I made some observational sketches from reference images to get a better idea of how to draw Victorian clothing. I used images of modern fashion inspired by Victorian style and original photographs and illustrations of the time. Some of them I used my imagination and the knowledge I just gained through making observational drawings.
I found a good website focusing on hats. It has a section on the history of hats with illustrations showing the kind of hats people wore in specific time periods. I used this webpage as a resource for getting inspiration.
https://www.villagehatshop.com/content/50/history-of-hats.html
Below is the intial brainstorming I did for names for my characters. I defined what I wanted their names to be like and jotted down some ideas. I looked for list of popular names during the Victorian period for the main girl, I came across Miriam and like the sound of it. It is also a biblical name which might add to the honest feel I want.
I refined the designs for the characters some more. I want Hubert, Miriam’s cruel fiance, to be ostentatious, pompous and self-absorbed. I chose to give him the puffed out chest I saw in lots of the illustrations from the Victorian era. Ernest’s design is quite simple, I wanted to make his silhouette more unique so I added the shoulder flaps onto his coat. I also changed his face a bit to be more appealing and fit with the other characters, it was a bit too detailed before and looked quite uncanny. I want their to be a lot of contrast between these two men in their body shape and posture, as they have opposing attitudes and demeanors.
Some more sketches of Miriam. The one on the right is what she might look like when she is more confident and resolved. I might even have her cut her hair short after the final task. If she leaves with the wife (below) it would be easier for her to disguise herself as a young man and avoid suspicion.
For the wife of the Baron, I wanted a more ornate and fashionable look. I wanted her to look rich and luxurious but a little uncomfortable, as this would reflect her rich but unhappy life with her husband. I look at various fashion illustrations of the time (seen in my Victorian research post) and experimented with various hairstyles and clothing. I wanted her to be a contrasting shape to Miriam’s silhouette so I gave her a cinched waist and a bustle dress to give her an hourglass shape, which was very much the fashion of the time with extremely tight corsets and huge bustles to accentuate the hips and behind. Her face is also pointier and more elegant than Miri’s to contrast and hint at her inner fiery nature.
A sketch of her and her husband together. They are not very fond of each other and she especially dislikes having to be near him as he is often abusive to her. He controls every aspect of her life and I wanted to show that in his possesive grasp on her hand.
Emily Clay Games Design 