When the .ai produced costumes with a wonderful Spanish, South American feel that didn’t fit the Pride and Prejudice vision I was curating, I did what any editor might do, I shifted my perspective. Retrospective research into Spanish court fashion from the empire two centuries before Austen gave me just enough footing to create The Spanish House.

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I drew inspiration from Beatrice Knight’s findings, which highlighted that the designer Mrs Villiers had introduced Spanish-inspired millinery in La Belle Assemblée and in contemporary newspapers. Naturally, I imagined Mrs Villiers extending her creativity further, with extravagant Mediterranean-inspired designs for her more adventurous clients.