18th Century Riding Habit

7/7/2018

I really "needed" a new outfit for our annual Independence Day shindig. I mean, the outfit at left passed, but it wasn't my idea of really period correct wear. And perhaps I wanted to look a little wealthier than Molly Pitcher. Not that I have anything against that brave woman or the lower classes of society, but I wanted to "upscale" myself a little; besides which, said outfit here is actually a wee bit too short in the bodice and was basically a thrown together project from three years ago.

For some weird reason, "Riding Habit" popped into my head and stayed there. Perhaps it was memories of a 4th of July on which I rode my horse as part of the festivities. (Alack, that could not be the case this year.) Anyway, I went to Pinterest and scrolled. I ended up with two main gowns to base my own off:

http://augustintytar.blogspot.fi/2012/06/late-1770s-riding-habit-in-style-of.html

https://reine-de-coudre.livejournal.com/207694.html

I hope these ladies do not mind me sharing the images of their wonderful work...

Anyway, the red one is essentially a copy of English Noblewoman Lady Wolsey's famous ensemble. The green one is more "average". I based mine off both of these. My waist-coat from the green, the overall military-eque lines from the red. Also, similarly, but contrary to the Redcoat, I chose Continental Blue and Buff for my riding habit.

Choosing what I was going to make was the easy part. The actually making was a little more complicated.

First off, I did not purchase any patterns. Neither did I exactly self-draft patterns. Instead, I took the following pattern and altered the shirt, waist-coat, and coat.

My initial altering/paper pinning job was done completely on my own, to wait for a day when someone was available to help me. Also, this allowed me to estimate how much material I was going to need and therefore order it (I already had the pieces picked out). When the day came when I had assistance, my sister helped me fit and alter the paper patterns a little more before I cut into random pieces of scrap material to make my first mock up (note, I know it is best to make a mock up out of a similarly weighted material to your actual dress goods, but I hardly ever do so. *cringes*)

What follows is not necessarily in chronological order, but by article of clothing.

The Shirt

Initially, I was just going to make a regular man's shirt and simply remove some of the sleeve width. Then I got to looking at more pictures and concluded that I could easily alter the shirt to be a proper riding habit shirt.

I shortened the front, the back, took some width out of the sleeves, and eye-balled my cuff ruffles and the waist tie. My biggest complaint with the finished product is that my neck is so thick that even though I used the largest collar (and subsequently the largest neck opening) it is still too small and consequently it isn't the most comfortable. Next time I do a neck opening...I'll make sure I double check my measurements.

This is the back--it is gathered onto a band which ties around the front.

I wanted minimalistic ruffles. I am not a huge fan of extra material hanging over my hands, but I wanted the ruffle look. Also, notice my top-stitching. :) Did that by hand.

Hand-bound button holes and plastic (!) buttons out of the stash.

All in all, I am pleased with the way the shirt looks, even if I do have the neckline issue.

The Waistcoat:
The waistcoat really went together smoothly. It might be a wee big here and there, but I consider it a smashing success!

The buttons are mother of pearl...and the buttonholes are handstitched.

Back-lacing...this is after the originals.

The Jacket/Coat:

The jacket back was PERFECT:

However, the front just wasn't working. All that bias was hanging weird and I hadn't gotten enough coat front skirt...so it just looked strange. Beyond that, my side back pleats were a) too far forward and b) not deep enough. I fixed a) with my second attempt at a front panel, by extending the front side seam into a back side seam (thus narrowing the back of the coat); roughly seen here:

Pleats still needed some tweaking here...

Anyway, the front still wasn't right, so I tweaked and fiddled some more and cut another front set. Better, but still not right. So I started looking a little closer at the few construction pictures of other's "Lady Wolsey" styled riding habit jackets. And I made a discovery. Straight bust line darts (entirely, or mostly hidden under the lapels). So I pinned some of those in and called it quits for the day (I had been working on this all day). I figured I'd go back at it the next day. Besides, perhaps I thought it wouldn't hurt to make the shirt and finish the waistcoat mock-up (which I had put together--seemed to work perfectly with the possible need of being taken in at the sides) and fit the coat over those extra layers before I finalized fit. (My shirt material was being laundered which is why I started with my jacket and waistcoat mock-ups first. I have definitely learned to wash my materials before using them now.)

That horrendous green lacing has since been replaced.

It stayed in this configuration for perhaps a month before I slid it back on, determined my final fix on the pleats and mocked-up my collar and lapels.

(I apparently forgot to check my exposure settings...)

I eked out the coat pieces, including the sleeves from what was left of the material after cutting the skirt. I used leftover muslin for the lining...though the sleeves are of a different lining material as I ran out of the muslin! (Now I have to go back and get more before I can make my silk 1860's dress!!)

I cut the collar, lapels (they are separate from one another) and the cuffs...from three different materials. The blue, for backing. The buff, for the visible part; and the linen for the facing/stiffening.

I originally purchased the linen for my riding habit shirt, but when I pulled it out of the shipping box, I discovered it was S-T-I-F-F, so I nixed the idea of making the shirt out of it. Three yards of it...now what? I thought I could use it for interfacing along and along in projects. (And I just got to wondering...did I wash it before cutting?? I can't remember. If I did, it was still stiff as a board.) After that, I answered the call from my Grandma requesting help with a bath...so I ended work on this project for that day.

The biggest "hitch" in putting the garment together (both lining and shell) was the sleeves. I realized, after I had already cut things out, that I wanted to narrow my sleeves. I ended up doing some weird, random stitching before I realized that my approach was indeed "haphazard" and that I own a tape measure for a reason! :D Suffice to say, that smoothed the process out significantly.

Not exactly the final stitching lines, but pretty close.

Then followed the collar, lapels, and cuffs! The lapels and the cuffs had to have the buttonholes (which are simply decorative) handstitched. It was very time consuming, but I'm not really disappointed.

I basted all the pieces on before I actually stitched them down. I really am learning...

The cuffs actually ended up two different sizes due to the sleeve openings, so I had to work them individually. I started to stitch the lining down around the cuffs and realized two things: a) I had forgotten to actually sew the cuffs on (they were just basted) and b) the sleeve linings were too short to do what I was trying to do. So I did this:

All that was left was the hand-stitching and putting the buttons on. Getting the buttons required wiping out two different Jo-Ann's of the style button I wanted.

I did the handwork in the car on the way to a friends wedding.

The Skirt:
For the skirt, I used another costume pattern...utilizing the "underskirt" from this one:

The pattern calls for a drawsting waistline. Hah. Not I. No, pleats are the name of the game. So I proceeded, after stitching up all the vertical seams, to eyeball my pleating. I always eyeball pleats. Even if I have measurements, I generally end up eyeballing. It took a couple attempts to get everything even for the waistband, but had no real stress in the process:

It was a one-day project from start to finish. I ended up with a very deep hem (so I could have cut it six inches shorter and been fine), but that helps the skirt to lay well, so I have no complaints. I put the skirt closure at the side, with hooks and thread loops.

I am very happy with it.

The Extras:
For "extras", I made a cockade for my hat...and I planned on a stock for my neck, but didn't get it done in time for the first wearing. Not to mention a new chemise, or shift, specifically for 1770's and the bum roll. You will have to satisfy yourself with the knowledge of those latter two...no pictures.