Men sometimes wore a colored hat band.
These were used as decoration inside or outside of their best hats. Women wore linen garments called loose shifts. Over the shifts they wore long dresses. The dresses had two parts; the bodice and the skirt. Women in the 17th century did not wear pants. All clothing was homemade, and made by the women. Most women only owned about 2-4 outfits. The clothing was all hand-sewn and made of either wool or linen. Women’s clothing had to cover the woman's knees and elbows. Because of the belief that bathing was dangerous, clothing wasn’t washed. Often clothes such as a gown, might never be washed! Most colonists from New England wore simple attire except for the rich. Rich wore fancy clothing and anyone that wasn’t rich and dressed in fancy clothes would be fined and put in jail. Even simple decorations like buttons were considered to fancy and instead Pilgrims and Puritans used strings. Women and girls wore aprons and it was considered inappropriate for a woman or girl to wear anything
otherwise.
In the Middle Colonies, colonists were much less strict about clothing. Clothes were simple in Pennsylvania for the Quakers preferred non extravagant clothes in colors that were dark and somber. They would also have no frills or any other special designs. William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania (1681), Enjoyed fancy clothes with satin and stockings made of silk. He wore lace collars and a fancy hat usually containing multiple feathers. For a Quaker, his headgear was the most important piece of clothing. A man would wear a wide-brimmed hat. Quakers believed that all men were equal. Therefor, a Quaker never took off his hat when passing another person. These hats were kept on at all times except when one went to sleep. Dutch people in New York (originally New Netherlands) had no restrictions on what to wear, and most wore only what they could afford. Dutch women wore skirts that could be almost 3 feet wide! Women in New York also wore belts. Women would attach household items to these belts (ex. Keys, scissors etc). Almost all women wore a bonnet consisting of linen. Finally, a women wore shoes made of leather with a silver buckle. Men would wear baggy knee breeches made of bright colors. Like the women, they also wore shoes made of leather with a buckle. Men would wear plumed hats, although some men could not afford these hats.
The Southern Colonies were the first to imitate Europe in their fashion sense. This was especially true in the Virginia Colony. The Southerners chose silk over the cotton that they could have grown and wove in the plantation farms. They imported the silk from Europe and Britain. Silk can either be a really cool or hot fabric. A women had a lot to wear on top of her undergarments. These could add up to at least 3-4 layers. Back then, the main thing that women wore wore hoop skirts. These skirts could reach up to 4 feet away from the woman's legs. One of the main purposes for hoop skirts was to accentuate the woman's hips or sides. No lady could go barefoot because of the diseases that existed in the dirt and the worms that could be stepped on. On top of everything else, women had to wear corsets that kept them slim in shape. These corsets could be known to be made out of whale bone. Earlier research has said that, women might have worn cotton loose shifts for bedwear. Women, much like today, wore gold earrings, silver hairpins and pearl necklaces. Special chairs with no arms were necessary for most women to sit down. Men had a clear taste for wigs and periwigs. Most plantation owners wore periwigs. Periwigs resembled long natural curly hair. The affix peri means encircling or surrounding, and this is exactly what the wigs do. Periwigs eventually got switched out for regular wigs. A man had to powder their wigs with white chalk. This could cause quite an embarrassment when chalk would cover a man's shoulders. A sudden dust/chalk storm could also start up a breeze passed by. They would style most of these wigs with a ponytail. At the end, they are tied at the end with colorful bands. Slaves usually powdered the chalk on the hair. A slave could have easily gotten irritated by the impromptu dust storm taking place. The men finished their look by wearing satin knee breeches and an embroidered velvet or satin waistcoat. Their shirts featured plenty of laces and ruffles to gawk at. When out a man usually wore a full-coat or a cloak. Children wore the were shrunken versions of their mothers or fathers clothes. Sometimes, a plantation owners son might have worn a wig on special plantation parties. During those times, not even slaves were spared. This was true of especially coachmen slaves. The Southern colonies had a European-based fashion that certainly was interesting.