Comic Con Outfits ~ Day One Blue & White

Comic Con Outfits ~ Day One Blue & White

fashion style    11:08 AM   

So, in case you hadn't guessed, Fashionable Reader, I enjoy standing out visually, but in a classy way, or course. Or as classy as I can possibly manage.  *insert snorting noise here*

Under circumstances such as San Diego Comic Con standing out is a challenge. There are amazing cospay ladies everywhere, from comic book characters to steampunk to cross overs between the two. There are also lost of shorts and logo t-shirts, wings and hats, and robotic attachments.

So what did I decide to do in order to be unique? Well, frankly, just dress the way I normally do. With the exception of Saturday day, when I wore a cool adaptation of my old favorite spoon steampunk outfit, I mostly just chose nice bright ladylike dresses.

I've been hunting down, expanding, and investing in some day dresses in light packable fabrics. And a good thing too, day dresses look much better with flats and we've already discussed that crisis. On Thursday I wore my new blue and cream dress, paired with cream accessories.

I wore it with the matched jacket, day hat and low key pearls for daytime.

And switched the jacket out for an evening muff, the hat for a flowered hairband, the purse for a clutch, and the daytime pearls for an evening set for that night.

I love blue & cream (or blue & white) together. It's an elegant color combination and I just don't have enough of it in my wardrobe. I always think of Wedgwood china and the like when I see it, which reminds me of tea, which is no bad thing.

This outfit packs beautifully. As ever, here are some other takes on this classic combo for your perusal, fashionable reader. Let us start with some great retro options.

 Dita-von-teese-westwood-louboutin; Dior 2011

 Monique-Lhuillier; Louise-Roe-Rebecca-Taylor

 stella_mccartney_resort

Here are links to a few up for purchase.

 Cream and flowers with sleeves;  sleeveless blue roses.

With a peplum and belt, so cute.

How about a few accessories?

Cornelia James blue leather driving gloves at corneliajames.com

For a modern take on this look I really love adding a touch of red. It remains ladylike but has a bit of an edge. Black tights can also work well, or simply choosing a dress that is a little more modern.

How about some lovely vintage versions?

 1957 dior; 1955 Hubert de Givenchy, 1955  The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 1950s blue & white dress by denise

 1950's Blue & White Printed nylon chiffon vintage party dress John Selby

 1940's White Blue Floral Swing Dress; 1930

And how about something for the characters to wear?

For Lord Akeldama . . .

1740 Waistcoat The Los Angeles County Museum of Art

For Monique in the Finishing School series . . .

1860 Wedding dress Metropolitan Museum of Art

For Alexia and Ivy in the Parasol Protectorate series . . .

1870 A blue dress circa from La Mode Illustree

For Ivy after Timeless . . .

And for Primrose in the Parasol Protectorate Abroad series . . .

1890's Blue Dress with Lace

Next up, another day dress at Comic Con! (You know you want one.) Until then I leave you with myself, manga Alexia, and a reader.

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

Comic Con Outfits Are Coming!

Comic Con Outfits Are Coming!

fashion style    2:39 PM   

I am sorry for my visual silence, Fashionable Reader. I have been traveling to San Diego Comic Con and internet access was restricted.

However I am back now. First, however, I would like to ask for a moment of silence for the fact that there I was the biggest of big cons and because of my stupid ankle I couldn't were heels, not even for the evening event.

 
However, it certainly made packing easier! Goodness it's nice not to have to work about pumps. Flats are so much easier to deal with.

I'm prepping lots of blogs both on the events of Comic Con and the clothing. Here's a sneak look at some of my outfits and encounters . . .

However, right now I'm still recovering, so I hope you will come back to see the madness tomorrow.

Retro Rack is also on facebook where I post additional images and fashion thoughts.

Riding Habits from 1850 to Today

Riding Habits from 1850 to Today

fashion style    11:56 AM   

I know Retro Rack is generally intended for retro style in the modern world, but occasionally we stray into vintage. Today, Fashionable Readers, will be one of those days.

 Princess Alice

For reasons to do with the Soulless manga (Vol. 2), I recently found myself researching Victorian riding fashions.

 1873 Peterson's riding habit

I started out in 1873 (Soulless) and moved forward into the 1890s (Parasol Protectorate Abroad).

1895 Bifurcated-riding-ensemble

Then I drifted quite happily backwards in time to 1851 (Etiquette & Espionage).

 1854 Vicky and Alice

So goes the rabbit hole of research. The interesting thing to me was how little this particular attire changed. Designed for side saddle the skirts were long, the look quite military in influence and the cloth, mainly, somber in color.

So here is a retrospective on the riding habit.

1850s

1850_laver_riding

Note the lady's topper? Also the jacket over vest clearly taking influences fro menswear? The skirt is narrower in width but with lots of volume and excess length so that it will drape as she rides. This time period also so a kind of early fedora meets sun hat as a riding hat as well. More practical, if you ask me.

1855

1856

1857 Killerton, Riding Habits

Here we can see the beginning of two ideas: velvet for a riding jacket (which persists to this day) and the idea of the jacket coordinating with, but not perfectly matching, the bottom of the outfit.

1860s

1860s riding habits

Note the front striping created by epillets on the right hand dress? That's classic riding habit styling that persisted throughout the Victorian era.

 1861 and 1862

The perch hat becomes popular for riding, it will also slide into common use for walking dresses in the 1870s. It's one of my favorite hats. Also the ladies topper returns, and we start to see lighter colored riding habits matched to the hat.

1870s

1870 Germany

This one is German. I love the bowler, I've not seen that before.

 Early and late 1870s habits, not that different.

Mid 1870s, again the lighter color.

1870s Riding Corset.

Riding corsets were "cut down" or shortened, particularly on the sides to make them more comfortable for riding. Much later on they also seem to be the first corsets to incorporate elastic panels for comfort.

1871

 1872 Riding Habit The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 1872 fashion plates for riding habits. 

Not detail is being paid to the hem and to the pleating of the underskirt because it is sometimes seen? *gasp* Also the lady's topper begins to have perch components. Also women begin to wear larger and larger ties, bow ties, and cravats. This would eventually culminate in the pussycat bow, of which you all know I am a big fan.

 1872 Sketch Rotten Row Rich Families Horse Riding Trees

1873 Equestrian-Portrait-Of-Mademoiselle-Croizette

The topper beginning to get taller, and more masculine.

1876

Note the long line of the jacket front? This is influence from the cuirasse bodice and the impending princess cut.

1880s

 1880s 

We begin to see full men's style ascot toppers and much narrow skirt. Also the cross-over asymmetrical tops.

 1885-1886 Riding Jacket The Victoria & Albert Museum

1885-1895 Riding Hat

1900s

It's so exciting, do you know what happens after the turn of the century? Dress reform!! Well, dress reform was earlier, but it finally takes off. And you know what that means? Trousers!

1909 The Metropolitan Museum of Art

1910s

 1916; 1918 Woman's Riding Habit, ca by Missouri History Museum

1920s

 1920 Riding Habits; 1920 Gladys Wagner modeling

 1920’s Riding habit McCord Museum; 1924 (note the awesome hunter boots?); 1929-1930 The Metropolitan Museum of Art

1930s

1935 Mrs John V Bouvier III

1938 Bette Davis’ entrance clad in a riding habit for Jezebel

1939 The Meadow Brook Hall Historic Costume

Note how strong the shoulder is becoming?

I myself own a 1930s grey riding habit. I wear it on occasion for steampunk events. I got it cheap from Decades of Fashion for $45 because it had moth holes in it. I went over and darned them, since I knew it was for steampunk I figured I could add some decoration over them if I had to. The darning worked well enough and since I moved and it's been in storage I haven't had a chance to wear it or do anything more to it. It's also wool, so I have to be careful because I have an allergy. Hopefully, in a few years when I migrate to a bigger pad, I'll get an opportunity to wear it more.

Just the pants (paired with a Ravenswood bodice)

My pants end just bellow the knee and have no syrups, but they aren't puffed like jodhpurs. This pluss the sharpness of the shoulders on the jacket makes me guess that my habit is from 1936-38.

1940s

 1940 Riding Hat

1943 Riding Ensemble The Meadow Brook Hall Historic Costume Collection

The war combined with the rise in affordable cars saw riding horses fall out of favor in England. By the end of the 1940s, riding was really only something the very wealthy (or the neuvo rich) aspired too do on a regular basis. One no longer promenaded in Hyde Park on horseback. Hunting became the defacto reason to ride. Very few people rode for pleasure except to hunt. Fashion evolved accordingly. The term Riding Habit fell into disuse and when people spoke of riding it became something associated with the bicycle not the horse.

Modern Times

1970? Princess-Anne-of-Great-Britain-in-riding-attire

Equestrian looks still resurface on the runways. I'm a big fan, and I've a whole other blog post prepared on the subject of making this look work for everyday. Equestrian drifts into steampunk often as well ~ there is that military detailing meets cross dressing aesthetic.

 Various equestrian looks: steampunk, street, and runway.

That's all for now, hope you've enjoyed this retrospective!