Dressing The Part
Embrace the spirit of Guthrie's Victorian Christmas Walks by dressing the part! Costumes are encouraged, but not required to attend these events.
The Victorian Walks are exactly what they sound like—a trek through historic Guthrie! We suggest you dress comfortably: wear good walking shoes, check the weather, and dress in easily removable layers.
What is the Victorian Era?
“Victorian” refers to the years encompassing the reign of Queen Victoria in England, she was the inspiration of fashion for her entire life. She reigned from 1837-1901 after her death her son Edward took over ushering in what we refer to as the Edwardian era. This diagram shows a great representation of how the silhouette changed during this era. When building a costume or searching for pieces we suggest using terms more specific than Victorian costume, try looking at the decade you want to portray and searching for the year directly as that will give you much more accurate results.
Example of decade specific costume
This couple is portraying a 1862/Civil War middle class couple in their early 20s attending a ball
DRESSING THE PART
It is not necessary to come fully dressed in 19th-century attire to enjoy the Victorian Walks, but it is part of the fun! Adding one or two pieces to your regular wardrobe can go a long way towards stepping back in history.
Once you decide on a decade to portray,
sites like Historical Emporium are great resources for complete costumes and accessories!
If you have sewing skills we highly recommend making yourself a costume or checking out Facebook pages such as historical costume destash and civil war civilian closet.
Don't forget to check your local antique and thrift stores for items like waistcoats, gloves, pocket watches, shoes, and shirts!
WHERE TO FIND MORE INTRICATE COSTUMES
There are many resources for territorial/pioneer and Victorian costumes locally and online.:
https://www.ensemblesofthepast.com/rentals
She is an incredible seamstress with a wide variety of products, she also has an amazing Etsy shop with many accessories.
They have a large catalog of men’s and women’s costumes broken down by era.
The afore mentioned Facebook pages are great places to get buy complete costumes and look into your local seamstresses to see if they could make a costume for you. We suggest finding a pattern and fabric yourself and bringing it to them.
IS ANYTHING "NOT ALLOWED"?
Ensuring that the Victorian Walks maintain a family-friendly environment is an important part of our theatrical time travel and holiday experience. In that spirit, we ask that guests use their discretion and common sense. Attire that is not appropriate for a family event includes:
-
Clothing with objectionable material such as obscene language or graphics.
-
Clothing that exposes excessive portions of the body that may be viewed as inappropriate for a family environment.
COSTUME EDUCATION & INSPIRATION
Resources abound for those looking to recreate an authentic period vibe! Here are a few to get you started:
Victorian Fashion: Who Wore What?
Fashion History Timeline: 1890-1899
Ultimately, dressing up or not is up to you. Whether you do or you don't, we hope to see you in downtown historic Guthrie on the first two Saturdays of December.
