Now researching this was fascinating! This is quickly from memory as I don’t have my notes anymore. But I remember seeing how it slowly developed over the centuries until technology improved and we began having more abundance of textiles.
Cavemen – This was basically wearing animal skins/furs or plant leaves to cover themselves.
Biblical Times/Egyptian/Greece – This era showed robes wrapped around the body.
Medieval Times – This Era you would see men wearing tights and tunics, and women wearing simple long dresses with bell or puffed sleeves and the pointed veil hats.
1700s – You see the outfits were dressier and adorned. Men wore wigs, capri pants over tights, and layers. Women had hoops under the skirt that went sideways and their hair were full/large. The corset began gaining popularity as the women’s silhouette was being defined.
Victorian Era 1800s – Began with men’s layers defined with a waist coat over the blouse and a tailcoat, accompanied with the ever handsome top hat. Women’s dresses started the century with the empire dress, which then developed into the famous ball gowns.
1900s – Men wore pants with the layers, still very dressy. Women’s ball gowns lost the hoops and opted for a slimming silhouette. Eventually with the hems getting shorter over the decades. Also, women wearing pants since the war efforts.
2000s – Into the 21st Century, everything has become relaxed for men and women. With the abundance of clothing and fabric types, anything is possible, such as the “stretch.” Also, I recently learned that the washer and dryer being widely accessible, makes it easier to not need layers anymore.
In conclusion, I didn’t find the answer I was looking for with this research, but I learned a lot about the styles of the past. I sometimes wish we could go back to some of them for the simplicity such as the robes or for the fun such as Victorian balls! But there is more to come with this clothing technology and innovations!
