When I first started pursuing costuming in earnest, I could barely find any events for costumers in my area, at least, not if you didn’t want to be a re-enactor.

I gradually started discovering events, like this one in Troy, NY, for steampunk folks.

But I always seemed to find out about the events days after they happened, and I knew I’d never be ready in time for the couple of other costume/masquerade-type of events I discovered locally ahead of time.

Then, I found not one but TWO Victorian strolls near our house scheduled within a week of each other in December.

The ideas came fast and wild – I would do costumes for myself and the Chaplain and we would go. We would take the family, while only the two of us would be in costume. But that didn’t seem fair.

However, costuming a family of 8 (I’m guessing my firstborn isn’t interested) from scratch in a month’s time on a budget is INSANE.

…Isn’t it?

I decided to try.

Within an afternoon, I had a passable costume for two of my kids, the 6- and 8-year-olds, with a few alterations and repairs. I’m not going for strict historical accuracy; I would drive myself nuts. I was aiming for “Recognizably Early Victorian” because Queen Victoria lived for a LONG time and a lot of fashion happened on her watch.

I’m also interested in Late Victorian, but Early seemed the most fun and appropriate for these particular events, and the most doable to me. (Maybe next year we can do a Late Victorian theme? One thing at a time…)

I’ve been up to my neck in browser tabs since then.

There are top hats, cravats, big skirts, and bonnet trimmings to consider.

I’ve ordered a couple of hoop skirt petticoats and rustled up several more items from our closets.

In a rare moment, I actually bemoaned some of the items I’d gotten rid of when I konmari’d my house, because they would have been perfect for this endeavor, then miraculously found other items that would be perfect. (Because Jah, even for the little things.)

I may do a little thrifting, I’ve got a little (OK, a LOT of) sewing planned (fortunately my fabric stash is ripe for busting), and I’m forever grateful to all the people who give us hand-me-downs, because a lot of those items have come in handy.

I suspect it may be one of those things I can either do, or photograph, but I will endeavor to do both.

I’m hoping we can get warmed up at the first event, and maybe work out our kinks for the second. Also, maybe we will decide after the first one that late fall is too dang cold for a family costuming outing.

I’m pretty sure we’ll make a scene, but why have this many kids if you aren’t willing to do that once in a while?

If anyone has any tips, ideas, or hand-me-downs that could pass for Early Victorian garb (think A Christmas Carol), let me know.

The group selfie was taken while I was practicing historically appropriate hairstyles on Three. I’m wearing the new, more historically accurate glasses that I just got (These will work for costuming whereas my plastic frames would look weird). Circle frames probably would have taken me through more of history, but guys, I looked uncannily like Harry Potter in circle frames. So much so that I fear people would have stopped me on the street to brush my hair from my forehead to check for a scar. So I opted for oval frames instead.