‘I just don't think I look right in a lot of modern clothes … ’: historically inspired dress as leisure dress

Abstract

This study examined the motivations and dress practices of individuals who wear what appear to be historical styles of costume or historically inspired dress in settings that do not require wearing them. Qualitative case studies were conducted and analysed using Colaizzi's method of phenomenological analysis [Edward, Karen-Leigh, and Tony Welch. 2011. “The Extension of Colaizzi's Method of Phenomenological Enquiry.” Contemporary Nurse 39 (2): 163–171]. By applying historically inspired dress to Eicher and Miller's [1994. “Dress and the Public, Private, and Secret self: Revisiting a Model.” In Proceedings of the International Textile and Apparel Association, Inc., 145. Minneapolis, MN.] Public, Private, and Secret Self (PPSS) Model, as presented by Miller-Spillman and Lee [2014. “Female Civil War Reenactors’ Dress and Magic Moments.” In Fashion, Design and Events, edited by Kim Williams, Jennifer Laing, and Warwick Frost, 69–83. Abingdon: Routledge], we found that motivations for wearing this type of dress in settings where costume was not required (leisure and reality settings) were similar to those in which costume was required (fantasy settings). Additionally, while some motivations were limited to some settings, some were salient across multiple settings, while others were salient across all settings studied. We also uncovered new motivations, such as feelings of social permission, desiring an ideal body shape or flattering figure, and expressing ideologies and/or world views not previously reported by the model [Miller-Spillman, Kimberly, and Min-Young Lee. 2014. “Female Civil War Reenactors’ Dress and Magic Moments.” In Fashion, Design and Events, edited by Kim Williams, Jennifer Laing, and Warwick Frost, 69–83. Abingdon: Routledge]. This study contributes to understandings of the relationship between dress and leisure because we found that the practice of editing plays an important role in distinguishing leisure dress from fantasy dress, a concept not currently recognized by the PPSS model.