A Taste of Tailoring

Victorian fashion

Spring Heeled Jack was first sighted in 1837. He was spotted over the whole of Great Britain but mainly in suburban areas. Spring Heeled Jack was last sighted n 1904. I have this idea of Jack being portrayed as an English gentleman.

Almost all trouser wear for men consisted of a rather baggy bum area to allow for an easy transition from sitting to standing and vice versa.

As you can see high waisted trousers were all the rage in the 18th century as they wold accentuate the slight curves in a mans body and make them more prominent similarly to the high waisted dresses the women would wear.

Waist coats were the essential garment for every man and in some cases the chests were padded out to give a more dramatic appearance and add to the curves of  the outfit.

A couple of examples of breeches, both featuring a great amount of buttons and complex flaps.

I considered a possible Regal Military look for Spring Heeled Jack but I don't think he would be able to come across one or make one so I think I'm turning towards more of an everyday gentleman's/dandy suit. 

I'm having to consider the functionality of my costume and if the character could function easily in the outfit I've made. In this case I don't think he would be able to jump easily with this large frock coat and seeing as Jack is said to have been able to jump over 8ft I think he is in need of something like a tailcoat with so he has all of the front space to leap over walls.

This is more suited to Spring Heeled Jack as the trousers are baggy enough for easy knee bending and the tailcoat doesn't obstruct any leg movement what so ever. I also like the layered look of seeing the waistcoat coat and cravat poking out of the tailcoat.

Nearly all accounts of Spring Heeled Jack sightings describe him wearing some kind of a cape or cloak to hide his identity before he attacked. I found this image of what appears to be a cloak that is also a coat which is an interesting design but I feel like it's too likely to get in the way of any kind of athletic activity.

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This is a good example of what I have in mind in terms of style.

This is what the shirt is going to look like, the classic one size fits all that the Victorians kept for years and constantly repaired well into the 19th century. Made out of linen.

Some images of actual cloaks I found and the one on the right looks to be a large piece of fabric wrapped around the body. The cloak on the left is also a large piece of material but it has been gathered into the neck and finished with a collar and neck fastening.