Canadian fashion refers to the styles, trends, design, and production of clothing, footwear, accessories, and other expressions of fashion in Canada and the polities it is descended from.
Indigenous cultures of Canada have produced clothing and accessories for practical application in contention with the natural elements, as well as for ritualistic and spiritual purposes, since time immemorial. Indigenous-Canadians continue to maintain fashions that are distinct to their particular cultures. From the founding of Port-Royal, further developments -- such as wide-spread European settlement, the North American fur trade, and the establishment of New France and British North America -- incrementally introduced western fashions throughout the region.
Starting from the 16th century, Canada's fashion history can be divided into discernable eras that are characterized by prevalent styles particular to the period. These various modes of dress have often been influenced by the predominant upper-class fashions of western Europe, notably Britain and France, as well as the geographical realities of living in Canada and the rugged lifestyles therein. Moreover, eras of Canadian fashion can be consistently subdivided by class expression.
Canada's fashion economy includes numerous clothing and accessory brands (such as Arc'teryx and Lululemon), department stores (such as the historical Hudson's Bay Company and Holt Renfrew), various annual and semi-annual industry events in Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal, fashion magazines (such as Elle Canada and Fashion Magazine), and a variety of postsecondary programs in fashion design and marketing.
History
New France and the early Fur Trade (1530s to 1750s)
European exploration northwestward, into the frontier of Rupert's Land, the North-Western Territory, and the Columbia District, was in large part motivated by the North American fur trade, establishing a network of forts and supply routes that laid the developmental groundwork for the modern Canadian state. Indigenous and European hunters and trappers supplied trade networks that capitalized on the demand for beaver pelts in European markets.
Capotes (long wrap-style wool coats, often complete with a hood) were worn by European settlers, traders, trappers, and hunters, as well as Indigenous peoples, since the earliest days of the fur trade. These coats were known to be easy to move in, and were first traded to the Mi'kmaq by French sailors. The Hudson's Bay Company, which was granted monopoly over Rupert's Land via royal charter from Charles II of England, sold capotes (also called "blanket coats"), fabricated out of the company's unique "point blanket", from trading posts such as Moose Factory, New Severn, York Factory, and Fort Churchill as early as the mid-17th century.
Beginning in the 17th century, European explorers and traders increasingly wore mukluks; hide boots originally crafted by Inuit peoples using sealskin and caribou skin. Mukluks were designed for maneuverability and warmth, and were blind stitched with sinew thread to make watertight seams, thus being suitable for tundra. European adoption of mukluks in turn influenced Indigenous crafting by introducing new materials, sewing techniques, and styles, as seen in the increased used of tassels and new beading patterns.
Habitants (French-Canadian farmers and fishers) comprised 80% of the population of New France by the time of the British conquest in 1763. Habitant clothing was largely homemade or spun by local weavers, usually using linen, hemp, or wool, and lined with leather or fur, and was similar to the conservative clothing worn in the French countryside. Men tended to wear a shift or shirt, breeches, wool stockings, sometimes a vest or waistcoat, and either leather shoes, clogs or moccasins. Men would also wear breechclouts or toques depending on the season. Daily-wear for women included cotton shifts, woolen skirts over a petticoat, wool stockings held up by garters, bodices, bonnets, and buckle shoes or clogs. Habitant women also kept dresses, mantles, aprons, and shawls.
The bourgeoisie of New France generally wore clothes with comparatively finer fabrics, such as silk and velvet, and utilized a wider variety of colour. Men often wore wigs and tri-corner hats with feathers, decorative buttons, and braids, and tended to have embroideries on their clothing. Bourgeois men also tended to wear ties or scarves made of muslin. Bourgeois women wore decorative fashions, such as blouses with lace collars and skirts with pleats, generally more fitted dresses and dress coats than their lower-class counterparts, and often carried fans or parasols.
New France nobility wore similar fashions to the bourgeoisie, but were generally more lavish and extravagant in their fabrics and designs. Men wore wigs and tri-corner hats, although before the 18th century, these wigs were often so large that hats had to be carried underarm. They wore shirts with lace collars and cuffs, Steinkerque lace cravats, gold and silver-threaded vests and coats, and silk pants, stockings, and shoes. Noblemen also often carried canes, wore gloves, and even as wigs downsized, the tradition of carrying hats underarm persisted.
Noble women wore bonnets decorated with lace and gems (often in the shape of butterflies), as well as blouses adorned with frilled lace and with funnel-shaped lace sleeves. Their dresses and skirts often had gold and silver thread, floral designs, fringes, and were typically layered over petticoats. Dress trains in New France were also traditionally cut to length in accordance with one's level of nobility. Like their male counterparts, noble women wore silk stockings and shoes. Accessories included parasols, gloves, and gold and silver ribbons that often held garments together.
Post-New France and the new British colonies (1760s to 1800s)
Though the early years following the British conquest of New France did not see a dramatic shift in the way of working-class fashion, the changing styles among the upper-classes in England and France did influence those of the Canadian colonies. Fashions of upper-class Canadian women reflected those of their European counterparts, such as through the use of lace, boned stays, pastels, and ruffles. Though English styles were incorporated into the wardrobes of French-Canadian women, these styles were more prevalent in English-majority areas during this period, particularly in Upper Canada and the Atlantic colonies, where immigrants from Britain and the influx of United Empire Loyalists tended to settle. English and French styles during this time were typically distinguished by their level of extravagance; English-Canadian dresses tended to be more toned-down and conservative.
In contrast to the macaroni fashion that took off in London during the Georgian era, men's fashion in the Canadian colonies tended to shift toward a comparatively casual and sleek appearance. Men's clothes in the latter part of the 18th century became tighter over time, and three-piece suits started to become more commonplace.
Regency Era (1810s to 1830s)
The Regency era marks the beginning of the Great Migration of Canada, in which roughly 800,000 migrants, largely from the British Isles, moved to British North America. As a result, London upper-class fashions, such as those of the Romantic movement and the dandy trend, became much more predominant throughout the Canadian colonies; in Upper Canada, the Maritimes, and even in Lower Canada, where a Francophone majority persisted. In Fashion: A Canadian Perspective, Alexandra Palmer explains that "by the 1830s Lower Canadian professionals were spending a greater proportion of their income (some 20%) on attire. This was more than any other class, making them leaders in fashion as well as politics. They were, for example, early purchasers not only of trousers but also the stylish Wellington and Brunswick boots advertised in Lower Canadian newspapers after 1815. […] These men went from wearing wigs or tying back their own long hair […] to short natural styles."
"Dandy" fashion entailed some common elements: dark colours, blue tailcoats with gold buttons, white muslin shirts, trousers replacing breeches, fabrics like silk, wool, cotton, and buckskin, and generally tight-fitting clothes. Other important articles and accessories for upper-class men included black silk tophats (or "toppers"), cravats, gloves, canes, pocket watches, monocles, and greatcoats.
Women's high fashion took a dramatic shift from the understated fashions of decades prior as extravagant styles became popular, utilizing such elements as poofy sleeves, bell-shaped skirts, elaborate hats, and ribbons. Empire dresses from the early part of the century were high-waisted with a fitted bodice, and were flowing and loose fitting at the bottom. Preceding years over the course of this period saw older styles blending into new, such as dresses with "empire" waistlines but with fuller skirts, and also saw the beginnings of gigot-style sleeves as a trend. As sleeves expanded during the 1820s, the common fashion for waistlines also inched lower overtime.
During the War of 1812, the mackinaw jacket was invented out of necessity. During the occupation of Fort Mackinac, the British commander Charles Roberts requisitioned a supply of Hudson's Bay point blankets from the British Indian Department to manufacture greatcoats for the coming winter. Due to the shortage of blue fabric needed to complete the order, the balance was supplemented by blankets with a black-on-red tartan pattern. After being advised by a dispatch runner on the impracticality of travelling in long greatcoats between Montreal and Mackinaw during winter due to snowdrifts, it was recommended that they instead fabricate shorter double-breasted jackets, thus inventing what became known as the '’mackinaw jacket'’.<ref name="WooleySketches">Wooley, H. J. L. (1911). The Sword of Old St. Joe. Chp V, pg 17-21.</ref>
Confederation Era (1840s to 1890s)
Everyday fashion for women during the Confederation era was characterized by variety, ornamentation, and ever-changing styles. Dresses in the 1830s were notable for their width, voluminousness, and gigot-style sleeves. The 1850s saw the popularity of crinolines skirts and bell-shaped shirts. Over time, the fashionability of the perch at the back of the dress shifted to smoother lines, akin to an "hour-glass" shape by the end of the 19th century. Canadian middle-class women often had to modify their existing attire to sustain the changing trends.
Formal dress for Canadian women was important during this era due to the popularity of costumed theatre, skating carnivals, and balls. Historical figures, such as Marie Antoinette, were popular costume inspirations, and great care was taken to achieve historical accuracy whilst keeping in line with contemporary fashion. The 1870s, for example, saw the popularity of the "princess-style dress", which was sewn without a waistline and incorporated a white wig and regal velvet sleeve detail. These events were typically themed to celebrate Canadian history or the British Empire, and had a function of disseminating educational themes of technological progress, art, and literature through local newspapers.
Women's outerwear had to adapt to the changing styles of dress. For example, with the 1850s crinoline trend, overcoats were exchanged for shawls. The paisley shawl, which were already in common use in Scotland and the British Raj, was particularly popular during this time. Hats and bonnets also became particularly popular in the 1880s and 90s, and millinery became a growing trade for women, separate from dressmaking. Materials such as ribbons, lace, flowers, feathers, and sometimes bird ornaments were artistically incorporated as hats came to be seen as increasingly stylish and not simply functional attire.