Costume Update

I mentioned that I had decided to splurge on a Regency costume (picture below) for an upcoming event. I had the first measurements taken for that over the weekend. The coat is being custom-made, and so my costumer and I spent some time discussing historical patterns. We've found an appropriate coat, and she's off to get patterns and material.

As part of the costume, I need white pants. The closest-to-authentic pants would be white painter's pants, which have proven to be surprisingly hard to find in Chicago. The only places that stock them are Home Depot and the like, and right now they've just got shorts out. I also needed a tuxedo shirt, a black bow tie (cravat would be more accurate but a bow tie will work) and in theory a white vest. (The event is September in the Caribbean, so heat is an issue.) "Authentic" footwear would be boots, but I've decided to go with black dress shoes and call it a day.

I went oh-for-three on shirt, etc. at the mall, so I went to D & H Men's Warehouse (on a recommendation from a mall employee) and found not just the shirt and tie but white pants. It wasn't until I got home that I discovered the "40 inch waist" on the pants wasn't even close to as big as my waist or the waistband of my other 40 inch pants. I see a return in my future. I'm suffering for my art...

Reminder - this is the uniform, minus the hat: