Bliauts were dresses reserved for the highest echelons of society in medieval Europe, from around the 11th to 13th centuries. The dangling floor-length sleeves were the ultimate way of letting people know that you were far too important to do anything useful with your hands. Someone wearing a bliaut could not prepare food without getting it everywhere, or stoke a fire without being a danger to themselves and everyone else in the room. They were limited to delicate activities that did not require much movement in the arms, like embroidery. So, while it looks very romantic and pretty, the bliaut can be thrown in the pile of fashion trends that were very silly, impractical and a bit snobbish.
