While I'm a little leery about looking too goth in public, one species of clothing I'm interested in would be those common around the early 19th century.

If you saw the movie 'Bright Star' [my favourite movie of last year, about John Keats], you'll know exacly what I mean.

Apart from having such things made by a tailor, can they actually be PURCHASED anywhere?

Also, the flowing ties of that era, commonly seen in portraits of Byron, Shelley, Coleridge, and Keats. Where can you get them, and HOW does one TIE them to duplicate the effect?

Well, with a quick little Google search... I hope you find what you're looking for!

http://www.davenportandco.com/mens1.htm

http://www.gloomth.com/m1.html

And well, as I said, anything else you may be able to find on various sites on Google. There was a site I used to go on, Arsenic Fashions, but although their women's stuff has Victorian selection, the men's does not.

There are many places to get authentic frock coats, waist coats, cravats, headgear, shoes, etc.. I am at work so I don't have more info, but a good place to look is with Civil War sutlers, under their civilian clothing items.

Kambriel also sells some good designs (waistcoats/vests among them).

Morning coats tend to be a bit pricier than frock coats, usually around $300 while you can get a good frock for $150. Here are some sutlers for morning coats.

http://www.19th-century-us-history.com/ ... ng_f.shtml

http://www.frazerbrothers.com/item_dire ... othing.htm


I tend to buy Victorian clothing from reenacting sutlers rather than Goth vendors, because they are usually concerned with authenticity, and they are made to be worn as everyday clothing and not costume. Even civilians give their clothes a hard wear during the season. For example, I have a civil war era repro frock coat that I've work for about six years in the rain and dust. But I also have a frock-looking coat I bought at Resurrection Records in Camden Town for more money, and while it looks great on the dance floor I'm scared to wear it if it even looks like rain.
Ties are pretty easy (and cheap) to get from CW sutlers, and usually they include illustrated instructions. It does take practice!

Thanks lostindreaming - I looked at the first site and I see they have some nice shoes as well! I've been on the lookout for various lace-up or button or buckle shoes.

That's true for girl's clothing as well in my experience, I have had decent luck with victorian walking skirts, parasols, and jackets from various places catering to reenactors. But the era that they focus on becomes pretty important for girl's clothing (I don't know if this is also true for guy's clothing).

It seems, and maybe this is just my own bias showing to a point, that when people think of Victorian women's fashion, often what they're really thinking about is the natural form and late bustle periods of Victorian fashion. To use an example, the next time you watch Bram Stroker's Dracula (the 1992 movie) you'll see the movie plainly state that its set in the late 1890s, but almost all the women's outfits worn by main characters in the movie are actually from the late bustle period. No lady in 1897 would have been wearing the huge bustle outfits shown in the movie. By 1892 the bustle was practically extinct in daily Victorian-wear, and the green day-suit shown the movie was lacking the cartoonishly huge balloon/puff sleeves that defined the gay 90s. This is just an example mind you, but it seems to be like that in general with movies set in the era [but outside the late 70s-80s]. So if the natural form and bustle eras are what someone is thinking of when they go clothes shopping, they're going to be disappointed with a lot of the clothing sold by stores that focus on the CW-era. The vendors that focus on "old west" clothing tend to be better at covering the basics from the later-victorian fashion eras but tend not to offer a lot of elaborate pieces which leaves the "gothic" vendors for people unable to sew.

Stuff marketed to the gothic-lolita crowd OTOH usually is far more elaborate but tends to be far more "neo-Victorian" than Victorian if that makes sense, and it goes without saying that a lot of the places making clothes catering to that style tend to make stuff for a fairly narrow range of body types. I find a lot of the stuff I've bought from "gothic lolita" vendors I've had to make alterations to, to tame the pieces into something more-realistic and I have had to shy away from many the tops those places sell on account of being tall.

Anyway for a waist coat, if you're looking for something durable I would start with places focusing on old-west clothing. If you're looking for something less durable & cheaper I'd say to try some of the gothic lolita vendors.

Thanks for the help, guys!

These sites look very promising.

There's also:

Gentleman's Emporium: http://www.gentlemansemporium.com

River Junction: http://www.riverjunction.com

Uniformal Wearhouse: http://www.uniformalwearhouse.com
(not many coats, but hats, vests & ties galore)

Wild West Mercantile: http://www.wwmerc.com

or you might luck out at Victorian Trading Co.:
http://www.victoriantradingco.com

Hope those help.