Essential Links

This list is comprised of my essential links — sites that I have bookmarked, which I come back to over and over. It is by no means comprehensive, but I believe it represents the best of what’s out there. It is heavily weighted towards female costume — sorry guys!

REFERENCE

General/Cross-Era:

• Bibliographica Textilia Historiae: searchable database of published research on the history of textiles.
• British Museum collections search
• Costume College: “…educational classes and programs regarding all aspects of costuming; from hands on workshops and demonstrations on costume-related projects, to lectures regarding the history of clothing and other costume subjects, as well as tours of local costume-related businesses and areas in Los Angeles.” Extremely fun and worthwhile — especially fun are the half- or full-day hands-on classes, where you bring in your sewing machine and make (for example) an 18th century corset with a teacher who knows what s/he is talking about!
• Costumer’s Manifesto: a very confusing site, but there’s good information here if you can find it.
• La Couturière Parisienne: a good resource for all periods, but especially for the 18th century. This site includes patterns, sewing instructions, paintings, fashion plates, and a wealth of other information.
• Fashion Era: huge overview site that examines fashion, both aesthetics and in social context.
• Gallica: Digital library of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.
• Google Books
• Los Angeles County Museum of Art collection database.
• Metropolitan Museum of Art collection database.
• Museum of London prints
• Powerhouse Museum Electronic Swatchbook:  high res, zoomable images from historical fabric swatchbooks, 1830s-1920s.
• Victoria & Albert Museum fashion department: research articles, online exhibits, bibliographies, and more.
• Victoria & Albert Museum collection database.
• Your Wardrobe Unlock’d: online magazine for historical costumers; I’m a contributor.

Organizations:

• Costume Society of America: for academics, museum professionals, students, and reenactors.  Includes regional sub-groups. Publishes the journal Dress and a monthly electronic newsletter. Organizes national symposia and study tours. Site includes calendars of exhibits and a business directory.
• Costume Society of Great Britain: for academics, museum professionals, and students. Publishes the journal Costume and a biannual newsletter. Organizes symposia.
• Early Modern Dress & Textiles Research Network: Based in the UK, tons of useful resources.
• Fashioning the Early Modern: European-based research project, tons of useful resources.
• Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild: for recreational, amateur, and professional costumers.  A must, even if you live 500,000 miles away from the Bay Area. Links to suppliers, articles and instructions, symposiums and conferences, and — most importantly — the Great Pattern Review, which you MUST check out before you buy any costume patterns.
• International Costumer’s Guild: Parent organization for a number of regional sub-groups. If you’re interested in joining (or starting) a regional group, check here!
• Northern Society of Costume & Textiles: Based in Northern England, and encourages the study of costume and textiles. Produced (and sells on their website) four scaled patterns of some interesting garments.

Art:

• ArtCyclopedia:  Links to online images.  Search by artist, title, or museum, or browse by medium, movement, or subject.
• BildIndex: huge art database, all in German.
• Casey Fashion Plates, Los Angeles Public Library
• Claremont Colleges Libraries Fashion Plate Collection: mostly Victorian.
• Costume Institute Fashion Plates, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
• Joconde Database: Art from French museums.
• La Couturière Parisienne Image Database:  Collection of images:  paintings, drawings, and photographs all related to costume.  Browseable by date, country/region, and gender.
• Fashion Plate Collection, University of Washington (1806-1915).
• Fashion Plates Digital Collection, Iowa State University Library.
• Musee McCord Keys to History: The Notman Photographic Archives has over 450,000 photographs from 1860-. Amazing resource.
• New York Public Library Digital Gallery : Images from books, newspapers, magazines; photographs, fashion plates, prints, and postcards. Most images are pre-1923.
• Photographs from the Lafayette Studio:  Hundreds of vintage photos from the late 19th – early 20th centuries, hosted by the Victoria & Albert museum.  Photos range from royalty to actors to military.
• Web Gallery of Art:  Collection of images.  European painting and sculpture, 1150-1850  Browseable by period or format, or searchable by artist, title, etc.
• Wikimedia Commons: Collection of images.

Film costumes:

• Costume Captures: detailed images of costumes from numerous period movies.
• Costumers Guide to Movie Costumes: Detailed info on movie costumes; mostly historical movies, but also some fantasy.
• Frock Flicks: podcast and blog about historical costume in the movies (and TV) — this is my project with a few friends!

Medieval:

• Archaeological Sewing: stitches/seams/etc. found on extant garments.
• Costly Thy Habit: Excellent research & construction advice on 14th-15th century women’s costume.
• Extant Clothing: Directory of extant medieval & renaissance clothing.
• Illustrated Manuscripts by Century: Digitized on Wikimedia Commons.
• La Cotte Simple: Another excellent research/construction site on 14th-15h century women’s costume.
• Medieval & Renaissance Material Culture:  Exhaustive directory of links on all sorts of fiddly bits, many related to costume.
• The Medieval Tailor: Tons of useful research and how-to advice on 14th c. women’s dress.
• Some Clothing of the Middle Ages: historical clothing from archaeological finds.

16th century:

• Anea Costumes: Great articles and image galleries on Italian costume.
• Archaeological Sewing: stitches/seams/etc. found on extant garments.
• Blackwork Embroidery Archive: Patterns inspired by 16th & 17th century designs.
• Elizabethan Costuming Page: THE page for this period. Includes instructions for making corsets and other underpinnings, cartridge pleating, research, and links to tons of other sites.
• Extant Clothing: Directory of extant medieval & renaissance clothing.
• Festive Attyre Research: Image galleries and articles, particularly on Italian costume.
• Mode Historique Research: online tutorials and articles.
• Queen Elizabeth’s Wardrobe Uploaded: the wardrobe warrants of Queen Elizabeth I
• The Realm of Venus: a wonderful resource on 16th c. Venetian women’s costume.
• The Renaissance Tailor: great information on 16th and 17th century clothing. Check out especially the Demos pages for some great construction tips!
• Tudor & Elizabethan Portraits: 16th century portraits; most from England, but other European countries are mixed in.
• Tudor England: Images: Extensive portraits of the Tudors and related persons.

17th century:

• Baroque Costumes [Kipar.org]:  A great overview of the period.  Don’t miss also her period galleries and annotated bibliography.
• Caroline Vincent’s Goodwife Pages for 17th Century Re-enactors: lots of costuming advice, including techniques, stays, straw hats, and working class costume.
• The Embroider’s Story:  Recreating a 17th century jacket. Originally a Plimoth Plantation project.
• Mara Riley’s Costume Page: lots of information on 17th and 18th century dress, including both background research plus patterns and instructions.
• The Renaissance Tailor: great information on 16th and 17th century clothing. Check out especially the Demos pages for some great construction tips!

18th century:

• 18th Century Clothing Notebook:  Detailed directory of links to all sorts of fiddly topics related to 18th century clothing.
• 18th Century Stays: Detailed research presented as a blog.
• 18th Century New England Life: Lots of resources, including specifics on men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing.
• 18th Century Wigs: check out my book on 18th century wigs and hairstyling, “18th Century Hair & Wig Styling: History & Step-by-Step Techniques”
• Chateau de Versailles Centre de Recherche image database
• Galerie des Modes et Costumes Francais at the Boston MFA: The Galerie des Modes was an important early fashion magazine from 1778-87. The Boston MFA has a great collection of plates from this magazine. Search for “Gallerie des Modes” (note the two Ls in “Gallerie”!) in the Keyword box, check off Image.
• Glossary of 18th Century Costume Terminology
• Journal des Luxus und der Moden: German fashion magazine from 1786-1827. Tons of high res fashion plates!
• Ladies Magazine or Entertaining Companion for the Fair Sex (1770-1810): Leading 18th century British women’s magazine.
• Mara Riley’s Costume Page: lots of information on 17th and 18th century dress, including both background research plus patterns and instructions.

Regency:

• Jessamyn’s Regency Costume Companion: useful sections include discussion and images of all of the major items of Regency dress, pattern reviews, suppliers, etc.
• Journal des Luxus und der Moden: German fashion magazine from 1786-1827. Tons of high res fashion plates!
• La Belle Assemblee (1800s-40s): English fashion magazine. For technical reasons, this link will include some titles that are not issues of this magazine.
• Ladies Magazine or Entertaining Companion for the Fair Sex (1770-1810): Leading 18th century British women’s magazine.
• Lady’s Monthly Museum (1800s-20s): English women’s magazine.
• Lewis Walpole Digital Library: 18th century caricatures.
• Regency collections: including fashion plates, purses, buckles, etc. [Candice Hern].

Victorian:

• L’Art et la Mode (1883-1965): French fashion magazine.
• Corset Patents:  1840s-1920s.
• Costume of the California Gold Rush [Margo Anderson].
• Dargate Book: Original fabric swatches c. 1830.
• Dressed for the War: Women’s Day Wear 1861-1865.
• Dressmaking Research: patterns scanned from 19th century magazines.
• Festive Attyre Research: Archive of Peterson’s magazines, 1870s-80s.
• Godey’s Lady’s Book: selected material from 1855-58.
• Harper’s Bazar: the premier issue (Nov. 2, 1867).
• Harper’s Bazar (1867-1900): American fashion & high society magazine.
• History of 1870’s Bustles [The State Historical Society of Wisconsin].
• History of Victorian Clothing [Truly Victorian patterns].
• La Belle Assemblee (1800s-40s): English fashion magazine. For technical reasons, this link will include some titles that are not issues of this magazine.
• Ladies Companion (1830s-50s): English women’s magazine. For technical reasons, this link will include some titles that are not issues of this magazine.
• The Ladies Treasury of Costume and Fashion: articles, patterns, and more resources on Victorian and Edwardian costuming.
• Modetijdschrift De Gracieuse: Scans of what appears to be every page of every issue of the Gracieuse fashion magazine from 1862-1936.
• Notes on Late 1850’s Fashions [The State Historical Society of Wisconsin].
• Notes on Early 1870’s Fashions [The State Historical Society of Wisconsin].
• Notes on Late 1880’s Fashions [The State Historical Society of Wisconsin].
• Notes on Late 1890’s Fashions [The State Historical Society of Wisconsin].
• Period Fashions Reference Library [Vintage Victorian]: 1850s-60s evening dress, 1890s evening dress and accessories, turn of the century evening dress.
• Peterson’s Magazine Archive [Festive Attyre]: fashion plates, currently from the 1870s-80s with plans to add more.
• Peterson’s Magazine (1850s-80s): American fashion magazine.
• Timeline of costume history, referenced by photos and descriptions of vintage garments. Covers 1839-1910s. [Corsets & Crinolines]
• Victorian & Edwardian Photographs

20th century:

• 20-to-40 Style Syndicate:  their fashion pages have lots of great info on the 1920s, 30s, and 40s, including some period patterns, overviews of different items of clothing, and a really cool makeup guide.
• Antique Corset Gallery: Extant corsets, 18th c. – 1920s.
• L’Art et la Mode (1883-1965): French fashion magazine.
• Blitzkreig Baby: Tons of detailed info on female WWII uniforms.
• The Blue Gardenia: Vintage patterns for sale (1920s-1960s) — BUT while they’re really nice patterns, they’re pretty expensive so I use this site as an image reference.
• Christine’s Vintage Fashion Page: period illustrations and ads from the 1920s – 1970s.
• Corset Patents:  1840s-1920s.
• How to Fingerwave (aka marcel wave): detailed instructions from a 1960s cosmetology textbook; this style was immensely popular from the 1910s-1930s.
• L’Officiel de Mode: scans of every page of every issue of this leading French fashion magazine, 1920-current.
• Modetijdschrift De Gracieuse: Scans of what appears to be every page of every issue of the Gracieuse fashion magazine from 1862-1936.
• Period Fashions Reference Library [Vintage Victorian]: 1910s undergarments and evening dress.
• reVamp: creates vintage-inspired clothing (1920’s – 1950’s) for purchase. Their site also includes information on period hairstyles, makeup, and clothing etiquette.
• Sewing Dresses from the Teens Era [Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild].
• SewRetro: a mailing list for anyone interested in the creation and repair of vintage clothing, especially for the period 1930-1960.
• Victorian & Edwardian Photographs
• Vintage Fashion Guild: Resources aimed at those who research, sell, and buy vintage fashion.

PATTERNS

Pattern Reviews:

• Great Pattern Review: from the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild. Check it before you buy any costume patterns — there are some really terrible ones out there! And please, contribute to it – you don’t need to be a member to do so!

Pattern Suppliers:

• AlterYears: carries most of the historic costume pattern companies. Primarily mail order — get a copy of their print catalog.
• Lost Coast Historic Patterns: they don’t always carry every pattern, but they are extremely reliable.  I always get my order in lightening fast time!

Pattern Companies:

• Decades of Style: 1910s-1950s. Quality reproductions of vintage patterns, with an excellent size range.
• Folkwear: 18th century – 1950’s. Not always the most historically accurate of pattern companies, but their patterns always WORK and have clear instructions, and that is quite an improvement over some of the costume patterns available!
• Recollections of J.P. Ryan: 18th century. They have some of the better 18th c. patterns out there on the market.
• Kannik’s Korner: 18th century. I have heard that their patterns are more accurate than most that are out there. Mostly underpinnings/accesories.
• Laughing Moon Mercantile: mid-19th century. I’ve only used one of their patterns, but it was excellent. I’ve heard great reviews of their patterns.
• Past Patterns: 1830’s – 1940’s. One of the best pattern companies on the market for reliability and range.
• Patterns of History: 1835-1899. Also very highly regarded pattern company. I made up their 1857 Promenade Dress pattern and it went together like a dream.
• Truly Victorian: mostly late Victorian (1870-1895ish) but also a few mid-Victorian patterns. I can’t recommend this company highly enough! I love their skirt patterns especially.

FABRIC

For a comprehensive directory of online fabric stores, check out Fabric Whore.

• B. Black & Sons:  high quality wool.
• Burnley & Trowbridge:  Aimed at 18th c. costumers, carries less usual fabrics.  GREAT customer service!
• Design Diva Fabrics: Discounted prices on luxury fabrics – which means expensive!
• Equilter.com:  A huge range of cotton prints.
• Fabric.com: check this store often for great deals, as you never know what’s going to pop up. They’ve gotten great reviews on the h-costume mailing list for having good prices and good service.
• Fabric Guru: Discounted prices on luxury fabrics – which means expensive!
• Farmhouse Fabrics:  A great source for “heirloom” fabrics like batiste, voile, etc.
• Fashion Fabrics Club. I used to really like them, but I’ve heard enough people have problems that I’m a little leery.  Often they sell “100% wool” that’s not 100%, or “silk taffeta” that’s more like china silk.  So buyer beware!
• Hancock’s of Paducah: cotton prints for quilters. They carry some of the historic prints.
• Reproduction Fabrics: a wide range of historic cotton prints, 1775-1950.
• Renaissance Fabrics: not always the largest inventory, but the quality is always very high.
• Thai Silks: now has online shopping! This company has a WIDE range of silks (the best I’ve ever found) at reasonable prices. My only complaint is that most of their fabrics are solids rather than prints, stripes, plaids, etc.
• Trim Fabrics: not just trim, actually! Check out their fabric lots for great deals.

Trim

• Cheeptrim.com: high minimum $$ order amount.
• Lace Heaven: cheap lace.
• M&J Trimming: a wonderful selection of all sorts of trims. I have ordered from them numerous times and always found their products to be of very high quality, although I have had problems with timely shipping.
• Sew-Biz Fabrics: cheap trims.

Notions & Supplies

• AlterYears: carries boning and other costume and sewing supplies.
• Clotilde: Sewing supplies.
• Farthingale’s Canada: Costuming and corsety supplies.
• Hedgehog Handworks: Needlework and costuming supplies.
• Vogue Fabrics:  My current favorite source for corsetry supplies.  Good prices, quick shipping.

TIPS & TRICKS

• Enlarging historical patterns from La Couturiere Parisienne.
• Sewing tips and instructions from HGTV.

COSTUMERS’ SITES & BLOGS

• At the Sign of the Golden Scissors: fabulous 18th century creations and excellent research.
• Before the Automobile: stunning 18th c. sewing.
• Bjarne Drews:  Embroidery to DIE FOR.
• Books ‘n’ Threads :  Teresa’s costumes are always gorgeous.
• Chenilles et Papillons: What I want to be when I grow up.
• Costume, Cats and the 18th Century: 18th century focus.
• Costume Hysterique:  great projects and interesting research, mostly in the 18th c. and Directoire periods.
• Costumer’s Closet: beautiful costumes from all sorts of eras (mostly 18th-19th centuries), plus film-inspired costumes.
• Diary of a Mantua maker:  Focus on the 18th century.  Beautiful work and tons of historically accurate instructions.
• Does This Make Me Look Fat? Really amazing costumes by Alyxx.
• A Festive Attyre: Everything Jen makes looks like it just stepped out of a portrait. Really really amazing.
• Glittersweet:  Michaela de Bruce makes simply gorgeous costumes, plus she loves film costumes even more than me.
• Isis’ Wardrobe: 18th c. focus.
• Jenny La Fleur’s Costume Cabinet:  Everything Jenny makes is just beautiful, plus she’s as into 18th century as I am!
• Katherine’s Dress Site (aka koshka-the-cat):  Fabulous costumes and tastes similar to my own — plus her Koshka looks like my Sadie!
• Lynn McMasters:  Elizabethans that are just breathtaking, plus great hatmaking info.
• Madame Isis’ Toilette: research and experiments in 18th c. makeup.
• Melanie Schuessler: Her costumes just look so authentic, you’d think she just stepped out of a painting. I just love her 16th c. countrywoman costumes.
• Mode Historique:  Sarah loves Elizabethan and it shows — but we’ve managed to tempt her to dark 18th century/Victorian side. Everything she makes is just stunning.
• Reine des Centfeuilles: another for sale site, but so gorgeous that I want to weep.
• Rockin’ the Rococo: An MA project to reproduce a middle class Englishwoman’s wardrobe from 1750-70; includes tons of details on the reproductions, as well as the accompanying exhibition.
• Suzi Clarke, Costumier: outstandingly amazingly beautiful.
• Stitcher Baby: historical costumer and theater costumer.
• Au Temple des Modes: 18th c. focus.
• Temps d’Elegance: 18th c. focus.
• TrystanCraft: Not just a costumer, also the Gothic Martha Stewart. Creator of the Victorian sushi dress. ‘Nough said.
• Wearwhenwhy: beautiful costumes from a wide range of eras.

OTHER BLOGS OF INTEREST

• Livejournal:  This is where I do most of my online socializing/discussion with other costumers. You can find me here as demode.
• Elegant Musings: Vintage-inspired craftiness.
• The Duchess of Devonshire’s Gossip Guide & Marie Antoinett’es Gossip Guide: Tongue in cheek looks at the 18th century.
• FIDM Museum Blog: Showcases garments & accessories from their collections.
• New York Public Library Fashion blog
• Worn Through: For academics and scholars of dress. Discussions of fashion, jobs, conferences, research, etc.