Juliet's Clothing In Romeo And Juliet By William Shakespeare

For the final project of Romeo and Juliet, the option of designing a costume book for five of the main characters was chosen. The costumes of Juliet, Romeo, the Nurse, Tybalt, and Lady Capulet.
In the play, Juliet is a very young, beautiful girl. Since the play took place during the Elizabethan era, it is only natural that her costume should reflect the style of the time. During this time period, there were very strict rules as to what you could and could not wear depending on your social status. According to elizabethan-era.org, “These were called the Sumptuary Laws which provided strict clothing guidelines in order to limit the expenditure by people on clothes - and of course to maintain the social structure of the Elizabethan Class system.”
The underclothes, which are almost never visible, consisted of a smock, stockings, a farthingale (hoop skirt), and a petticoat. The outer, more visible, layer of clothing consisted of a stomacher, a forepart, a gown, and separate sleeves. The colors chosen for the dress were yellow and indigo, both symbolizing themes connected to Juliet. The color of yellow symbolized renewal and hope which can be connected to the novel by the amount of hope Juliet had at the beginning for her relationship with Romeo. Indigo symbolizes power and wealth, which can be connected to the amount of wealth her family acquired at the time. Young girls would wear clothing based off of their father’s social status, and Juliet’s father had a very high status. According to the Prologue of Romeo and Juliet, “Two households [Montagues and Capulets], both alike in dignity.” The definition of dignity used in the passage refers to elevated rank or status, which suggests that they are both extremely wealthy. Along with clothing, there were ideals and rules for hair and makeup as well. The ideal look for women was to have light hair with pale skin and red cheeks. These could be achieved by
For her clothing, she has a slightly more simple design than her employers. Her clothing is a more plain with a lack of many designs or jewels. The undergarments for a nurse would have been a smock, stockings, a bodice, and a kirtle. For the overgarments, a gown and separate sleeves were worn. Even though she was in servitude, she was still required to look presentable as she worked in the main area of the home. The colors of her dress, blue and brown, symbolize her low, servant status. The color of blue was “[. . .] closely associated with the state of servitude and was a popular color of clothes worn by servants”(elizabethan-era.org). Even though she was employed by the wealthy and upper class, she herself was still lower in status and subject to the rules. The color of brown also symbolized poverty as well as humility and was only worn by the lowest classes. Her headpiece is similar to the Pillbox style of hat with a very long veil wrapping around the head/neck area and draping over the sides.
Lady Capulet was mother to Juliet and wife of Lord Capulet. Although she is not mention or appears very often throughout the novel, details are still able to be pulled from it to form an idea of her. One the few things known about her is that she is married to a fairly rich man and is also surprisingly young. In dialogue with Juliet she