Borthwick remarked on the range of clothing styles he saw:
"Those who did not stick to their former style of dress, indulged in all the extravagant license of California Costume, which was of every variety that caprice could suggest. No man could make his appearance sufficiently bizarre to attract any attention. The prevailing fashion among the ragtag and bobtail was a red or blue flannel shirt, wide-awake hats of every conceivable shape and colour, and trousers stuffed into a big pair of boots."
Before the Gold Rush, clothing was generally made to order, whether by a wife, mother, seamstress, tailor or shirtmaker. California gold seekers brought few items of wearing apparel with them, or wore them out very quickly. The predominance of men, with few women to care for their needs, encouraged the development and expansion of the ready-made clothing industry. J.D. Borthwick noted: "The clothing trade was almost entirely in the hands of the Jews, who are very numerous in California, and devote their time and energies exclusively to supplying their Christian bretheren with the necessary articles of wearing apparel."
Jose Arnaz, of San Buenaventura provided this description of the clothing of Californio women: "The dress of the women. . . was very plain. Ordinary dresses were made of English or American calico, though rich women used the more expensive French goods and had also silk gowns for festive occasions. Stockings were of white cotton, and satin shoes were worn at the balls. Rebozos of cotton and silk were the customary cloaks, and they were so essential that many costing only fifteen or sixteen dollars in Mexico were sold for ten times that amount in California. Fancy tortoise-shell combs were popular, and some ladies had silk mantillas to wear to church. Women of wealth often owned gold or pearl necklaces, gold earrings, and finger rings set with diamonds, emeralds, and other precious stones." [note that this observation was made in a coastal area, prior to the Gold Rush]
--From The Old Town San Diego Retailer's Reference
