What people wore long ago
History · Early Years · The School
Cloth, not plastic
Long ago, clothes were made from wool, cotton or linen. There was no nylon. There was no fleece. Wool comes from sheep. Cotton comes from a plant. Making cloth from either one takes real skill. Cloth was often made by hand. It took a long time to make just one shirt.
Why old photos look grey
Old photographs are black and white or brown. That does not mean clothes had no colour. Cameras long ago could not capture colour yet. A colour photograph only became common much later. People still wore reds, blues and greens. The camera is what lost the colour, not the clothes.
Buttons, laces and layers
People long ago wore more layers than we often do now. Many clothes fastened with buttons or laces, not zips. A coat might need ten buttons, done up one by one. Getting dressed could take much longer than it does today.
Look at an old photograph of a wedding. Everyone looks grey. Now look at a painting from the very same year. The bride's dress is a bright blue. A hat has red feathers. The painting shows the true colours the camera could not catch. Photographs and paintings are both evidence — just of different things.