The Clothes That Made Us
By If Clothes Could Talk
Join Liv and Ellie as they talk all things fashion history, current trends and ask the question what are the clothes that made us?
The Clothes That Made UsDec 06, 2021
Ep 15 - How Santa Sleighed - The History of the Santa suit
It's the holiday season and Liv and Ellie are proud to present you with this year's Holiday-themed episodes!
First up we look at a figurehead of Christmas, Santa Clause! Join us as they discuss the origins of Santa and how "Santa" is not a pseudonym for Saint Nicholas, Kris Kringle, or the Ghost of Christmas Present.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits:
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References:
Bowler, G. (2011). Santa Claus: A Biography. McClelland & Stewart.
Consumption, Coca-colonisation, cultural resistance--and Santa Claus. (2008). In S. Whiteley (Ed.), Christmas, Ideology and Popular Culture (pp. 50-70). Edinburgh University Press. http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/2227/
Healey, B. (2021, October 21). Retailers predict a $58 billion Christmas boom as the east coast... Business Insider. Retrieved December 5, 2021, from https://www.businessinsider.com.au/retailers-christmas-spending-2021
Nast, T. (2017, December 25). Fact check: No, Santa Claus was not first dressed in red by Coca-Cola. The Ferret. Retrieved December 5, 2021, from https://theferret.scot/fact-check-coca-cola-red-santa-claus-christmas/
Steen, J. H. (n.d.). Santa History: the Origin of Santa Claus. Santa Suits and Santa Costume Accessories. Retrieved December 5, 2021, from http://www.santasuitexpress.com/santa-claus-history.html
Ep 14 - The Underground Tartan Ring
This week Liv and Ellie are headed to the Scottish Highlands to talk about the history of Tartan!
Join us and they talk about its long history in textiles as well as why one of the kings of England banned the pattern during his reign, as well as discussing the current trends of the pattern and why it is such a Scottish icon.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits:
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Special thanks to the Scottish Tartan Register where the information for this week's episode came from.
Ep 13 - Magic Threads - The clothes of fairy-tales
This week Liv and Ellie are talking about Fairy-tales and how clothes contribute to the plot and outcomes of the story we all know so well. Together they discuss the differences between folk-tales, fairy-tales and why we have to thank a certain film studio for our modern perception of a happily ever after.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits:
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References:
BBC News 2016, ‘Fairy tale origins thousands of years old, researchers say’, 20 January.
Bottigheimer, RB 2009, Fairy tales: a new history, Excelsior Editions/State University Of New York Press, Albany, N.Y.
Fairy tale n.d., Encyclopedia Britannica.
Fairy Tale Fashion | Fashion Institute of Technology n.d., www.fitnyc.edu.
Millar, W 2016, Fairy Tale Fashion at the Museum at FIT, NUVO, viewed 21 November 2021, .
November 21, SB & EST, 2019 at 04:01 P 2019, The evolution of Disney Princesses, from ‘Snow White’ to ‘Frozen 2’, EW.com, viewed 21 November 2021, .
Ep 12 - Toga Talk
This week Liv and Ellie are talking about all things Togas, where they actually came from, and how the regency period took inspiration from them. Together they help to clear up the history of the toga and explain why a period-accurate toga party wouldn't be much fun.
Please excuse any mispronunciations of works, there are some big ones! if you can help us, send us an email or message us at any of our socials below!
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits:
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References:
GARTON, C., 2021. The Truth About Togas. [online] PieceWork. Available at: [Accessed 14 November 2021].
Student, F. and Student, F., 2021. toga | Fashion History Timeline. [online] Fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu. Available at: [Accessed 14 November 2021].
Vout, C., 1996. The Myth of the Toga: Understanding the History of Roman Dress. Greece and Rome, 43(2), pp.204-220.
EP 11 - Dressing up for ‘I Do’
This week Liv and Ellie are talking about the Wedding dress and the perceived tradition behind it!
Coving the origins or wedding garments in ancient Chinese folklore to the trendsetter Queen Victoria, dive in with us to find out how women have been saying yes to their dream wedding dresses throughout time.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
ReferencesBrennan, S., 2021. A Natural History of the Wedding Dress - JSTOR Daily. [online] JSTOR Daily. Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021].
Cuccinelli, J., 2021. Marriage in the ‘New’ America: A Pandemic, Equality, and an Industry Ready for Change. [online] Brides. Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021].
Harris, C., 2021. This Is What American Weddings Look Like Today. [online] Brides. Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021].
Shahbandeh, M., 2021. Bridal gown market size worldwide 2017-2022 | Statista. [online] Statista. Available at: [Accessed 7 November 2021].
Ep 10 - How many times can you say Bysshe in one episode? That's the title
It is our fourth and final episode in our 2021 Halloween series! This week we finish with Mary Shelley and the History of Frankenstein.
Find out where the myth of the monster came from and how it inspired an entire genre of media and even high fashion!
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
ReferencesShelley, M., 2016. Frankenstein (Second International Student Edition) (Norton Critical Editions). 2nd ed. New York City: W.W Norton & Company inc.
Shepherd, H., 2021. How Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Continues to Influence Fashion. [online] CR Fashion Book. Available at: [Accessed 31 October 2021].
Ep 9 - No Such Thing as a Sexy Mummy
It is Part 3 of our Halloween episodes and this week Liv and Ellie talk all about the Mummy costume.
Covering the origins of the Mummy and how they sparked the Tut-Mania craze in the 1920s and, asking why the Mummy has yet to have its redemption in the eyes of the media.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References
Riggs, C., 2021. The Mummy: what our obsession with ancient Egypt reveals. [online] The Conversation. Available at: [Accessed 17 October 2021].
Smithsonian Institution. 2021. Egyptian Mummies. [online] Available at: [Accessed 17 October 2021].
Ep 8 - From Stoker to Sparkles - the Evolution of Vampires
In part 2 of our extra special Spooky October episodes, Liv and Ellie talk all things, Vampires!
Talking all about the origins, evolutions, and the intricacies of immortal fashion seen in various vampire adaptations, Liv and Ellie discuss how the scary blood-sucking undead became the Edward 'This is the skin of a killer' Cullen that we know today.
Disclaimer - At the beginning of the Episode Ellie states that the weekend in which Frankenstein and Vampire were written was in 1833. This is wrong, the correct year is 1816.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
ReferencesGeorge, S., 2021. How long have we believed in vampires?. [online] The Conversation. Available at: [Accessed 6 October 2021].
Hefferon, M., 2021. Vampire myths originated with a real blood disorder. [online] The Conversation. Available at: [Accessed 6 October 2021].
Morrison, R., 2021. Perverse passions that will not die: The modern vampire first walked among us two centuries ago. [online] The Conversation. Available at: [Accessed 10 October 2021].
Ep 7 - The Stitches of Witches
Its Spooky month so Liv and Ellie are celebrating with a four part Halloween series! Join in the fun as we cover the background to some of the most beloved Halloween costumes; this week, join our coven as we talk all things Witches!
Liv and Ellie talk all things hats, cloaks and why the way someone dressed could be why they were accused of witchery.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References
Blumberg, J. (2007, October 23). A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/
Hewitt, D.G. (2019, January 6). 18 Reasons One is Executed for Witchcraft during the ‘Burning Times’. History Collection. Retrieved January 12, 2021, from https://historycollection.com/18-reasons-one-is-executed-for-witchcraft-during-the-burning-times/7/
Lodi, M. (2019, October 29). The Complete History Of Clothes Worn By Witches. Bustle. Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://www.bustle.com/p/the-complete-history-of-clothes-worn-by-witches-from-the-salem-witch-trials-to-the-craft-19260755
Perkiss, D. (2020, January 1). Witchcraft: 8 Myths and Misconceptions. English Heritage. Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/eight-witchcraft-myths/
Cox, A. 2020. A Dress Historian Explains the History of the Witch Hat. [video] Available at: [Accessed 3 October 2021].
MacFarlane, A. (1999). Witchcraft in Tudor and Stuart England: A regional and comparative study (2nd ed.). London UK: Routledge.
Hui, R. (2018). Anne of the Wicked Ways: Perceptions of Anne Boleyn as a Witch in History and in Popular Culture. Parergon 35 (1), 97-118. doi:10.1353/pgn.2018.0005.
Ep 6 - Hi-Five would serve at the Met Gala
This week Liv and Ellie re-cap the Met Gala! Joining them as they talk all things good and bad about the looks, the celebrities, and the theme. Liv and Ellie dive into the origins of the Met and why the Gala has such significance on fashion trends today.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Ep 5 - The 400 Year Old Outfit
This week Liv and Ellie are talking all about the suit! How old the concept of a suit is and why it really has not changed all that much in the last 400 years. Find out how its French origins have been adapted over time and how the suit is changing in modern times.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Theme Music Created by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References:
Bass- Krueger, M. (2020, June 12). History of the three-piece suit: how King Charles II kick-started a trend that’s lasted over three centuries. Vogue. Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://vogue.sg/history-of-the-three-piece-suit/
Dent, M. (2019, September 30). How the power suit lost its power. Vox. Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/9/30/20869237/suits-control-menswear-decline
Lee, C. (2020, March 12). History of the Suit: The Evolution of Menswear from 1800 to Today. Gentleman's Gazette. Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://www.gentlemansgazette.com/evolution-of-menswear-suits/
Murphy, B. (2020, March 12). The Covid-19 effect on menswear: Is the suit dead? The Covid-19 effect on menswear: Is the suit dead? Retrieved September 12, 2021, from https://www.fashion-north.com/2020/12/03/the-covid-19-effect-on-menswear-is-the-suit-dead/
Ep 4 - Historically Accurate Fashion is a Turn On
This week Liv and Ellie chat about period TV series and movies, where they open up a discussion on whether historical accuracy is necessary and/or practical. They talk all about Bridgerton, Peaky Blinders, and Downton Abbey, (just to name a few) about the notable costumes and features of the designs that work, or well, don't.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Ep 3 - The Boat-Thru
This week Liv and Ellie are talking all things, Pirates! Or well pirate women that is.
We talk about the real-life experiences of pirates and how Hollywood gets it wrong. While talking about the visibility of women in history and how there are possibly so many more women in history that we don't know about because of gender politics. Liv and Ellie de-glamorize the pirate life and call out the problematic history of pirates.
Later on, we are joined by feminist author Laura Sook Duncombe, she is the author of ‘Pirate’s life for She’ and ‘Pirate Women’. where Liv and Ellie ask her all about the different types of women who were pirates. You can head to www.laurasookduncombe.com to learn more about her.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
References:
Bialuschewski, A. (2008). Black People under the Black Flag: Piracy and the Slave Trade on the West Coast of Africa, 1718–1723. Slavery & Abolition, 29(4), 461-475. https://doi.org/10.1080/01440390802486473
Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge Project. Qaronline.org. (2021). Retrieved 5 September 2021, from https://www.qaronline.org/.
de Cuneo, M. (2020). The First Pirate of the Caribbean: Christopher Columbus. In E. Roorda, The Ocean Reader (pp. 273-275). Duke University Press. Retrieved 5 September 2021, from.
Duncombe, L. (2017). Pirate Women. Chicago Review Press.
Duncombe, L. (2019). A Pirate's Life for She. Chicago Review Press.
Dunlevy, M. (1999). Dress in Ireland. Collins Press.
National Portrait Gallery. (2021). Naval Uniform [Image]. Retrieved 5 September 2021, from https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/explore/an-officer-and-a-gentleman-naval-uniform-and-male-fashion-in-the-eighteenth-century.
Pirate Clothing. Elizabethan-era.org.uk. (2021). Retrieved 5 September 2021, from http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/pirate-clothing.htm.
Roorda, E. (2020). The Ocean Reader. Duke University Press.
Shady Isle Pirate Society. (2021). The Slops [Image]. Retrieved 5 September 2021, from http://bbprivateer.ca.
The Victoria and Albert Museum. (2020). Doublet [Image]. Retrieved 5 September 2021, from https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O110582/doublet-unknown/.
The Victoria and Albert Museum. (2021). Undergarments [Image]. Retrieved 5 September 2021, from http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O137722/drawers-unknown/.
Urban, K. (2017). Blackbeard's Beads: Identification and Interpretation of the Beads Recovered From the Shipwreck 31CR314 Queen Anne's Revenge (Masters). East Carolina University.
Verbinski, G. (2003). Pirates of the Caribbean [Film]. Hollywood; Disney.
Ep 2 - Not Like Other Victorian Era Girls
This week Liv and Ellie begin to unpack the most debated undergarment in history; the Corset.
They jump on in and talk all about the origin of the corset and its involvement in western history from the 16th century on wards. We hear all about the health risks of the corset or lack thereof and the patriarchal ties it had in society. Ellie then educates us on her category of corset wearers, shining a light on the differences of those who wore them at the time. As well as opening the topic of female agency in a patriarchal world.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
References
Bass-Krueger, M., & Timms, E. (2021, January 12). The Corset’s Recurring Comeback Goes Further Than ‘Bridgerton’. Vogue. Retrieved August 14, 2021, from https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/history-of-the-corset
Gibson, R. (2015, September). Effects of Long Term Corseting on the Female Skeleton: A Preliminary Morphological Examination. The Canadian Student Journal of Anthropology, 23(2), 45-60.
Steele, V. (2003). The Corset: A Cultural History (1st ed., Vol. 1). Yale University Press. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300099539/corset
Credits
Hosted by Liv Hutley and Ellie Gunton
Recorded and Edited by Fiona Lloyd Harding
Ep 1 - A 5000 Year Old 7/11
This week Liv and Ellie discuss some more incredible facts about Otzi the Iceman and his clothes.
They cover the history of Otzi, his clothes, tattoos, and death and discuss what the discovery of his body has meant to the archeology community. They also open up the topic of ethics of archaeological discoveries of artefacts and bodies and whether discovery or cultural protocols outweigh each other.
Later on, they are joined by guest, Andreas Putzer the lead conservator and curator at the South Tyrol Museum in Italy. Liv and Ellie ask him about His primary job of researching Otzi the Iceman, both his body and the objects found with him. They also have some fun discussing a bit more about speculations and the implications his body has on our knowledge of his community 5000 years ago.
For more please follow us on Instagram @ifclothescouldtalkaus
Subscribe to our Youtube Channel 'If Clothes Could Talk'
If you have any questions, comments, concerns or ideas for future episodes please email us at ifclothescouldtalkaus@gmail.com
References:
Kutchera, W., Golser, R., Priller, A., Steier, P., Wild, E., Arnold, M., Tisnerat-Laborde, N., Possnert, G., Bortenschlager, S., Oeggl, K. (2000). Radiocarbon dating of equipment from the Iceman. In S. Bortenschlager & K. Oeggl (Eds.) The Iceman and his Natural Environment. (pp. 1-9).
Kutschera, W., Rom, W. (2000). Ötzi, the prehistoric Iceman. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions and Materials and Atoms, 164-165, 12-22. doi: 10.1016/So168-583X(99)01196-9
Müller, W., Fricke, H., Halliday, A. N., McCulloch, M. T., Wartho, J. (2003). Origin and Migration of the Alpine Iceman. Science, 302, 862-866.
Oeggl, K., Kofler, W., Schmidl, A., Dickson, J. H., Egater-Vigl, E., Gaber, O. (2007). The reconstruction of the last itinerary of “Ötzi” the Neolithic Iceman, by pollen analyses from sequentially sampled gut extracts. Quaternary Science Reviews, 26, 853-861. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2006.12.007
O’Sullivan, N. J., Teasdale, M. D., Mattiangeli, V., Maixner, F., Pinhasi, R., Brasley, D. G., Zink, A. (2016). A whole mitochondria analysis of the Tyrolean Iceman’s leather provides insights into the animal sources of Copper Age clothing. Scientific Reports, 6, 1-9. doi: 10.1038/srep31279
Pabst, M.A., Letofsky-Papst, I., Bock, E., Moser, M., Dorfer, L., Egarter-Vigl, E., Hofer, F. (2009). The tattoos of the Tyrolean Iceman: a light microscopical, ultrastructural and element analytical study. Journal of Archaeological Science, 36, 2335-2341. doi: 10.1016/j.jas.2009.06.016
Rollo, F., Ubaldi, M., Ermini, L., Marota, I. (2002). Ötzi’s Last Meals: DNA Analysis of the Intestinal Content of the Neolithic Glacier Mummy from the Alps. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 99, 12594-12599. doi: 10.1073/pnas.192184699
Vanzetti, A., Vidale, M., Gallinaro, M., Frayer, D. W., Bondioli, L. (2010). The Iceman as a burial. Antiquity, 84, 681-692.
For more information visit: https://www.iceman.it/en/