Fortune & Felicity

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Costume

What to wear?

Fortune & Felicity is about diving into the world of Austen and getting great experiences immersing into the world of her books and stories. We want you to be able to feel and look like Jane Austen characters without needing to put a lot of effort into it (unless you want to), and we also want you feel great and handsome in your clothes. It is not important to us the exact year of the game and therefore also not important that you wear historically correct clothes, but we want you to wear costumes that fit the aesthetics of Austen and the larp. To help you do this, we have developed a few easy guidelines below to help you look instant-Austen, but first a bit about the larp’s structure and its impact on clothes.

Day and evening clothes

Each chapter of the larp will take place during a day and an evening, and there will be time to change for evening clothes before the ball each night. This is also a chance to return to your rooms and play a little with your closest family. We encourage you to change into a new fancier set of clothes for the evening. It is also perfectly fine to only modify your day clothes by, for example, changing into a new waistcoat and cravat (gentlemen) or adding new accessories, such as jewelry, a shawl, etc. (ladies). Do whatever it takes to make yourself nicer, more elegant and ready for an evening on the town.

Don’t be afraid to reuse

Between the three chapters a few month passes. It is therefore no problem for your character to wear the same outfit every day. Hence you only need to have one set of day and evening clothes.

Requirements and suggestions

As you will see below, we have written some requirements and some suggestions for the gentleman’s and lady’s wardrobe. We will urge you to follow the requirements as far as possible, and to contact us if you want to deviate from it, so we can discuss if your thoughts would fit the characters and setting before you spend a lot of energy on making them. The suggestions are ideas that might make the costume creation easier for you.

The gentleman

Perhaps all you guys are worried about how stylish men always look in the Austen movie adaptations, but don’t worry. We will have you looking equally handsome with a few easy steps. Really it’s all about waistcoats, cravats and long coats that go down over the thighs, which is the style we are going for. Luckily, this also means you can use almost any period between 1790-1910 for inspiration.

Requirements for gentlemen

Coat that goes down over the thighs with a long back down to around the knees. This can be a regency tailcoat, frock coat, morning coat or a regular tailcoat. A modern dress or dinner jacket is too short and gives a too modern and less handsome feel, so we ask you to avoid that.
Waistcoat is a must for any gentleman. It will make you look dressed, handsome and nice.
White shirt.
Trousers without press fold along the legs. Preferably, these have a rather tight fit.
Cravat around the neck. This can be a regency cravat, a more modern ascot or a scarf tied in some fashion. A bowtie or regular tie gives a modern feel, so we don’t want you to use that.
Some form of leather shoes such as riding boots, Regency “dancing” shoes or plain Oxfords.

Gentlemens suggestions and tricks

Knee length trousers looks terrific and should be worn with long white socks or riding boots. Trick: The trousers can be cut of dress trousers with a ribbon and a button at the knee.
Trousers that open with buttons on either side of the pelvis looks very Regency.
Most available knee high socks/stockings are too short for breeches and it makes your knee/skin show. Use thick (cotton) pantyhose instead.
Go for light and colorful before dark and gloomy. This is your time to shine as a dashing gentleman.
Keep the waistcoat short if the trousers are high enough. Trick: You can fold the bottom part of a more modern waistcoat to make it look just right.
A shirt with a high and raised collar is easier to tie a cravat around and looks awesome.
Whiskers are the hottest face hair a gentleman can groom.
Wear your hair short and curly. Comb it forward for extra effect on the ladies. Long hair goes into a ponytail with a nice ribbon.
Tall hats in different colors looks great outdoors. We will try to find a way to buy these in bulk to make them available and affordable to all players who want one.
A cane, leather gloves and a pocket watch in your waistcoat pocket complete the ensemble.

Inspiration for the gentlemen

We have made a few different pinterest boards to help you with inspiration on how to improve your gentleman's outfit further. These are made for inspiration. his is not what you have to achieve but something to be inspired by and strive for.

The Gentleman: http://pin.it/BlvBquI

The Officer: http://pin.it/_WNWAts

The Clergyman: http://pin.it/mlnYnPj

The Gentlemans hair: http://pin.it/VjcT0zS

The lady

The ladies have a more specific time-period for Austen-feel; we want a 1790 – 1820 England look, with high waists under the bosom and lightweight fabric in light colors such as white and pastel. The fashion was inspired by the Classical Greek era and women should look like flowy delicate nymphs.

Requirements for ladies

Two outfits - one for day wear and one for evening wear. We encourage you to bring two sets of dresses, but you could also use the same dress and fan it up with nice accessories such as jewelry, gloves, shawls, etc.
Dresses should have a high waist and a long skirt. (The skirt should reach the floor, a guideline here is max 5 cm from the floor). Use dresses with sleeves, and do not use strapless dresses since they show too much skin and give it a too modern feel.
Day dress can have long, short or three-quarter long sleeves.
Evening dress is more elegant, has preferably short sleeves and is worn with long gloves, e.g. common satin opera gloves or long skin gloves, preferably white. These will make you look elegant and gloves will add an extra tension when touching the men's hands when dancing.
Discrete shoes like ballerina shoes or maybe a pair of light neutral walking boots.
Wear your hair tied up.
Avoid crushed velvet, glossy nylon silk or short dresses.

The ladies suggestions and tricks

Accessories that are nice to have: a fan, a reticule (a small bag), a parasol, a large shawl, (and a rich husband).
Silk ribbons are nice to put in your hair or around a letter from your lover. A suggestion is to bring a few for multiple uses and Austen feel.
For day dresses, we suggest lightweight fabrics such as cotton, muslin, organdy, voile, linen, lawn or lightweight wool. For the Austen feeling, we suggest light colors and maybe a flowered pattern.
Suggestions for fabrics for the more elegant evening dress are silk, silk taffeta, silk or cotton lawn/organdy/voile etc.
A shawl, a coat (pelisse/redingote), a Spencer jacket or a mantel is good against cold winds.
Long skin gloves look terrific for evening wear and covering your hands can make dancing and touching even more exciting.
A bonnet with feathers, ribbons and/or fabric flowers is great for the lady look.
Bring a white night gown to wear to bed. (In Sweden you can easy find a "Lucia-nattlinne" that works excellent.)

Inspiration for the ladies

We have made a few different pinterest boards to help you with inspiration on how to improve your lady’s outfit further. These are made for inspiration. These are not what you have to achieve but something to be inspired by and strive for.

Ladies - day dress http://pin.it/kwaIEvB

Ladies - fabrics day dress http://pin.it/BsUllN7
Ladies - evening dress http://pin.it/qYEThPw
Ladies - fabrics evening dress http://pin.it/4m-BSez
Ladies - hats and hair http://pin.it/7HLuFEL
Ladies - underwear and accessories http://pin.it/4v5Aa3w