#tailcoat

Tailcoat

While the phantom’s tailcoat is made of silk, most tailcoats at the time were made of wool and lined inside with silk, with the lapels also partially or fully faced in silk. The lapel facings on the phantom’s tailcoat do not go all the way to the edge, which was a common style for the time, but less popular today.

The first tailcoat I found was at a costume store while I was in Europe. It was pretty cheap polyester and waaaaay too large for me (I did not know how to size tailcoats at this point). The second one I found was also polyester, fairly recent. I found it in a local vintage shop that had a bunch of surplus rental tailcoats on sale. I was really excited because it had partially faced lapels. This is when I started learning more about tailcoats and how lapels work.

Today, there are essentially three main styles of lapel for tailcoats and suits in general: peaked, shawl, and notched. Peaked lapels are generally considered to be the fanciest, with notched lapels being more casual. Shawl lapels were also a trend in the late 19th century but went out of style fairly quickly. They’re still used in suits today though sometimes (and remained popular for waistcoats).

The first tailcoat I got had a shawl lapel, and the second was a notched lapel. The phantom’s suit is…weird. Some phantoms have more obviously peaked lapels, while some have more of a notched appearance. From what I've read, it’s because the modern styles were still evolving in the late 19th century, so there was some variation in how the notched and peaked lapels looked.

The velvet lined collar is also a feature that was more common in older styles and became far less common towards the end of the 19th century. After I learned all this about lapels I started to notice the differences everywhere, so I apologize if you now have random lapel opinions 😂

Fresh off my lapel research, I set out to find a more historically accurate tailcoat that wasn’t made of polyester. Thankfully, there are plenty of listings on Etsy and eBay. Finding a tailcoat with partially faced lapels was harder. These pop up every once and a while, but are less common, especially if you’re looking for a specific size.

Finally, I found one on eBay. It came all the way from Australia and had a tag in the pocket that informed me that it was made in Providence, Rhode Island by a Mr John Stahl in 1903. I can’t quite make out the name of who it was made for though so if you can read it I’d love to know. I’ve tried to find an A. S. Brown, but I’m not sure that’s correct.

This tailcoat is made out of wool with partially faced silk lapels. It was really amazing to hold this tailcoat because it’s insanely sturdy and well put together. It’s heavy, and the seams are so intentional and careful. It really blew my mind a bit to hold it and compare it to the modern tailcoat because it was just so solid and substantial.

One of the buttons fell off, so I replaced them with vintage glass buttons I found on Etsy that resembled the buttons on the phantom’s tailcoat. Tailcoats tended to have 2-3 buttons at the time. From what I’ve seen, most phantoms have 3 buttons while a few have 2.

This brings me to my favourite discovery so far: tailcoat pockets! So because putting things in your pockets was considered rude and unfashionable in the late 19th century, they came up with tailcoat pockets. There’s so much space back there, you can stash your wallet, phone, umbrella, extra makeup, sewing kit, snacks, etc. Just be careful when you sit down lol.

Another thing I learned is that not all tailcoats had shoulder padding at the time, like a lot of tailcoats and suit jackets today. Instead they had more of a sloped shoulder. The sort of “puffed” sleeves the phantom has is an older style as well, and I’ve seen it around in some Edwardian or older tailcoats on different site listings (but sadly haven’t been able to afford one of those myself). The one below on the right is from Victory Vintage.

Like a lot of the other pieces of the suit, the older tailcoats are not going to follow standard sizes because they were custom tailored to individuals. This means finding one that fits is a bit of trial and error. They’re typically sized by measuring across the widest part of your chest. Tailcoats are sized by the measurement of the widest part of your chest. You can usually go down a chest size (1-2 in or 4-6 cm) because this style of tailcoat is not designed to close.

It’s also a good idea to check the shoulder measurements and the sleeve measurements to make sure they fit. Sleeves that are too long can be taken in, but it depends on the kind of shoulders and cuffs a tailcoat has (you might have to move the buttons or remake the cuff). The tails are typically supposed to come down to the back of your knees, and more modern tailcoats will sometimes designate whether they are short (S), regular (R), or long (L) which tells you how long the tails are comparatively. Some listings for older tailcoats include this information as well.

You can find tailcoats of various quality in lots of places from costume stores to suit stores to historical recreation stores. Historical Emporium usually has some, but the styles vary and they can be pricey. Etsy and eBay pretty much always have tailcoat listings in a variety of prices. Victory Vintage also has a decent collection, but they also tend to be very pricey.

I recommend storing tailcoats hung up, and with a broad shoulder wood hanger, if possible. They’re really annoying to fold, and it can make the shoulders weird or even damage them. I got a couple wooden hangers off of Amazon for pretty cheap. My friend who worked in costuming recommended them to me because they will be less likely to damage the inside of the garment. She also recommended a garment bag to protect it from dust and even potentially moths. Keep an eye on the silk facings also, if there is friction against them, you can start to see shattering, especially if the tailcoat is older.

Tailcoats don’t sit against your skin, so they won’t need as much washing as other clothing. You can get a soft fabric brush for the wool. I use the same reusable lint roller brush on mine that I use for the trousers and the waistcoat. It gets rid of hair, dust, dirt, etc. I also try to air it out if I’ve been wearing it for a longer event, like a con. I have some eucalyptus fabric spray that I use to remove odours and deter moths when I store my cosplay suit (if you do this, make sure you get a natural spray that won’t leave residue).

Like the waistcoat, I don’t recommend washing a wool and silk tailcoat in water without doing some research first. I haven’t tried submerging my tailcoat. You can take them to dry cleaners, but I would also do research to make sure they have experience handling older garments. I don’t have experience with this, so I don’t really have any advice in this area aside from doing some research and talking to others who have done it.

If you want to read more about tailcoat history, you can do so here and here. Like with the other posts, be warned that the Gentleman’s Gazette articles can come off a bit judgy/elitist.