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A w aistcoat, coat, stockings, breeches
are what men wore for every
day suits. Most men's clothes were made of linen or wool in black, dark blue or brown. Rich men
wore decorated silk or velvet.
A mans stockings were white or grey silk. Working men's stockings were wool
or linen. Their pants were called breeches. They didn't have zippers,
but had a flap that buttoned. In the beginning of the century, a
mans pants were loose, and as time went on, tighter pants became fashionable. A
waistcoat is like a vest, and like a three piece suit made today, it usually
matched the coat.
In the beginning of the 18th century, coats had no collars, but later in the century, short collars
were in fashion. They usually had large cuffs with many buttons. Braiding
and buttons were used for decorations. In cold weather, men wore heavy wool coats called greatcoats that came to the knee. Men didn't have ties as worn today,
their neckwear was usually linen and called a cravat. A solitaire was also a black tie
that was sometimes worn with a stock.
Men's hats weren't as fancy as women's. The tricorne is the one we
often think of, the three cornered hat. Rich men often carried fancy canes
or swords as accessories, not because they needed them. In addition, men also
carried a pocketbook, spectacles and snuff boxes
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