18th Century Linen Riding Habit

Last year I decided I wanted a riding habit for UTR. However, even though I had worn wool dresses to UTR in 2009, the idea of a wool habit in Virginia in June was rather unappealing, so I thought of linen. I had thought that the one pictured in Fashion in Detail from the 17th and 18th Centuries was linen, but my memory was wrong. This led me to look online, where I found this description of a linen habit on the 18th Century Woman Yahoogroup. I also found this fustian habit in the V&A (sadly, with no pictures!). These two habits made me feel confident making one in linen. Fashion did have to be altered for warm climates!

I took many construction pictures along the way, but for now, I'm just sharing pictures of the finished project!















A few details--The natural linen for the habit, white linen lining, white for the shirt, and button molds are from Burnley and Trowbridge. The linen buckram interfacing is from William Booth Draper, as are the cuff buttons that you can't see. The blue silk is from Pure Silks. I'm wearing my Robert Land Regency boots that I bought from Spencer's Mercantile.