Phantom Cosplay: Waistcoat
This is the third post in my phantom cosplay series! Each post will explore a different part of the phantom’s suit, some historical fun facts that I learned while researching it, a few mishaps along the way, and tips about how to source pieces yourself. Hopefully, they will make things a bit easier for those of you looking to do your own cosplays.
I’m doing these in order of how I get dressed so I don’t forget anything 😂. First we did the dress shirt, then the trousers. Now we’re on to the waistcoat and (optional) watch chain!
Waistcoat
The Phantom’s waistcoat is black, usually fairly low cut, and has a shawl lapel (I didn’t know what any of this meant when I got started). The first waistcoat I got was a backless waistcoat with a fake front from a local vintage store (the kind that a lot of modern waiters have in movies and fancy restaurants).
I eventually learned that the lapels are in a shawl style which was very popular for waistcoats for over a century. Some phantoms have a more V shape while others have a more U shape, a design which was introduced in the 1880s and and done to show off more of the dress shirt.
One of the things that had me scratching my head is the black waistcoat instead of white. I’ve seen this question around on tumblr a bit too. At first, I figured the phantom was just that extra, breaking the rules and wearing a black waistcoat with a white bow tie. But nope! Turns out that was actually normal at the time, and it wasn’t until the turn of the century when they started relegating the black waistcoat to semi formal dress.
I also learned that the white waistcoat was considered less fashionable and also more formal. So far the sources I've read specifically reference this as a trend in the UK, so I'm not sure about whether or not that applied to France as well.
In the picture below, you can see men in white tie with white bow ties and black waistcoats, as well as men in black tie with black bow ties and black waistcoats.
I got my second waistcoat off of Etsy. It was made of wool and was a full backed waistcoat unlike the first. Most of the older waistcoats are wool, but there are some silk ones. Silk tends to shatter when it gets older though, so if you buy vintage silk, be careful. I’ve had to repair/reinforce some shattered silk on one of the waistcoats I got later (also from Etsy).
Waistcoats are usually sized by measuring around the largest part of your chest. Like trousers, waistcoats from this era tend to be custom tailored, so sizing isn’t standard. It’s usually better to go a few inches larger if needed, because most waistcoats have a buckle at the back which will allow you to cinch the waist narrower.
You may also want to measure the length of the front of the tailcoat, from the bottom of the U or V shape to the bottom of the waistcoat and to measure how long the entire front is to determine if it will line up with your tailcoat. When I got my second waistcoat, I didn’t check this and it was way too short for me (this tailcoat was also a bit small so I ended up reselling it along with the waistcoat).
Essentially what I learned was, with proper tailoring, you want the top button of the waistcoat to line up with the bottom of the lapels of the tailcoat, and you’d want the waistcoat and tailcoat to end at the same spot, which you can see demonstrated by the men in the images below, but this is not always the case for phantom costumes.
I apologize to you all because you’re not going to be able to unsee this now. I knew almost nothing about how tailcoat suits work until I was doing this cosplay, and now I can’t unsee all the mismatched waistcoat/tailcoat pairings 😂 (I assume this is probably due to a variety of factors including sharing costumes, reusing old costumes, and different tailors/tailoring practices depending on who is making the costumes).
(the one on the right is on a mannequin which might account for some of the mismatch)
The phantom’s waistcoat is single breasted (with one line of buttons). In the late 19th century lot of waistcoats had 3-4 buttonholes, but some had 6 or more even. From what I’ve seen, the phantom’s waistcoats have all sorts of variation when it comes to buttons and there isn’t really a standard number or shape of button.
One of the most fun discoveries I made in the course of this cosplay was something I learned several months later when I got my third waistcoat, the silk one. Detachable buttons! I had no idea this was a thing, and it’s been so hard to find anything discussing it in detail online. They work pretty similar to shirt studs, but they’re a bit larger. You can find them still in some of the sets I mentioned in the dress shirt post.
It's a bit hard to see, but there's a flap of material that covers up the pins on the inside.
Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find a place that makes replica waistcoats in the same style as the phantom's, but there may be some out there (please feel free to share if you know of any!). Despite this, there are almost always a few in this style up on Etsy. Victory Vintage also usually has some under their black tie dinner waistcoat category, but they’re quite pricey.
I managed to find this Brooks Brothers waistcoat (I believe it’s from roughly the 1930s or 40s) on eBay recently for less than $100 usd. I got it as a backup to replace the one that was shattering. You can also go with a backless waistcoat like my first one. They’re usually not too expensive, and you can find them pretty easily. They also tend to be adjustable to different sizes. I know they have them on Amazon and I’ve seen them in other places as well. You can also find them in vintage shops, like the one I found that was from a rental place originally.
For the waistcoat care, if you have a wool one you can brush it with a soft bristle wool brush/comb, like the trousers. I use a reusable lint roller sometimes, and otherwise haven’t had to wash mine. They aren’t against your skin, which means they are less likely to get skin oils on them, and on the other side, they’re covered by the tailcoat, so they are less likely to have spills or get other dirt on them.
Please do additional research before getting your waistcoat wet, especially if it’s made of silk. I know some dry cleaners specialize in this kind of thing, but I don’t have the experience to provide advice on that. There are lots of vintage and antique communities and message boards though where you can find advice for caring for old clothing such as how to deal with moths and other pests. I personally use eucalyptus to help keep things safe because it repels moths and has antibacterial properties and also I just like the smell. Cedar and lavender can help as well.
Pocket Watch Chain
Some phantoms have a waistcoat chain as well. In the late 19th century, the chain was sometimes used for a pocket watch and sometimes just used for decoration. There are lots of different styles and loops of chains, and usually they were gold or silver. The black from the phantom’s watch chain is because it’s beaded jet, which was commonly used in mourning jewelry.
For my watch chain, I just bought a black metal necklace at Claire’s and then attached it to the buttons on my waistcoat. The end of it attaches to nothing and just sits in my pocket. Recently, I got an antique chain made of jet from Etsy that is an actual watch chain, and I’m looking forward to using it the next time I do cosplay! The listing on Etsy had some historical information including the photo of the book I’ve pasted below so you can see some of the cool variations.
There are places that make replica historical watch chains, like Darcy Clothing or Historical Emporium, but they are in gold or silver and not black (the jet was usually reserved for mourning). You can find usually find watch chains made of jet (and other materials) listed on Etsy and eBay.
Thank you to operafantomet's blog for so many wonderful image resources, please go check it out if you want even more. There is so much there and also so much wonderful knowledge! I've spent so many hours just browsing.
You can also learn more about waistcoats and pocket watch chains on the Gentlemen’s Gazette website. There’s lots of really interesting history there! The disclaimer on my other post applies here too though, some of the articles have a really judgy tone that’s a bit elitist and off-putting, so be warned.
And that’s all for waistcoats! Next time we get to cover the tailcoat! As always, please feel free to ask questions or share your own tips or thoughts!
