Arlo's Fashion FAQs
Historical dress and fashion has been one of my main hobbies for over 5 years now. I’ve really only gotten comfortable in my style over the past year or so. It's taken me a long time to learn how to sew, alter, and how to spot genuine vintage pieces in the wild. I have some questions I get a lot on tumblr and IRL + a few question from the asks I got that were so specific I felt they needed their own separate answers. Everything is below the cut! Also I have a fashion inspo blog @drcoffeebones
What inspires your style?
I'm just a vampire who's never moved on. Thanks to my obsession with Gothic horror I’ve become a Victorian era hobby historian (well I say ‘hobby’ but I am in the process of getting my MA). Other inspiration are the 1980’s new romantics and post punk goths (the other half of my wardrobe is goth twink). I also am a huge fan of classic Hollywood films and gay glam camp. It’s all vampire inspired at the end of the day.
Where do you find your clothing?
It's a combination of thrifting, vintage markets, and making my own things by hand. I don’t buy anything online because vintage resellers tend to jack up the prices and I am doing this on a shoestring budget. My closet is 50/50 homemade and bought. I’m a small man and have kind of odd proportions so I do alter almost everything I do buy to fit me better.
Do you have any non thrift shop suggestions?
Darcy Clothing is the best place to get 19th c fashion, however, I can only recommend this place if you are straight sized and have some cash (I personally don’t fit their clothing) Medieval Collectibles is a strange choice by they are what I’d call ‘beginner friendly’ and a fan favorite in my irl friend circle. The size range depends on independent brands... they also sell swords and armor if you need that American Duchess is THE place for historical shoes and I’ve only had a good time with them. They are expensive Bonus eyeglasses! Vintage Optical Shop – Eyeglass Warehouse
Where did you get that shirt?
I make most of my shirts by hand. Men's regency shirts are actually one of the easiest and best ways to learn how to sew your own wearable clothing. The pattern is super easy to be altered for different sized bodies and you don’t need a sewing machine to make it tbh. Bernadette Banner's regency shirt tutorial is fantastic Here's my own pattern formula, you don’t need anything fancy. Now go make yourself a shirt!
Good luck with my dyslexic shorthand lol
Wait what other things have you made then?
I've been doing fiber arts since I was 9 years old and have made costumes at varying levels of professional for over a decade so I’ve made a lot lol. Here are some of my fave more involved pieces I’ve made for different galleries over the years.
Where do I get fabric?
I get most of my stuff form shops irl but I also use these spots sometimes: wmboothdraper.com periodfabric.com renaissancefabrics.com linen - thelinenlab.com - graylinelinen.com - they got other stuff to wool - woolsome.shop silk - silkbaron.com swansonsfabrics.com - the best bang for your buck but also 'you get what you get' moodfabrics.com - has a little bit of what you might need / one stop shop wawak.com - zippers buttons you name it rosemille.com/collections/lace - where to find lace trims Bonous - studsandspikes.com - this is where to get spike hardware (one day I’ll post some of my leather fits)
Bonus Questions from my asks
Answering @briannyssey : There are 2 primary things I consider when thrifting. Age and Material. You want to try your best to find vintage and for everyday clothing I would prioritize things from 1980-2010 in terms of age. I can at a glance tell the age of most garments cuz I've been doing this for a while so I will give you the simple cheat code with is TAGS! Tags are you’re best friend and if you can familiarize yourself with what tags look like in different eras it will save you so much time.
Here is my vintage label resource – this site was recommended to me by a long time pro in the vintage and historical resale trade and it's fantastic!
The other thing on the tag you want to check no matter the era is what it's made of. I on principal avoid polyester like the plague that it is when it comes to everyday ware. Not all synthetics are doomed to fail – nylon and rayon are often solid. Spandex is case by case (I avoid stuff older than 25 years with it). I sometimes skip viscose, acetate, bamboo (yes bamboo is a synthetic like rayon), and acrylic but it really depends on the garment. Cotton, silk, linen, and wool (and it’s siblings like mohair and cashmere) are often more solid and last better. Cotton quality can be a bit iffy but a bad cotton dose me better than a good polyester.
The last thing I’ll say is that, no matter what, you need to wash your clothing according to the tag’s instructions + invest in a drying rack or line. These days clothing is GARBAGE, but the other huge reason a lot of people’s clothing falls apart is due to putting things in a modern heat dryer that SHOULD NEVER be in there. Also don’t wash your clothing on HOT unless you need to sanitize them. Heat breaks down the fibers faster than anything. A little patience will save you a lot of clothing, I promise you.
Answering @theghostofachilles : I am going to try to give you the best advice I can as a straight sized twink. Bad news is buying stuff from the store is not really an option for this style, esp if you're a unique size. Good news is I still have some advice.
I would really invest in getting some sewing and alteration skills under your belt. I would look into some tailoring tutorials for starts. If you are on the short side like me you can hem men’s pants. Proper length pants will give your legs a straighter cut. Additionally investing in pants compatible with button bracers (suspenders) will offer a flattering cut + will look more dandyish. A pro tip is that you can sew buttons onto ANY pants to make them compatible with button bracers.
If you cannot find poet shirts off the rack in 3xl I would try out the shirt tutorial I’ve included. It’s possible to complete with or without a sewing machine. Men’s vests are also a go to if you have a bigger chest, as they will box our your shape and are very adaptable in size (again I'm gonna point you to thrifting here if you can).
The other things to keep in mind is a lot of the fashion is accessorizing. Investing in some good neck ware is honestly a game changer that can take a boring normal button up shirt to fancy dandy. I personally prefer scarves and jabots (super beginner friendly tutorial) wish are a bit more vampire than dandy. Still fluff and ruffs also disguise a large chest.
Answering @northirish : Of all things this stumped me for a while because I kept going back and forth on what I’d actuality ware. I’m obnoxiously indecisive but also I often do have to dress to impress strangers so I have a few outfits like this sort of set.
I’m going to go with the outfit I tend to favor for the ballet which is as follows: Crisp white poet shirt, black low cut vest, black stockings, hounds tooth beeches, hounds tooth suite jacket, silk neck scarf in black. Outerwear would be my dress shoes, black cape (either full floor length cape or my faux fur caplet depending on weather), top hat, my golden brass handle walking cane, and I’d probably pair my bras jaw bone ear weights or my silver ram heads.
For the bonus question: This past week I found two of my top most sought items (the smoking robe, and not photoed yet, a pair of men’s leather pants that FIT ME!?). I think at this point my remaining white whale is a real serious fur coat that’s not insanely expensive. I’ve been looking for years now and still have yet to find one that is even my size and good quality fur. I’m talking like Edward Gory levels of drip fur coat.
