By Sandra Chambers
Contributing Writer
Fans of the popular PBS television series “Downton Abbey” don’t have to travel to Highclere Castle to experience firsthand what life was like, or to view original costumes of their favorite characters. The Biltmore House, the grand 250-room Vanderbilt estate in Asheville, North Carolina, is showcasing 47 costumes from the show during its exhibition, “Dressing Downton: Changing Fashions for Changing Times,” which runs now through May 25.
The Biltmore bears a striking visual resemblance to the show’s Highclere Castle in Hampshire, England, and provides a look into the lifestyles of both the New York Vanderbilts, who lived at Biltmore, and the fictional Crawley family during the early 1900s. The costumes are displayed throughout the mansion in groupings where they would have been worn.
The exhibit’s costumes range from country tweeds to servants’ uniforms, to lavish gowns and evening attire cut from fine fabrics and decorated with intricate embroidery, lace and beading.
Leslie Klingner, Biltmore curator of interpretation, spoke about the exhibit’s extraordinary detail.
“What has really struck me about the costumes is their exquisite details,” she said. “They are absolutely gorgeous in person, and it’s so exciting to see them close up in the correct settings.”
The costumes are custom made or come from a stock of more than 100,000 costumes and accessories made by the renowned British costumer Cosprop, Ltd.
Reflecting an Era of Change
All the costumes play an important supporting role in “Downton Abbey,” reflecting the times and storyline. Some of the important themes of the show are the evolution of fashion, nuances of etiquette and the changing roles of women.
The post-Edwardian era in which “Downton Abbey” is set was a time of change both in the U.S. and abroad, and the period costumes reflect that history. The costume collection begins in 1912 with the sinking of the Titanic and moves into the years surrounding World War I, then into the Jazz Age of the early 1920s.
In Season 2, the viewer begins to see a shift in fashion as Tom Branson and Lady Sybil explore the theme of women’s suffrage. In her book, “The World of Downton Abbey: Styles From the Formal Dining to the Front,” Jessica Fellowes writes of Sybil’s shocking, radical pants, “No woman of her class had ever been seen in trousers.”
In Season 3, which opens with the beginning of the 1920s, the dresses are shorter and less ornate than those of the Edwardian period. The flapper and Art Deco influences are seen in the clothes worn by the three daughters, all of whom have embraced the modern silhouette of the 1920s: dropped waist dresses, slim busts and generally more athletic-looking lines.
The grand dame of Downton, Violet, is an exception. She retains her Edwardian style of clothing with a nipped-in waist, bustle, corset, gloves and hat. Martha Levinson, the brash American grandmother, reveals some of the cultural differences between the U.S. and England with her gauche attire. But overall, in the 1920s, the same fashions with the new lines and looks were popular both in England and the U.S. They were looking to each other during this era and buying the same fashions in Paris, London and Washington, D.C.
As for men’s fashions, they don’t change as much as women’s do during this time period. There is, however, a move toward more casual attire with the tuxedo replacing tails and white ties for dinner attire. In the early ’20s the “plus fours” also becomes popular for men’s sportswear. These shortened trousers, reaching four inches below the knee, give them more physical flexibility for hunting and sporting events. There is also a move toward the more “country tweed” look acceptable for country estates attire versus what men were wearing in London.
“What sets the aristocratic class apart, particularly in England, was the fact that both men and women had different outfits for different activities during the day,” Klingner said. “There was an outfit for breakfast, for going into town, for afternoon tea, for hunting and for dinner, so they ended up changing outfits five or six times a day. Also, the investments they were making in their clothing weren’t for longevity, but for fashion. Most were only wearing their outfits for a season and then it would be time to get the latest fashions from London or Paris.”
Servants’ Costumes of the Period
“The real showpieces of the house were the footmen,” Fellowes explains in her book. “Their uniforms would be provided by the house at great expense. The maids were not so fortunate. They had to make their own uniforms of two dresses: a print dress with a plain apron for cleaning in the morning, changing into a black dress with a more decorative pinny for the afternoons and evenings. This could be expensive: in 1890s the price of the fabric could eat up six months’ of a scullery maid’s wages.”
Some of the servant’s outfits on display at The Biltmore include Mr. Carson presiding over the banquet hall; Mrs. Hughes; Mr. Barrow; Mrs. Patmore and Daisy in the kitchen; and Anna and John Bates.
What’s unique about the exhibit at The Biltmore is the house still has the original servants’ quarters and kitchen, so the servants’ costumes are seen in an authentic setting. At Highclere Castle the kitchen has been renovated, so the downstairs scenes are filmed in a separate studio.
Want to go?
A behind-the-scenes guided Upstairs-Downstairs Tour takes visitors to the domains of the butler, head housekeeper and the lady’s maid, and to a suite of upstairs guest rooms not seen on the regular house tour.
Guests can enjoy a special English Sunday Brunch at Cedric’s Tavern.
Select weekend evenings in April and May, guests can book the Rooftop Sparkling Wine Reception. This guided behind-the-scenes rooftop tour will provide views of the estate from various balconies. Following the tour, guests will enjoy canapés and Biltmore wines.
The Dressing Downton hotel package at The Inn on Biltmore Estate includes accommodations, chef’s breakfast buffet daily in the dining room, afternoon tea in the library lounge, admission to The Biltmore House and estate valid for length of stay, audio guide to The Biltmore Mansion, Biltmore souvenir guidebook, valet parking at the inn and complimentary estate shuttle service.
For more information, visit www.biltmore.com/events/dressing-downton-1
