WHAT KIND OF SUITS DO YOU WEAR, EXACTLY? Suits from the 19th century.
WHERE WOULD YOU ACQUIRE A SUIT LIKE THAT? Special 19th century stores, you have to go back in time.
DOES THAT MEAN THAT YOU OWN A TIME MACHINE? No, which makes them very hard to get. I have a rental. There's a place that rents near me, so I have to go to that. And it's really expensive. But, on the other hand, prices in the 19th century are very reasonable. You can get a whole suit for three bucks.
CAN YOU USE OUR MONEY OR DO YOU HAVE TO USE DOUBLOONS OR SOMETHING? Oh yeah, yeah you have to bring old money, you have to pay with old money.
I IMAGINE THE WHOLE PROCESS IS SORT OF A HASSLE. Honestly, yeah, it's really not worth doing. Unless you really, really need a 19th century suit, I wouldn't even recommend bothering, because it's such a pain in the neck. Look, by the time you get done with the time machine rental, exchanging for old money — because you have to go to rare coin stores — that's expensive. And then you have to . . . and there's no guarantee that where you land in the 19th century is going to be anywhere near a 19th century suit store.
I DIDN'T EVEN THINK ABOUT THAT. Yes, so now you're talking about livery rental, um, you know you might have to stay overnight in a tavern.
AND YOU MIGHT GET INTO A DUEL, IF YOU'RE AT THAT TAVERN AND YOU'RE DRINKING A LOT. . . . Well, the mores of the 19th century are much different than the mores today. So you can't just go around saying whatever you want to these people. It's highly different. So yes, you really have to watch your back. So I would say, unless you really, really need a 19th century suit, you know if you've got a standup performance or something, don't even bother, you know. It's more headache than it's worth,
BUT I WOULD HAZARD TO SAY THAT ANY WELL-HEELED MAN SHOULD OWN ONE. Oh no, look, at some point you're going to have to buy one, you know. so maybe you're thinking to yourself you should just do it now and get it over with. I'd say, do yourself a favor, If you're going to do this, get it one size too large, because you can always have it taken in, but it's very hard to have it taken OUT with a suit like that. You can't add fabric to it. Because then you have to go back and buy a bolt of 19th century fabric.
RIGHT, AND I ALSO THINK THAT THERE AREN'T MANY TAILORS IN OUR TIME WHO WOULD EVEN KNOW HOW TO GO ABOUT TAILORING A 19TH CENTURY SUIT. You'd be surprised, there are modern tailors who work wonders with 19th century suits. The skills are basically the same, it's just that some of the stitching is different. Most of the stitching these days is done by machine and not by hand. But I have a 19th century tailor that I go to.
