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.)

https://www.disturbia.co.uk/products/chrysanthi-applique-maxi-dress?variant=43915827904669
I d wear something like this as it’s a dress I could wear agains. Try to then add jewellery and maybe a headpiece which is Victorian in style.

How much would you want to spend @LiesDoNotBecomeUs?

You could potentially look for vintage 1980s evening gowns - something like this is already on its way to the right look, especially if you added an extra crinoline, a Victorian hairstyle etc. Brands such as Droopy and Brown’s have that sort of aesthetic although they can be quite pricey (asides from the fact that finding specific vintage clothing in a specific size can be difficult!) so maybe not the sort of thing you want to buy if you’re not going to get wear out of it.

If your budget is lower I’ve stumbled across a site called Complete costumes - they’ve got lots of options in your size for around 40-50 quid for three day hire…(not sure if these links will work as they wouldn’t copy and paste nicely but you should be able to find them fairly easily from a search.

https://completecostumes.co.uk/costumehire/costume_details.php/item/2033/Ladies_Victorian_Day_Costume_Size_14_-16.html
https://completecostumes.co.uk/costumehire/costume_details.php/item/2513/Ladies_Victorian_Dickensian_Carol_Singer_Day_Costume_Size_16-_18.html
The more mid-19th century styles do look pretty warm though and September could still be quite warm!

That's a rather wonderful site. The Victorian costumes seem to be mainly cotton, often fancy dress is really cheap nylon.

I’m quite tempted to hire a Tudor gown to float round the house in…

Batsheva do similar

Batsheva
Batsheva or

Cabbages and Roses
Cabbages and Roses

That's not as ridiculous as it sounds! Me too.

On cost, hiring a costume from them is a fraction of the usual wedding outfit.

Sounds more Edwardian.

I'd love to see what you end up wearing OP. Overly invested in this thread! My vote is def for the Batsheva dress I recommended upthread. Modern yet strong Victorian vibe, and crucially not fancy dress.

That Batsheva dress is so ugly - Victoriana could be fussy, but rarely as unflattering as that.

Thing is Victorian is a huge stretch of time.. Fussy crinolines at the beginning, but much more 'Edwardian' with leaner lines at the end. With bustles in between. And of course all dependent on what class you fell into.

I love these. Though I would need Spanx.

Could you go as characters from Oliver?

Agreed. And it really doesn't say Victorian to me. It's so baggy - whereas the Victorians were all about strong, defined shape. Specifics of the shape varied, but it was always structured.

I would love to go to this wedding! I’d totally go Gentleman Jack. Or hire a massive crinoline dress from a costume hire place. They cater to all sizes.

I’ve been invited to a wedding with a ‘bright colours’ dress code which is not half as much fun, and bright colours don’t suit me so I’ve been sulking a bit about that. But maybe I should embrace it and just go dressed like a neon rainbow.

I just saw this skirt and thought of this thread. It’s very voluminous and has a Victorian type frill at the bottom, but is flatter at the top part which could be flattering. You could make it stick out with a good flouncy petticoat.

https://www.stories.com/en_gbp/clothing/skirts/maxi-skirts/product.sheer-tiered-maxi-skirt-pink.1205521001.html?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=uk-london-stories-prospectingremarketing-conversion-purchase-dynamic-ASC

I would be looking at Julia Margaret Cameron images - she got her first camera in 1865, so around the right time, and there are a huge variety of styles because she liked to photograph people in costume.

Sorry, first camera around 1863, got a cold... 1865 is her first exhibition.

Joanie Clothing does Laura Ashley dresses, which are based on Victorian in styles. How about this one?

If we ever got an invitation like this, I would struggle to get my husband to agree to go, but in fact this will be far easier for men. He could dress much like he does day to day and go as a late 19th century US train robber. (He looks like a cross between these two.*)

*This may not be an entirely true statement.

@Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g , well if they're going, where's my corset?!

Yes! For that I'd diet into the victorian waist.

Thank-you all so much for the ideas and smiles on here.
I feel inspired (to work on being less pumpkin-like in order to squeeze into something like these suggestions).

I think I might try and go for a hooped dress (with the folorn hope that its skirt size will minimise my middle and not leave me looking too pudding-like).

I've measured my mid-section, and although it doesn't really qualify as a waist, it is smaller than last time I tried (though decreasing very very slowly compared with the rest of me). I will fit into an actual dress size.

I now need a hat to go with it. What did mid century women in a hooped frock and shawl (though I still really want that huge FL Woman cape) wear on their heads for weddings?

I'm even up for trying to make something!

If you're going with hoops, and therefore around 1860, you're just on the crossover from bonnet to hat. So loads of possibilities.

Bonnet can have hair low and hidden, or piled up front between head and bonnet brim.

Hat means lots of hair volume at the back of the head, and a hard pushed on top. Can be a small straw boater type, pillbox and veil, a larger sort of cup thing (which I can picture but not describe - will attempt to find an illistation), small top hat with scarf. Brims tended to be small or nonexistent, but decoration elaborate.

Simple hat https://pin.it/2EQSRR9BP

Slightly fancier https://pin.it/4VN3RIt9u

Little topper with scarf https://pin.it/1Cmsp9kVF

Boaters https://pin.it/2y9JLq4JI

One hat, one bonnet https://pin.it/i3FP2tGFn

This one doesn't know if it's bonnet or hat https://pin.it/v0fZlwV4t

Bonnet showing the under-brim decoration nicely https://pin.it/7qU92TlrV

More hatty but still with bonnet ribbons
pin.it/3J2a5W40E
Not sure how much of this is hat and how much is hair https://pin.it/6rOJy0p6x

Pillbox https://pin.it/6SLHeAvOG

This thing https://pin.it/6xshPh0vo

Basically, anything you can stick on the back or top of your head and cover in flowers, ribbons, feathers, frills, whole birds ...