Dress me up!

[kevinw33]

Howdy,

I need some help completing my civilian georgia farmer impression. I wear my clothing for work, and with winter coming, I need some help.
I have been into reenacting for 3 years now and clothing and equipment are not one of my points of interest so I could use some suggestions.

I wear now:
Osnaberg shirt
brown wool trousers
braces
wool socks
brogans (i know these are not civilian)
med. crown bowler (black)

I am interested in getting a vest, frock, and a necktie of some sort to complete my impression, but I know so little. I know the people here can help.

For your answers, please dont put: "whatever you want, or whatever you like" or anything like that because I am not being modest when I say I do not know. I would like to get what is correct first, and then deviate with what I like.

Answers I am looking for are things like:
what should the coat be made of?
what should the vest be made of?
should they match my trousers?
I seem to prefer the plantation style necktie, but what material/color for that?
is polished cotton historically accurate?
etc.

Thanks a ton! Have fun answering, what would you do?

[Spinster]

Re: Dress me up!

Answers I am looking for are things like:
what should the coat be made of?
what should the vest be made of?
should they match my trousers?
I seem to prefer the plantation style necktie, but what material/color for that?
is polished cotton historically accurate?
etc.
Your coat--a nice wool--tropical or light weight. You could go for a linen coat, and it would be a nice thing in the Deep South, but this is a rather expensive garment. A nice lightweight wool would give you more wear.

You can go for a matching set--a "suit of dittos", but you are making a certain fashion statement by doing that. This could a statement that was far ahead of a middling age conservative Georgia dirt farmer.

Your necktie--a nice silk cravet.

Polished cotton is a common period fabric for use in linings, hem facings and such like--anywhere that fabric gets dirt, sweat, and body oils. While certainly neckties could be made of cotton, silk is more common and will give you a better look.

Now, when you say you wear these clothes 'for work' --look at this idea a bit more. A frock is a 'nicer' thing--your work clothes would tend more towards a sack coat, or even one of the period versions of overalls.

[Annette Bethke]

Re: Dress me up!

Coat -- wool, generally. Could use silk, if a frock rather than a sack and of the upper class
Vest -- wool or silk, if wool vest backing should should be solid silk or solid cotton
Match trousers -- not necessarily, coat should be same fiber but color and/0r pattern can be different
necktie -- should be silk, color...not sure about plantation neckties if they were always black or could be different
Polished cotton -- mostly as lining

Now that is the basic; I suggest doing a search for period images and images of garments. There are probably several links in the different threads of this forum as well as on Elizabeth Stewart Clark's. Several vendors also have images of original garments from their collections on their websites. There are also several books with image collections that can be of help.

Seeing the images and the garments is really the best way to get answers to your questions.

It can be a fun search :).

[kevinw33]

Re: Dress me up!

Thanks for the answers so far!

My misunderstanding is evident in the frock\sack comment. I though frocks were relatively common, but I guess a sack coat is what I would most likely wear?

My problem with looking at pictures is that I dont know what I am looking at. And, I doubt there are any pictures of a farmer fresh off the field since it was pretty special to have your picture struck. :confused_

[Spinster]

Re: Dress me up!

Hank will come through eventually, and sort this out better, with actual quotes and such.

There are references of farmers coming to town in 'rusty' or 'green' frocks. The context and description is such that what they are wearing is an old frock coat that has faded in places. Certainly in keeping with the idea that this was a 'lifetime' garment for some economic classes---and a 'good' outfit.

Along with different lines, your sack coat is more loosely cut, and thus gives more room to do physical labor.

And the sort of pictures you are looking for are classified as "occupationals"--images of folks with the tools of their trade.

[Randy]

Re: Dress me up!

one of the period versions of overalls.
My first thought is also a pair of overalls. I think Carter & Jasper make nice workman's overalls.

Also, how about a tobacco pipe, (that is if you smoke)?

[crabby]

Re: Dress me up!

Kevin,

We may be able to help you out with cravats and overalls. We also carry clay pipes, and tobacco.

Crabby
Ezra Barnhouse Goods.

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Dress me up!

I don't think anyone will say "whatever you want"--because it's all about replicating what The Original Cast used, and they followed definite norms. However, your choices as a citizen are wider than those for military, and you'll find there are as many citizen "uniforms" as there are military, too! When planning your accessories, they shouldn't deviate from the wide range of "normal" for mid-century, but there's a lot of scope for personal expression within that range.

Let's start by clarifying:

Do you want to refine your everyday working clothes?

Do you want to create a Sunday Best set of clothes?

What is the actual economic level of the farmer you portray? Is he stable and getting better, or shaky and going downhill? Is his land productive, or tapped out? Does he work it himself, alone, or can he afford hired day labor, seasonal labor, or permanent labor (bond or free)?

Right now, your mix seems a wee bit off, and that can be corrected, but the fine details help a lot.

Adding to the work clothing, to keep you warm:

Keep the osnaberg as an undershirt, and add a wool shirt over the top. Add a wool cap (or wheel cap... something informal to keep the noggin warm), and keep the bowler for "best". Add a wool scarf if it won't get in the way of your work. Add a wool coat (not a sack, but an outerwear coat) for cold days, or as you get warmed up to working. Make sure you're wearing drawers to help cut the wind and damp. Wool flannel can actually be quite comfy. Make sure you have a neckerchief, too. For visuals, take a look at the images taken of men working the mining camps out west. They didn't generally rush back to the tent and get groomed up for the sluice box. :)

Now, for upgrading to a "Sunday Best" impression:

Get a new shirt. Something white and tidy looking. Then, you can add another pair of trousers to match your frock (you might go with a slightly 1850s frock, rather than up-to-the-spot 1860s style, to mimic the "bought-it-second-hand" or "had-it-forever" aspect of working class clothing.) Then, the vest and tie and bowler and shoes all cleaned up make sense for going to anything social, church, political rallies, best "visiting"--these are your dressed-up clothes, and you don't wear them in the fields. Looking at pictures of tanned, "spit-shined" fellows, this "Sunday Best" is what you sometimes see in CdVs.

Answers to your direct questions:
1: Depends on the seasons and settings you need that coat to serve--is it a dress coat, worn indoors/out, or is it a cold/damp weather coat worn during working? See those clarification questions, above.

2: Ditto

3: Ditto

4: Neckties are silk in 99.9% of cases.

5: Polished cotton for linings can be 100% spot-on. It is not a stand-in for silk, though.

[TATTOOS1]

Re: Dress me up!

GREETINGS FROM BONNIE SCOTLAND
Hi Kevin
I have been working on a 1860s , farmers / workmans impression this year and this is what i have come up with so far (photos attached) I try to look a period pics but im always looking to other living historians for there advice and help.
I got a cracking pair of overalls from Crabby at the Ezra Barnhouse .
all the best
bill.

43rd NC
FRIENDSHIP 1712, EDINBURGH,
Widows Sons Mess.

[C.R. Henderson]

Re: Dress me up!

I'll clarily something for Kevin. When he says he uses his clothes for work, he's not kidding. He wears them everyday while he's on the clock. The suggestions here have really been helpful and the attitude is wonderful! Keep 'em coming folks. I'm learning loads, too!:D

[kevinw33]

Re: Dress me up!

I love the overalls idea!

I guess to clarify exactly what i do:

I work at the Tullie Smith Farm at the Atl History Center.

I mainly just give tours of the house, not too much actual farm work, but I want to be dressed as a farmer would in the field.

The Smith's were upper middle class/lower upper class farmers with 800 acres and 11 slaves. According to our records mr. smith and the sons worked side by side with the slaves. They grew mainly corn, oats, and sweet taters and had on avereage 80 heads of hog. although they were considered relatively wealthy for the time, they lived in modern day north atlanta which was very sparsely populated and they were pretty much on their own, the nearest neighbor being about 2.5 miles away, and they only went to Decatur (the main town in the area before Atlanta even existed) about once a month for coffee, salt, etc.

I guess overalls would be the way to go, but i would also like a vest and coat.

Thanks soooo much, this has been more than I expected already!

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Dress me up!

Can I make a slight correction to their economic class?

If he's working in the fields directly with the slaves, he's going to fall into an upper working class category, not middle or upper class. They may well have been in the higher economic bracket for the area, and doing very well, but they're still all directly involved with manual labor (not supervising, but actually sweating), which doesn't bump them out of the working class much, if at all. Relative positions in the local social scene don't always correspond to the larger economic scale/class.

Just an opinion, there.

I'd look at getting a full set of everyday work clothes, including wool shirts, overalls, and a coat (outerwear, not sack or frock dress coat), to present an "upper working class farmer taking a break in his work day."

[Spinster]

Re: Dress me up!

Okay, that context helps a lot!

For folks who have not seen this particular site, the home is a two story milled lumber house, with a small shady front porch, a couple of front rooms, several interior bedrooms, and the traditional bedroom for guests and travelers-- opening to the front porch rather than into the house. I honestly don't remember a separate kitchen, but I was so busy crawling under the weaving loom that I would not have noticed if there was a bowling alley in the house.

In short, the sort of home far more typical for the planter class than Gone With the Wind would have us think. :D

I'd suggest an overall of heavy linen in a blue or brown--more suitable to the climate. From what images I've seen of the prosperous farmers in this area and nearby New Manchester, I think it unlikely that even those working 'side by side' with the help would have worn fabrics like wool jean.

Well made shirts of a quality fabric, even for everyday work. This does not mean the shirt has to be white.

Silk for the tie or cravat, most definitely,

An exceptionally high quality hat--even though it is one for work. Once again, these are folks who have the means, and a good hat is protection from wind, rain, snow and sun.

A quality shoe, well fitted and with some fashion to it. Civilian shoes by Missouri Boot and Shoe would fit this bill, as would most of Robert Land's civilian shoes (somehow, I think I'd avoid the two toned camp shoe for this ).

Given the daily use in your job, and the floors in the house, you may wish to consider something slightly different--a 19th century style shoe, with modern interior support and a sole that will not mar the flooring--available through the Thomas Lincoln Log Cabin Historic Site http://www.tlbootsnbrogans.org/broganindex.html

For outer wear, look no further than the civilian overcoat pattern available through the Atlanta History Center. I imagine if you ask, you'll find they've already got a connection to get you one made--or might even have one in a closet just waiting for you.....

Good luck--I look forward to seeing the site again!

[kevinw33]

Re: Dress me up!

Ms. Spinster,

The gift shop has a pattern for a civy overcoat, could that be what you are talking about?

[Spinster]

Re: Dress me up!

That's exactly the one I'm talking about.

The original coat is in the permanent collection of the center. Talk to the curators about the type of fabric you need--they may also be able to refer you to someone who has experience reproducing this coat.

Fred Baker, a member of this board, has made this coat many times, and did an excellent job on the one made for my husband. You may also wish to check with him to find out if he is taking orders right now.