The class structure during Elizabethan England was quite evident in the clothing of the era. The upper class used rich velvets, satin and exotic silk. Fabrics were imported: silks from the Middle East and the finest velvet from Italy. The brightest colors were considered the most expensive so that the upper class women were quite distinguishable from the working class women by the color of their dresses. Upper class women also used classy jewelry and the ruffs were indispensable for a truly elegant look.
Ladies in waiting dressed elegantly as they were selected from the nobility to serve as companions to the Queen or noble women. They were not considered servants and would often wear an ankle length dress with long sleeves and a hair piece.
In our next post: what the men wore
Sources: Elizabethan Clothing, www.seatofmars.com; http://www.elizabethan-era.org/
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