Costume vs. Garb
I was in the SCA for around 10 years and towards the end got rather serious about what I wore. The stuff I was wearing stopped being costumes and became garb. Costumes get worn once or twice and you worry less how they fit or feel and more with how they look as an effect. Garb is clothes. You want clothes to look good but you also want them to feel comfortable and be durable. Garb also pays attention to foundation layers and accessories - the right shoes, undergarments, etc.
So now I'm larping. I've stayed away from character concepts that required complex costuming. Until now. Now I've got a character with a late Victorian background who still dresses that way. Luckily enough, faking the Victorian look is actually pretty easy: a Gibson Girl style shirt paired with a long skirt and voila! Victorian! Only there's an event coming up that could require the character to be more formally dressed. Thus, the Costume vs Garb debate begins.
To do it right - period patterns for the dress and foundational garments, fabrics of the correct weights that hang right and won't melt the first time I wash them - will cost around $125. It's not that I can't afford it but that $125 could be spent on other, less frivolous things. I'm interested in steampunk so it's not like the patterns won't ever get used again. The dress will deviate significantly from the standards of time and it'd be a toss up if it could be worn at a Victorian or steampunk event. The pattern sets come with a full set of sizes so I could conceivably take commissions.
Regardless, I could probably use one of my existing corsets or a strapless bra and throw together some petticoats out of cheap muslin. I could make the dress out of discount-rack fabric. I'd even get compliments on it. But I'd know I was wearing a piece of crap.
And that bites at my soul.
So now I'm larping. I've stayed away from character concepts that required complex costuming. Until now. Now I've got a character with a late Victorian background who still dresses that way. Luckily enough, faking the Victorian look is actually pretty easy: a Gibson Girl style shirt paired with a long skirt and voila! Victorian! Only there's an event coming up that could require the character to be more formally dressed. Thus, the Costume vs Garb debate begins.
To do it right - period patterns for the dress and foundational garments, fabrics of the correct weights that hang right and won't melt the first time I wash them - will cost around $125. It's not that I can't afford it but that $125 could be spent on other, less frivolous things. I'm interested in steampunk so it's not like the patterns won't ever get used again. The dress will deviate significantly from the standards of time and it'd be a toss up if it could be worn at a Victorian or steampunk event. The pattern sets come with a full set of sizes so I could conceivably take commissions.
Regardless, I could probably use one of my existing corsets or a strapless bra and throw together some petticoats out of cheap muslin. I could make the dress out of discount-rack fabric. I'd even get compliments on it. But I'd know I was wearing a piece of crap.
And that bites at my soul.