Peninsular War: Ladies

I have added a couple of civilian ladies to my collection of Peninsular War figures. Finding suitable civilian models for the Napoleonic period is a nightmare, and these two fall into the 'well it will do' category as they are not ideal. 

The lady in the lilac dress was bought on ebay, and comes form a range of Napoleonic ladies (many of whom are in Napoleonic era army uniforms for no apparent reason). They also do a female gun crew and a guerilla leader that might be useful. This one is described as an officers wife. She is carrying a small pistol. I would have preferred if she was unarmed, but there you go. She is also rather on the tall side, towering over my Spaniards. In some scenarios she could be a spy- perhaps 'she' could even be a man in drag?

Her costume is quite authentic for the period although the details on the pistol are very soft and unconvincing. I would consider getting another one and converting it to a civilian by changing the pistol to something else- a parasol perhaps. I would also consider grinding down the thick base and making her a few millimetres smaller. 

The second lady was from West Wind and was found in a box of old figures Pulp citizen gave me. It's not right on so many levels- the sculpt is odd (as many West Wing models tend to be), and her figure is very peculiar, with a tiny waste and big shoulders and the dress is completely wrong for the period (and any period as fas as I can tell). her gloves look like they would be good for welding or handling hazardous waste. On the plus side- this figure didn't cost me anything and she isn't armed- so that's good. She will make a suitable model for some damsel to be rescued by a dashing Royal Navy Officer or a grim rough and ready Rifleman.