Gentlemen,
I am not trying to micturate in anyone's breakfast cereal here, just adding my thoughts. I'm a Civil War reenactor of some years and experience and I want to share some knowledge and viewpoints. I am personally aiming at combining my reenacting, GAF and NCOWS personas into two basic impressions that change in the details as required to span the time period 1860 to 1872.
There is a stratum of reenacting called, among other things, "progressive". The standards for the materials, cut and construction of progressive-level reenacting outfits is higher than the mainstream ones, and that also applies (at least in what I use for a mind) to the NCOWS "Originals" category, which I hope to someday achieve.
This high standard is not, as far as I can tell, required in GAF. Mainstream "mass produced" and well-done "home-made" outfits are perfectly acceptable, and items from Blockade Runner, Quartermaster Shop and other "mainstream" vendors are fine for this.
But if you are someone who would like an outfit made of meticulously exact (or very darn close) reproductions of original items, then there are certain makers whom you should know of. There are perhaps a dozen or so, and I'd be happy to share the list with anyone interested.
The differences are far too numerous and detailed to go into here. Some are pretty obvious (for example, dark blue aniline dye fades to a purplish hue, while real indigo dye remains blue as it fades). Others are less obvious, but I can and will discuss the differences on request.
These are
suggestions only. The "material culture" of what you wear and use is less important than your mindset about what you're doing, and I for one would never comment on your outfit unless specifically asked for my opinion, and then I'd prefer to do it in private.
Well, maybe if you showed up in fuzzy polyester leopard skin trousers and matching holsters because you saw a photograph of a Texas Confederate wearing them (and yes, there is such a photo), I might not be able to supress a small snicker...