by Ian Maddox
The Edwardian era, for those unfamiliar with the term, refers to the period of history spanning the reign of King Edward VII, from 1901 to 1910. Though this is the official Edwardian period, it roughly extends itself into The Roaring 20s.
For this article, I would like to examine how the typical Edwardian male would dress, as well as comparing it to my own outfit picked out for this article, and how you may be able to imitate the style with modern-day options.
Starting from the bottom, shoes for the Edwardian male were always nice dress shoes. The style you get depends on what kind of look you’re going for.
If you want a good versatile shoe, simple brown shoes will work the best. They pair well with almost any outfit. An exception to this would be darker evening wear. For this, you would want black.
What “style” of the shoe is up to you. I chose a very simple (inexpensive) pair that I’ve owned for several years now. If you can find a comfortable pair you like, you should be set for a long time.
Though you can’t see, I’m wearing a pair of light blue socks with lions on them. I like to have a little bit of color on me to provide contrast, even if you can’t see it all the time.
Moving up to the pants: the pair I’m wearing is corduroy, which wasn’t invented until the 1960s but is a good example of how you can still achieve an Edwardian look with what you’ve got on hand.
If you want to aim for something more period-accurate, go for pants made of wool, or thicker material called “duck cloth,” which were worn in the colder seasons.
For color, the 1910s and 20s were chock-full of every color of pants you could imagine. As long as they match the rest of your outfit, you can’t go wrong.
The cut of the pants is where things get interesting. I opted for a simple, slim fit, but there is a much wider variety out there for the era.
Most notable were knickerbockers. These pants came to about mid-calf and flared out noticeably. Under you would wear a pair of simple over-the-calf socks, with some sort of diamond pattern.
To keep your pants up, belts are a big no-no, especially with a waistcoat.
Instead, a pair of suspenders is optimal. Some pants will have buttons on them specifically for suspenders to attach to, but that would require you to buy specific kinds of pants. Instead, many clip-on options are available that will work just as well. I’m wearing a pair myself!
Now suspenders were considered underwear back in the day, and so were often worn under a coat.
From the waist up, almost everything I’m wearing is tweed. Tweed was popular mostly in the late 1800s but continued up until the late 1900s. Many people still get sport coats or hats made from the fabric.
Coats are optional. In warmer weather, you’d simply remove the coat, and roll up your shirt sleeves. For colder seasons, thicker materials and more layers were common. You could also switch to sweaters, or cardigans depending on the outfit.
Shirts are much the same as they are today. Back then, round detachable club collars were a favorite, as opposed to the pointy modern attached collars of today. Again, period-accurate clothing is hard to find, so working with what you have is OK. I am wearing a modern-made shirt with a pointy collar.
Finally, accessories. There are several options to add to an outfit. I have a hat, pocket watch, and tie in mine.
Watches were very common and always went into the pocket on your non-dominant side. The chain would always lead up to one of the buttons on a waistcoat and sometimes had a second chain leading to the opposite pocket.
There were several styles of hats popular in the day. The kind I’m wearing has several names, including cloth cap, jockey cap, and flat cap. Rounded bowler hats were also common, and silk top hats were popular for evening events and dinner parties.
Finally, Neckties. The kind of tie you wear depends on your body type, and what type of event you may be attending.
Bow ties were often reserved for dinner parties, but you would see them every now and then on the street.
The more “standard” necktie was worn by nearly every man. Often, they complimented your body type; for instance, for my broader figure, typically I’d wear a broader necktie, but if you had a slimmer figure, you’d wear a slimmer tie.
There is a severe lack of options for those wishing to dress in the Edwardian style. Thrift stores are always a good option, but it’s up in the air what you’ll find.
I’ll often supplement parts of my outfit with more readily available clothing such as jeans, or modern jackets.
Your preferences are really what’s going to make any outfit. What you are comfortable with, what you like about fashion, what’s available to you. Have fun with it, It’s all up to you!
