirts were worn by men of a lower or working class. A suede jerkin is often sleeveless and cut to fit over the doublet, like a vest. Knee-breeches had many styles: very full, very tight and very gathered at the top and narrow at the knee. They usually buttoned or hooked at the knee. Stockings came up over the knee and were held in place by garters. Sometimes the garters were very fancy and sometimes just a simple band with a buckle. Hose worn by men of the Renaissance were like puffy shorts. Paned hose were made of strips of material over cloth that showed through the panes. Other styles were bell, onion or pumpkin shaped. Another thing that some men used was called a cod-piece. It was a triangular shaped bag worn at the waist and hanging down in front. Shirts worn by men were usually very simple and made out of cotton. Shirts were gathered in the front and back and had simple closures, tied or buttoned. Collars and cuffs were worn separately and would add greater style and variety for the more wealthy. Gentlemen wore cloaks and hats also. Dutch cloaks were short, Spanish cloaks were short with a large decorative hood that hung down the back and French cloaks were very long with an extra layer of cloth over the shoulders. A flat, beret styled cap was the most common but other styles, including a tall, flat-top hat were also worn. Shoes would depend on who you were, how wealthy you were and what you were doing. Boots were worn for riding, shoes for indoors and slipper-like shoes for more formal wear. A common shoe had a tongue and side-lachets fastened over the instep with a bow.