"French" Style Casual Shirt 1850-1900
The first semi-fitted shirt with a tapered torso (clearly seen in the center picture at left) was first introduced about 1850 (from France, naturally) and slowly began to replace the traditional homemade square pattern style. These shirts were mass produced and sold off the shelf. This white shirt was for "casual wear," as is apparent by its lack of a pleated bosom. This so-called casual shirt was meant to be worn with a casual collar, a casual necktie, and a casual three-piece sack suit. It doesn't sound so casual today, but it was then. The lack of pleats or other fanciness should preclude this shirt from being worn with more formal coats, such as the dress coat , the frock coat, the morning coat, etc. It could probably be worn with the shooting coat, though. Have to check the etiquette books. Of course, in actual practice men of lower station, and especially Americans of any level outside the , often violated many of these finer points.

This was a very common every day shirt for half a century and, so far as we know, it's the only correct reproduction that has been made since these shirts faded away at the turn of the last century. Notice especially the doubling of the fabric across the upper back and shoulders, with a single layer at the bosom. This was the way almost all shirts were made back then. Today, we're the only guys that go to the bother and expense to do that, but you get total authenticity. Same with the correct full cut sleeves gathered at the wrist and closed with a single button at the top of the cuff. Just like they did it then; not in the middle of the cuff like today. Notice the hand bound buttonholes and the very small, hand-sewn, four-hole, pearloid buttons. They never used two-hole buttons on men's shirts in the Victorian era and we don't either. And of course, notice the correct long mid-thigh length of the shirt.

This shirt comes in two versions: collarless for the thrifty gent who wishes to avoid the expense of having to replace shirts due to collar wear alone (the first part of the shirt to wear out); and the collared version for the true gentleman of means for whom such trivialities are of no consequence.

Price: $90

Sizes: 16, 16-1/2, 17, 17-1/2, 18. White only.
Pay special attention to the following authentic details in the photos above:
Doubled shoulders, long length, full sleeve, top cuff closure, no pockets, small four-hole buttons, hand sewn buttonholes. These shirts reek of 19th century authenticity.

Above: Detail showing the period correct over fold of collared shirt as well as the non-collared version.
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"French" casual shirt 1860-1900