Victorian themed wedding... guests need Victorian themed clothes

[LiesDoNotBecomeUs]

I'm not sure if this is the right place (I might be 150 years too late for this style advice).

I'm invited to a September wedding with a Victorian theme. (The family celebrating are Victorian society members in a city with proud Victorian-heritage.)

I need a 'Victorian-ish' outfit for the occasion but am mature, apple-shaped (tall -but size 16 and mostly belly).

I can improvise for children's book day events and things like that but this is a serious adult occasion - in a church - and my sewing skills are poor to appalling. (I'm known for messy injuries with sissors and stitching my -several years in the making- apron to my own skirt.)

Worst of all, I've a horrible idea that Victorian-ish means tight waist (I've never seen mine) and ballooning skirts.

I'm going to look like an appropriately themed traditional boiled pudding aren't I?

Can anyone help on how I can go about this? What style could pass for Victorian and not get me placed on the desserts table with custard?
(I've even considered arriving as a ghost.)

I noticed the costume hire place I mentioned earlier has bonnets and capes included with the dress so if you went with a hire that might be sorted for you!

I went to a friends Victorian birthday and wore a long skirt and velvet jacket .Maybe something like that?

Not a tight skirt ,just a waisband to do up loosely (not a skinny minnie!)

Some of these could work:

So hats were baskets for your shopping - or a place for a storing packed lunch :)
(This could be useful at a wedding!)

These are really interesting to look at!
It appears that hats were a way of expressing individuality.

The period is slightly off, but I'd jump at the chance to go as Suranne Jones in Gentleman Jack.
What city is it, out of curiosity?

All I can say, OP, is that I am terribly jealous and would love an excuse to cram myself into a Victorian outfit for the day.

Quite a few of those Victorian women weren't exactly...err...sylphlike, OP. You don't have to wear a corset! But, for the love of dog, please don't wear some of the horrific Laura-Ashleyalike dresses - hire or buy or make a proper Victorian costume!

Check out Bernadette Banner on YouTube for some good explanations of how to achieve the Victorian shape by padding the bust and hips (and add a bustle!)
I've managed something like this before by wearing a high necked lace shirt, short suit jacket, and long skirt for which I made a bustle. But it sounds like some guests will be in full on history bounding authentic gear!

This is one of the best posts on here 🙂so great to think people are doing something different for their wedding, imagine what the bride and groom are going to wear!

I can no longer wear corsets due to my health so if I was a guest I’d probably wear a male outfit as who can resist a velvet jacket.

A picnic hat is a splendid idea. Pork pie rosette, a fan of cucumber sandwiches, and little bunches of grapes

I'd love to go to a Victorian themed wedding. It's probably already been said a few times but don't worry about your waist. You'll see lots of seemingly small waists in old photos but 1. some of those are photoshopped - yep, they photoshopped them. 2. plenty of women of the period didn't have anything close to a defined waist. A lot of work was done by a bit of pulling in with a corset and then padding around the hips to make the waist look smaller. Smoke and mirrors

I LOVE Bernadette Banner!

Try your local theatre, you can rent costumes for the day some times. Alternatively, look for goth or steam punk shops, they may have something you can use.

hire or buy or make a proper Victorian costume!

What? 😳

A 'proper' Victorian costume? And one of your suggestions is to 'make' it? How does that work?

(And lovely or not, it would be a card & gift & apologies from me).

Definitely try a big skirt and a corset style top. I never wear anything with a waist because I have a stomach, a high waist and big boobs and it's a nightmare combo for anything waisted but a corset and a big skirt make even my not waist waist look good, a long line corset with a gored skirt is even better but not as Victorian. It's worth trying on, just for the fun of it, but you might be surprised.

^ This. Their wedding, their rules I suppose, but I think it's asking a bit too much.

I think the PP meant that if OP is going to go (as she seems to want to), then she should try her best to do the theme properly rather than half arseing it with a frilly modern dress that doesn't actually fit the brief.

As to making it... well, there are plenty of sewing patterns and fabric available online so if OP had the skills she could in theory make an outfit. I don't think that's such an outlandish suggestion 🤔

I think making a full Victorian outfit with crinoline and corset would require considerable sewing and tailoring skills, and also lots of time and money for fabric. I would think hiring one would be a better solution. The website linked to further up seemed to have plenty to choose from.

For anyone interested in historical clothing, there is an interesting instagram account made by a Swedish woman who makes historical dresses: sewn.by.ellen

You'd need 18 yards of fabric just for the dress. Another 40 yards or so of fabric for ruffles (strips, so you'll get several from a width of cloth but that's still 40 yards to sew), and 20 or 30 yards of ribbon or bullion. Plus underskirts. And buttons etc.

It would cost a fortune.

@sonjadog @NoBinturongsHereMate Well aware of this having made plenty of outfits of different eras myself (including corsets and panniers etc) :)

I was just pointing out to a PP that it would be possible IF OP had the skills and time required as PP had reacted like making an outfit was an impossibility. It's really not as hard as it looks. I have no formal training in sewing. Everything I know I've just learnt from tutorials on YouTube and having a go myself. OP should not, of course, be expected to do this for someone else's wedding.

Hiring one is 100% the best solution here.

I am likely going to have to make an 1850s ballgown for my SILs wedding next year myself 😂

Go as Dracula.

I love you OP. your turns of phrase are just awesome :)

I'd do: long dark skirt, black tights, black ankle boots, high neck long sleeve blouse with a brooch at the neck, and one of those poncho cloaks with the fake fur trim. Oh, and a hat of some sort.

Otherwise, actual Victorian fancy dress outfit.