The Horsewoman: A Practical Guide to Side-Saddle Riding, 2nd. Ed. Alice M. Hayes

Fig. 55.—Apron skirt open for mounting.

      Any skirt which ensures safety in the saddle is preferable to the old-fashioned shape, with its dangerous bundle of cloth over the crutches, a fact which is so well understood by hunting women that none who hunt in Leicestershire, or I hope in any other place, appear in those early Victorian atrocities. Provision of this kind does not appear to be insisted on for the safety of young ladies; for I saw a girl dragged in Leicestershire, and Lord Lonsdale, who fortunately stopped her horse, sent her home, and told her not to hunt with his hounds until she had provided herself with a safety skirt. The young and inexperienced, who, with the fearlessness of ignorance, are prone to rush headlong into difficulties, ought surely to be safeguarded in every possible manner. Fig. 57 shows a safe and comfortable riding dress for a very young girl. For winter wear, the coat and leggings should be made of Melton; and the breeches of elastic cloth or knitted wool to match. It is well to have the coat buttoned over the right leg, so as to protect that limb from cold and wet. For summer use, a linen coat is worn. We may notice that the sweet little horsewoman has a good seat, and is capable of taking sole charge of her nice pony.

      The safest and most comfortable length for a riding skirt is when it just covers the rider’s left foot when she is seated in the saddle with her stirrup at its usual length. It is best for a lady to use her own saddle when having her habit fitted, as her stirrup will then be at the length she rides in, and the crutches will also receive the necessary consideration from the fitter.

      Care should be taken that the skirt fits well over the right knee, when the wearer is seated in her saddle. Creed and other good makers of the past always padded this knee part, which gave not only a nice, rounded appearance to the knee, especially in the case of a very thin lady, but ensured the skirt being put on straight with a minimum of trouble. Present day skirts have not this small round pad for the right knee to fit into, but its omission is far from being an improvement on the old fashion.

Fig. 56.—The apron skirt closed for walking.

      Whatever shape a lady may select for her riding coat, she should pay particular attention to the fit of the sleeves, which must not in any way hamper the movements of her arms. Before trying it on, its wearer should procure a good pair of riding corsets, which must allow free play to the movements of her hips, and, above all, she must not lace them tightly. Wasp waists have luckily gone out, never, I hope, to return. The size of a woman’s waist, if she is not deformed, is in proportion to that of the rest of her body. Therefore, a pinched waist, besides rendering the tightly girthed-up lady uncomfortable, to say nothing of its probable effect on the tint of her nose, deceives no one. It is impossible to ride with ease and grace in tight stays, a fact which we should remember when trying on a habit coat, for the fitter will follow the shape, or mis-shape, of the corsets, and the coat will be built on those lines. The back of the garment should be quite flat, and padding may be needed in the case of hollow backs, as there should be no high water line across the back defining where corset ends and back commences. The collar should fit nicely into the neck at the back, and not gape open from being cut too low. There should be no fulness at the top of the sleeves, for nothing looks more unsightly than “bumpy shoulders” on horseback. It would be well for the wearer when trying on, to lean back and extend her arms, as she would do when giving her horse his head over a fence, in order to find out if the sleeves are likely to hamper the movements of the arms, as they sometimes do, from the coat being cut too narrow across the chest. It is no use fitting on a coat once or twice, and then leaving it to chance; for, to secure a perfect fit, the garment will require to be tried on until there are no further alterations to be made in it. Whatever shape may be chosen, the coat should not be made too long, or it will flap and flop about in a most ungraceful manner. Fig. 58 shows a loose-fitting coat which is not smart, because it is too long, and as it rests on the horse’s back, it will wrinkle up when its wearer sits down in trotting and will look ugly. If this coat was a good four inches shorter at the back, and graduated off to just cover the right knee, it would be clear of the horse’s back and present a far neater and less sloppy appearance. Many habit makers who run apron skirts of their own, insist on making riding coats far too long, of course with the object of hiding the indecency of the apron skirt when its wearer is on foot. Ladies who do not adopt that kind of skirt, should not allow tailors who have had no practical experience in side-saddle riding, to dictate what they consider best, to experienced horsewomen. I find that young habit makers who are new at their business are far more trying in this respect, than their more experienced elders.