The Ultimate Guide to Online Renaissance Resources

There’s tons of great Renaissance resources online, but they’re not always easy to find. Fortunately, we’ve done a lot of the legwork for you. In this collection of links you’ll find not only websites full of information on Renaissance era clothing, but also several picture galleries as well as tutorials on fashioning your own garb.

The Costumer's Manifesto - 16th Century Europe — A crash course in 16th Century clothing, this extensive read will give you a good grasp of the attire, with additional links provided for deeper study.
16th Century Men’s Clothing — A guide to what men of the period generally wore, with pictures provided for visual reference. An excellent source of information, without being so long as to be overwhelming.
16th Century Women’s Clothing — Much the same as the above link, this page covers women’s clothing of the 16th Century. Plenty of useful information as well as helpful pictures.
Fashion Encyclopedia — One of the most robust resources on this list, the Fashion Encyclopedia has several articles on all sorts of 16th Century clothing and accessories.
A Brief History of Clothes — This page talks about the history of clothes, going all the way back to the ancient Egyptians. There’s a good deal of info on the 16th Century, as well as the periods immediately preceding and following it.
Elizabethan Costume: History and Technique — Like the link directly above, this offers a fairly general overview of clothing worn during Elizabethan times, covering both men and women as well as clothing accessories.
Overview of an Elizabethan Outfit — Focusing on solely women's clothing, this page tells of not just that variety of clothing women of the time wore, but also accessories, makeup, and even shoes.
Jesters: A Fool and his Clothing — One of the more unique fashion senses of the day, this page contains a plethora of pictures depicting various Jesters and they're colorful garb.
Late Period Outerwear — As the title suggests, here you'll find information specifically on outerwear that was worn in the later 16th century, which covers garments like cassocks, cloaks, frocks, and many, many more.

From Fighting to Feasting - Rapier Garb — Here's something a little more specific. This site contains a lot of information on clothing worn by rapier fighters in the sixteenth century, otherwise known as the Golden Age of the rapier.
Footwear of the Middle Ages — Footwear is a topic all its own, and this site has plenty of information of historic footwear, going all the way up to end of the sixteenth century.
1450 — 1500 AD Clothing — A nice little page of info on clothing from the year 1450 to 1500 AD. Includes a brief history, as well as a bullet list of clothing, complete with pictures.
Elizabethan Period Costumes — Another useful, condensed guide on general Elizabethan costumes with additional links if you want to study further and read up on more specific topics.
Essential Renaissance Clothing for Men — A site designed specifically for men gives us this handy resource on men’s Renaissance clothing. A bullet list is used to easily explain the different articles of men’s attire.
Working Women's Clothes in 1580s London — A page of very specific information, which makes it all the more useful. And for such a niche subject, there’s a ton of information and plenty of pictures.
A Working Woman's Dress Revisited — Had enough working women yet? Here’s yet another terrific resource covering 16th century working women’s fashion, once again with plenty of pictures provided.
Reconstructing History's Renaissance Patterns — Complete patterns to help you make all kinds of your own Renaissance outfits, with everything from an early Tudor man's jerkin to a women's 16th century Irish Shinrone gown.
Hose in the 16th Century — Everybody wore hose during the time period, so if you’re looking to emulate that Renaissance look, you need to know your hose! This page will help you do just that.
Fans of the Renaissance — That tile doesn’t refer to fans like the fans of a sports team, but rather the fans that cool you down, of which there were plenty during the Renaissance.

Italian Renaissance Gown Construction — Covering clothing from roughly 1470 to 1540, this robust source of knowledge deals specifically with Italian dresses, discussing both the general facts as well as the more specific details.
English Academic Costume — This page contains plenty of info on the academic costumes worn in England, most likely by clerics. Pictures are also provided to make the page all the more helpful.
Boys’ Clothes: 16th Century — Though not the most aesthetically pleasing web page, it contains a vast amount of information on boys’ clothing from the 16th Century.
Celtic Dress of the 16th Century — A page containing an impressive amount of information, pictures included, on Celtic clothing worn not just by the Irish, but the Scottish too, during the 16th Century.
Trystan’s Closet — A wonderful little personal website created by someone who frequents Renaissance faires and makes her own costumes. Included is plenty of information on her creative process, with pictures included.
Renaissance Costumes — A huge selection of Renaissance and medieval costumes for men, women and children, as well as Renaissance gowns and accessories.
Historic Life — Another website run by historical reenactment buffs. This particular page is all about 16th Century clothing, giving you a helpful rundown of what they wear, complete with photos.
Realm of Venus — A site focusing on 16th Century Venice, you’ll find a ton of information here in this deceptively large database of knowledge.
Modern History Sourcebook — An elaborate description of Elizabethan England, this particular link will take you right to the section on apparel and attire.
Boning Materials — This one may sound a bit dirty, but the "bone" in a corset is the rigid part that gives it its frame. This unique guide will hopefully aid you in making your own.
The Early History of the Spanish Farthingale — The farthingale, also known as the verdugada, has a bit of a mysterious past and this page will get you all caught up to speed. Plenty of paintings provide visual aid as well.

Breeches and Braies — Only the hardcore need apply here. A page with information on designing what goes underneath your garments — underpants. A quick and helpful guide to both men and women’s.
The Gown of Mary of Hapsburg — A uniquely dedicated page on Mary of Hapsburg and the gown that she wore in the 1520s. Plenty of information with a few pictures.
Clothing of The Mary Rose — An interesting piece of history, the Mary Rose was a Tudor-era ship and this page covers various aspects of it — including the clothing worn by those onboard.
Jessamyn’s Regency Costume Companion — A fancy name for a fancy page, this page contains information on a variety of clothing, some from the Renaissance era and some from later.
Les Singvliers et Novveaux Povrtaicts — No, that is not gibberish — it is a 16th Century lace-making pattern book, posted on the internet for you to peruse at your lace-making leisure.
Jost Amman’s Frauentrachtenbuch — Another ancient book, this time on 1570s German women’s fashion. If you’re looking for information, why not go straight to that time period?
The History of Costume — Another older book, this one written in the later 1800s but covering fashion from the 16th Century. Comes with plenty of pretty pictures of various outfits.
Essay on Chopines — Chopines were platform shoes that were popular with women in the 15th, 16th, and 17th Centuries, and they were really, really tall. This essay speaks about them in-depth.
Footwear of the Middle Ages — Everyone needs shoes and this page will get you well on your way designing your, with six different Renaissance-era designs.
History of Quilts — While quilts are traditionally thought of as adorning beds and couches, they’ve also been widely used in clothing, making this a helpful page for any renaissance fan.

16th & 17th Century Embroidery — Known as slips, these embroidered motifs were used to decorate clothing as well as a variety of other cloths and fabrics.
Renaissance Clothing — A series of informative articles clothing of the Renaissance, written by a woman who’s clearly passionate about the subject.
Eras of Elegance — A page dedicated to the daily life of the Renaissance, which includes a hearty section on the fashion of the time period.
Chantberry Recreations — A website dedicated to historic costume recreations, there are a variety of pages full of Renaissance clothing images. A very helpful resource.
History’s of Women’s Costume — This page touches on the generalities of 16th Century women’s garb, discussing various countries and providing a few pictures.
Scottish Attire — This is an interesting page. It features several quotes concerning 16th and 17th Century Scottish clothing, both men’s and women’s, allowing you to get a feel for the clothing of the time.
An Easy Italian Renaissance Gown — If you’re looking to make your own gown but lack the skills of a master seamstress, this seems to be where you should start.
A Fashionable Vocabulary — This crash course on Renaissance era fashion lingo is a must-read for anybody interested in replicating the style of that time.
Anya’s Documentation Site — Anya has been creating Elizabethan costumes for almost twenty years and she uses her personal website to document her work.
Medieval & Renaissance Pictures — A wonderful depository of photos, for those visual learners out there. While light on actual information, you’ll find plenty of pictures of costumes from a long span of time.

Elizabeth I Images — Those looking to emulate royalty will be greatly helped by this gallery of images depicting Elizabeth I in a variety of clothing. This is simply page one, there are two more pages to look through.
Tudor & Elizabeth Portraits — A very high quality collection of portraits from the Renaissance era, displaying the clothing of the period.
Portraits of Tudor Nobility — A page of portraits depicting Tudor-era clothing. Each picture is accompanied by a lengthy explanation with information about the portrait and the period.
Tudor England: Images — A database of hundreds of pictures from Tudor England. Be sure to read and click through all of the links to access all of them.
16th Century Reproductions — A high quality gallery of 16th Century clothing reproductions, which should prove helpful to anyone trying to construct the same.
Renaissance Footnotes — A gallery of several pictures of a Renaissance reenactment, displaying not only the clothing, but the clothing being worn in a variety of period-appropriate activities.
How to Make an Elizabethan/Tudor Shirt — Here’s a helpful guide on making Renaissance-era shirts for both men and women. Sleeves, cuffs, collars — it’s all here in these precise instructions.
Making an Elizabethan Corset — Now that you've got your gown, it's time to turn your tailoring skills towards making a corset. This guide should cover everything that you need to know, complete with pictures for easier understanding.
To Make a Beautiful Color — Now here's an incredibly specific tutorial - dyes. If you're hardcore enough that you're looking to dye your own clothes, this site has all the information you'll require.
Doublet Patterns — The site is humorously named "The Weebsite," but don’t let that fool you. They offer a really simple, easy-to-understand breakdown of Doublet Patterns.

How to Tie Bows — Once you’ve gotten yourself a nice period-authentic bow, the battle is only half over — now you have to tie the darn thing. This page will help you do just that.
Making a Kirtle — A kirtle is the outer-most layer on a peasant woman’s clothing and something you’ll need if you want to look the part. This page will help you design one of your very own.
Fashion Figures — While these figures can be used for plenty of purposes, they’re very helpful for planning your clothing out. We can’t all be artists! Use these pre-drawn figures to plan everything out.
How to Make a Gable Hood — You may not find Tudor Gable headdresses that fashionable (or perhaps you do). In any case, they were all the rage in England from 1520 to 1540. This page will help you create your own.
Renaissance Art — This site does a great job of covering the history and culture of the Renaissance art movement, including the most important painters, sculptors and architects.
Chainmail & More — Renaissance fair style accessories and gothic jewelry handcrafted in woven metal. Creations include chain-mail bikinis, spiked jewelry, multi-pierced earrings, headpieces, chokers, barefoot sandals, waist chains, handflowers and lots more.
Netting — Netting has been practiced for centuries and was used in the 16th Century to make designs for clothing. This site will help you make basic and fancy designs.
Tudor Flat Cap How-To — The Auld Garb Monger’s free sewing projects covering two different hats — the cavalier hat project and a 16th Century Tudor flat cap.
Medieval Leather Dying — Don’t let the "medieval" in the title fool you, the middle ages lasted all the way to the 16th Century, making this tutorial on leather dying more than relevant.
Choosing Lace — A quick and easy write-up on choosing lace for your 16th Century clothing. I never knew there was so much to it until I read this page, which means that you probably should too!
Glove.org — A website created over a decade ago to share the little-known art of glove making, this page will show you how to create an Elizabethan-era duello glove.