What Makes a Lady Hobbit Costume?
June 24, 2025
If this post ever sees the light of day, it will be a miracle. I'm mostly writing this to organize my own thoughts as I make my own Hobbit-y costume for the ren faire.
My "research" (aka Pinterest pinning), is based on the Peter Jackson LotR and Hobbit movie series.
Historical Basis
While the Hobbits' costumes do involve a lot of fantasy fashion elements and modern creative liberties, they are, at their heart, a mishmash of historical pieces.
The formula of the costumes follows the standard for European fashions for the 1600s and 1700s (and beyond, but mostly those two hundred years, I think).
The basic formula seems to be a shirt or shift of some kind, a petticoat, a skirt, and a bodice. Typical accessories include aprons and neckerchiefs.
The Hobbits, with their propensity for bare-footed-ness, usually skip on stockings and shoes.
On some of the more "upper-class" Hobbits, you sometimes see nicer mid- to late-18th century gowns, but that's not the idea of "hobbit-core" you usually see on social media and at ren faires, so I'm disregarding those for the sake of this post.
Hems and Sleeves
What makes a Hobbit costume stand out from a historical ensemble?
Well the lack of stockings and shoes, obviously.
But one of the first things that stood out to me was skirt length. You rarely (if ever) see Hobbits in full length skirts.
Hobbit hems (and this is true of the masc Hobbits' pants, too) tend to fall between the upper calf and mid-shin - all the better to show off their distinctive hairy feet!
The sleeves of the females Hobbits also tend to be shorter than would be seen historically, often (though not always) hitting at or above the elbow. The also sometimes feature a large ruffle at the "cuff" of the sleeve.
Interestingly enough, there are a few sightings of pinned- or tied-on sleeves worn over longer shift sleeves, like those common in medieval Europe.
Color and Pattern Usage
Fabric is another way they add a bit of fantasy into the historically-based ensembles.
For starters, in one of the books, JRRTolkein references the Hobbits preferring greens and yellows. In the movies, there is some suggestion (though I'm too lazy to confirm my theory, and I haven't seen the movies recently) that they tried to distinguish the different Hobbit clans by color, as you see a fair amount of blue and purple as well.
"Hobbit-core" fashion tends to favor browns and greens, plus with white and cream, with accents of yellow or orange. Blues, pinks, and purples aren't unheard of though!
A prime example is the shifts/shirts the female Hobbits wear. Historically, these would almost always be white, with the exception of embroidery. However, in the movies, many female Hobbits wear shifts made with a variety of solid colors, but also occasionally gingham or small, low-contrast floral prints.
The florals tend to be of the sort that reinds me of Victorian floral prints, or the 1990s-does-Victorian type. No large "grandma florals," though.
Bodices tend to be solid colors and small florals as well, plus sightings of what might be corduroy or velveteen.
Skirts and petticoats run a fuller range - solids, small florals, medium florals, stripes, gingham, and even some neutral plaids.
Both bodices and skirts are seen trimmed in contrasting or coordinating solid-colored trim or embellished with (usually floral) embroidery.
Bodices specifically sometimes have elaborately embroidered stomachers, or stomachers cris-crossed with decorative ribbon.
Accessories and Layers
Most costumers would agree that accessories and layering is what makes a costume come life. They convey a lot about their character and lifestyle.
Neckerchiefs, worn draped around the shoulders and tucked into the bodice front are seen several times.
Half-aprons are common as well, in a variety of colors, shapes, and levels of wear.
Jewelry seems to be limited to necklaces - almost exclusively ribbons worn choker-style or otherwise close to the base of the neck. It seems to be fairly narrow ribbon, ranging from maybe a quarter inch at the thinnest to less than an inch at the widest.
Straw hats are an option seen occasionally in the movies, but I'll tell you from experience that they can be difficult to wear with fake ears.
Small cross-body bags are seen a few times as well. They seem to be simple rectangles, sewn together on three sides to make a pocket.
While certain significant male Hobbits spend much of the movies wearing cloaks, the female inhabitants of the Shire are more often seen in triangular shawls (or square shawls folded into triangles). Perhaps cloaks are more of a traveling garment?
Hobbits value their gardens, so naturally fresh flowers show up in Hobbit costumes! Now, flower crowns are not seen (as far as I've seen) in the movies, but they are popular in "hobbit-core." In the movies you do, however, see flowers tucked into bodices and apron pockets.
Hair
The iconic Hobbit hair is, of course, just past shoulder-length, worn loose and very curly. Half-up is another common style.
They're not the only options, though!
Some Hobbit ladies wear their hair up in a bun, with just a dense mass of curly bangs. Others go for more of a loose late 18th-century style updo, or even a look similar to those long, early 18th-century (I think) wigs that men in some parts of Europe wore.
Short hair on ladies seems a solid option as well - the messier the better.
"Hobbit-core" looks seem to prefer curls as well, but they aren't a necessity. I've seen many people with their natural hair either loose or half-up.
Miscellany
Fake pointed ears are common in Hobbit costumes, since the ears are one on the Hobbits' distinctive features.
The hairy feet are another feature. Unfortunately, many ren faires and other places where people commonly dress as Hobbits don't allow people to walk around barefoot. Some more hardcore costumers get barefoot shoes or "shoes" that look like oversized Hobbit feet. Most people just wear neutral brown leather-like boots or sandals.
And for one more "bonus" garment - bloomers, or pettipants. We don't see any on the lady Hobbits, but I think it's not much of a stretch to think that some Hobbit ladies might like them. They might even be a fun layer if you make them long enough to peek out under your skirt!
Personally, if I was going to go the bloomer route, I'd make them split crotch (Victorian-style) to make navigating porta-poties at events easier.
Conclusion
I don't really have a conclusion, except to say that how movie-accurate you want your Hobbit look to be is totally a matter of preference. Do what you want (as long as it's appropriate for the situation and not culturally offensive) and if some rando tries to get on your case about it, remember that they're not your mom or your boss or whatever and they have no say over what you wear.
