Fantasy author, fashion historian, medievalist 🏳️🌈 | 👑 QUEEN OF NONE & NETHERFORD HALL OUT NOW from @solarisbooks 👑 | rep: @staceyigraham
2 - NOTE: Inclusion in this list does not mean my personal approval of their director(s), creator(s), actors, producers, etc. Hollywood is nasty on a good day, & some of these films have not aged well. 
2 - We're starting in Japan. Because Japan has the best ghosts & my favorite art. Yūrei (幽霊) are closer to a Western concept of ghosts, but spirits of all kinds are common through Japanese folklore. 
2 - Anna Maria was born in 1688 in Lincolnshire, to Rev. Ephraim Garthwaite & Rejoyce (rad name). The family was well to do & Anna Maria would have had a basic education. She showed early artistic prowess, like in this 1707 cut-paper work of a village w/remarkable detail. 
2 - In Asia, & China specifically, silk became one of the first real fabric blockbusters for trade during the Han Dynasty, beginning the Silk Road.
2 - Yes, we're starting with that cloak & color choice. Keeping things spoiler-free here, Gawain is seen wearing a golden velvet cloak very early on. 
2 - If you peruse art history books, you'll notice: finding vibrant green dresses before the 18th century is quite a challenge. 
2 - Though anthropologists don't know exactly when marriage began, it seems to be universal. 
2 - First up is #chintz. You might think of it as your grandmother's cushions, but it's really a remarkable history that takes us to India and the history of print cotton. 
2 - The word itself is Persian: خفتان khaftān. In simple terms, it's a tunic or a robe, often open down the front & tied with a sash. 
24 - So much happening here, and normally would avoid this period -- but I am such a sucker for green velvet accents that I had to share this one. It's also a lovely closeup. 1861-1863, England. And it's moiré silk. So um. Just gaze. 
2 - Stripes may be humankind's first fabric pattern, simply woven in as the yarn color shifted from one to another. The word "stripe" is from "a line in cloth." 
2 - No one expected the daughter of Henry VIII & Anne Boleyn would ascend the throne--but she did. Her coronation (1558) portrait shows her swathed in cloth of gold--the very same her deceased sister Mary had worn (bit creepy).
2 - Tradition says Adam & Eve used fig leaves, but the most likely first "underwear" was woven of plant materials or leather. Hence, it's hard to find extant remains.
2 - Paisley's proper name is boteh or buta, but it's also been called "persian pickles," "Welsh pears," "ham hock" pattern, or "mango" just to name a few.
This one is similar but has more of that “fresh from the jello mold” look. I do like the pleats and the color scheme. 
2 -Like its cousin embroidery, beads are a world heritage art. Beads evolve next to humanity, it seems.