Riding Dresses and Costumes
The following are examples of some of my designs from this era.
Please Note: Riding Dresses are generally Not Inexpensive-
They require a large amount of fabric for the skirt, a high quality fabric so they lay correctly,
and a good deal of tailoring- any hand applied decoration will increase this price as well.
so the style may look deceptively simple - they are as costly as a ballgown.

Riding Habit 1860's-early 1870's Riding sidesaddle is not really as hard as it looks, the key is - finding a good saddle- many antique ones are unsafe and many modern ones aren't built correctly. Fortunately my hubby just built me a new 1880's style western side saddle. Would you like to see it? He could build one for you too! This riding habit is cut in the earlier style in which the skirt is simply cut in a gored manner and made longer on the right side to allow for drape over the horn of the saddle. Heaven's sake! You wouldn't want to show your feet! The proper lady of the time would have had her habit reaching halfway between the horses belly and the ground at this time- however since the mare is a Belgian cross the fabric expense ruled out me being that proper. (Can you imagine!) The skirt is made of fulled Pendleton wool flannel, and the bodice is fully boned and made of velvet. A habit shirt(chemisette) and cotton lace jabot, finish this look.

Riding Habit 1873   I call this my "Park Habit" because of the unusual colors I chose. This is actually my wedding dress, and was made after an 1873 Harper's Bazar Plate. A serious rider would not have chosen these colors, but a lady prior to the late 1870's might have used something similar to go for a leisurely ride in the park.

1880's Riding Habit for the Wild West  This particular riding habit was intended to be a copy of one of Annie Oakley's riding habits. Most people do not realize that she was a firm believer that ladies should ride "aside", and she performed her mounted trick shooting in this manner. It is made of wool crepe, totally lined with glazed linen, and decorated with red wool braid, chamois fringe, and applied floral embroidery.

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