My Lady in Waiting

Lettice Knollys

To be a lady in waiting for Queen Elizabeth you had to be selected from high ranking families or after having a lifetime friendship with the monarch. Ladies in waiting were required to attend to all the requirements of the Queen and became loyal confidantes as they followed her journey through like as the Queen of England. Elizabeth took care of these ladies and would select suitable husbands for them and it was not accepted to marry without her official consent. 

I have chosen to look at the most promiscuous and controversial lady in waiting, Lettice Knollys. Lettice married her first husband Walter Devereux (Earl of Essex) at the age of 17 in 1960, however, after her husband travelled to Ireland in 1573 it was speculated that she became romantically involved with the famous love interest of Elizabethan Tudor, Robert Dudley. She went on to marry him 1578 (two years after her first husband died) in secret. When word spread of the scandalous marriage, all the way to the throne, Queen Elizabeth I banished Lettice from the courts for the rest of her life. Following this, her social status diminished and her 1st son with Robert died at the age of three and this strained their marriage massively and ended it in divorce. However, Lettice did remarry for a 3rd time to Sir Christopher Blount and she was known as Lady Leicester for the remained of her life.

For my final New Elizabethan makeup designs, I want to focus on the dangerous and most secretive stage of her life - her marriage to Robert. This unforgivable relationship was seen as a crime in the eyes of the monarch, however, it did not stop Lettice from finalising it with marriage. Various ideals, symbols and colours associated with Lettice in this stage of her life could be used to manipulate into a makeup design and I have created a brainstorm to explore these aspects. 

Following this, I have decided to base my makeup design on the idea it is her 'secret wedding day'. The skin will be glowing and flawless to reflect her desire to remain youthful (following her first marriage at 19) but also to make sure the skin is beautiful for 'the wedding'. The design for the rest of the face will be based around a modern bridal look incorporating Elizabethan colours. 

From this brainstorm, I have gathered enough thoughts to conclude that the initial colours I want to work with will be reds and whites but mainly the combination of the two, pink. The shade pink can symbolise the overlapping and conflicting aspects of her life - marriage and affairs. To the outside world, she is an innocent widow married for 18 years but she is secretly hiding her lustful relationship of two years which was ultimately dangerous resulting in banishment. Red is often associated with love, sexuality and danger and the contrasting white represents virginity, innocence and purity. The combination of the two symbolise her lifestyle in the run up to her wedding. These two colours are also iconic of the Elizabethan era following the trend of white complexions and rouge cheeks and lips. Potentially darker shades could also be incorporated to represent the secrecy. I would like to also incorporate golds and silvers into highlights in the makeup to represent her life high in the hierarchy of society (marrying a Sir and an Earl twice) and to hint towards the royalty Elizabeth and her ladies. 

In regards to headpieces and clothing, as I want to centre the makeup design around the colours pink, gold and shades of red I will incorporate the 'innocent' white colour with a white fur collar around the neck and pearls or white jewels in the hair.

Reference: David Nash Ford. 2002. 'Lettice Knollys (1540 – 1634) [28^th October 2015] Available from: www.berkshirehistory.com/bios/knollys.html 

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