What the Dickens Do I Wear?

Kellers.jpgCostume Information

To help you enjoy your role in A Dickens of a Christmas even more, we have collected a variety of hints for putting together your own Victorian costumes.

While wearing a costume is by no means necessary, it may add to your enjoyment of the occasion. It does not have to be fancy, just in keeping with the Victorian spirit and times.

For The Ladies

  1. Every lady wore a hat. Outside, ladies usually wore bonnets of some kind – rimmed with feathers, flowers, ribbons and bows. You can create a bonnet easily from an old straw or felt hat from a thrift shop. Indoors, ladies often wore small lace caps that can be fashioned today from lace handkerchiefs, a flower and a few small ribbons. Mop caps were worn by domestic servants.
  2. A Victorian dress usually held a high neckline, sometimes with a collar and fitted bodice, three-quarter or full length sleeves and a very long skirt worn over layered petticoats or a hoop. With a few amendments, such as adding more fullness to the skirt, accenting with ribbons, braid, lace and flowers, and even adding a collar, you can transform a thrift shop find into a lovely Victorian dress. Keep in mind that solids and small prints were more common, but stripes and plaids were also popular. Cotton, lightweight wools or any fabric that looks like silk or brocade would most resemble period cloth.
  3. If you choose to wear a long skirt, accent it with ribbons, lace and a full petticoat or hoop. A high-necked blouse with a cloak, mantle, shawl or pelerine jacket complete this easy outfit.
  4. Working class women would wear a simple dress with narrow sleeves and a dark material, with no petticoats. She might wear a bibbed apron over the dress, with a shawl tied over her shoulders.
  5. Dark stockings and slipper-type shoes were worn during this period along with lady’s boots. To complete the outfit, a lady would add a bonnet to match her dress, gloves, fan and small purse.

Dickens03For The Gentlemen

  1. Hats are a must! A gentleman always wore a hate of some kind out-of-doors. Even working-class men are pictured with battered top hats or lower-crowned, broad-brimmed hats. Tweed skimmers were more sporty versions of Victorian attire.
  2. A plain white shirt can be given a period look by turning the collar up. Add a ribbon, scarf or fancy cravat and knot in front. A working man would wear a collarless shirt or smock, with sleeves rolled up.
  3. A vest (or waistcoat) of brocade, velvet or silk will help create a gentleman’s costume. A waistcoat of wool in bright colored stripes or plaid will make you a sporting chap or shopkeeper.
  4. Tapered pants in black, gray or buff with a strip of ribbon running down the outer seam were a gentleman’s normal attire. A working man would wear a baggy pair of pants in wool or corduroy.
  5. A frock-coat or tailcoat is easy to create using a dark overcoat or raincoat. Trim the collar with velvet, silk or brocade and move the first button to mid-chest, causing the coat to fall in a cutaway fashion. A laborer, fisherman or stall keeper would have a wool coat with a scarf tied around the neck.


For The Children

  1. PaperboysBoys wore knickers, shirts and coats as grown men did. A cap or small top hat was also common. Knickers were worn by the younger boys and young men wore trousers.
  2. Girls wore short sleeved, low frocks fastened in the back. When they went out-of-doors, they put on a cloak or shawl. Upper-class parents dressed their girls like miniatures, reproducing on a small scale each detail of puff, frill and elaborate decoration. The more common folk tended to be thrifty and would re-use garments to make their children’s clothes.
  3. Babies were dressed in layers of flannel or cotton petticoats to combine warmth and ease of washing. Caps, with rows and rows of lace, looked dear around an infant’s face. It was fashionable to drape baby in a simple circular cape out-of-doors.


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