If I Had My Own Blue Box:

***Incomplete Thoughts Post – See Here***

Why? why? why? …. Do I have to love a topic that has oodles and oodles of research and articles written about the happenings in England, but is all but swept aside in the United States.

Yes, please, read this as a full on pout.

There are so many nifty and info packed articles chewing on the cottage industries, straw plaiting included in England…. …. The Female Labour  Market in English Agriculture During the Industrial Revolution: Expansion or Contradiction…. Proto-Industrialization? Cottage Industry, Social Change, and Industrial Revolution….. and, who can’t love a title like: How Saucy did it Make the Poor? The StrawPlait and Hat Trades, Illegitimate Fertility and the Family in Nineteenth-Century Hertfordshire

***Incomplete Thoughts Post – See Here***

If you catch my comments on various FB group threads, you will know I have a bit of an obsession with a series of letters in Moore’s Rural New Yorker discussing women’s in-house working attire and related rural articles or columns. Even though the focus of my impressions currently are that of a women business owner, this has captivated my attention. I may be able to use it in my reworking of a straw sewing impression, I also may not. Let’s face it, domestic cleaning work is not my strong point in any century.

We know that (some) mill workers kept shorter skirts.

We know (some) fisher women kept shorter skirts.

We know (some) washer women kept shorter skirts.

Women employed as maids and house keepers, who were photographed in the occupation, show shorter skirts. Here is a house keeper from 1864. Not only is her skirt shorter, those may actually be pants underneath.

What about women working in their own homes? Why do we interpret these activities with full length or just above the foot length skirts? What skirt lengths did the women of the latter 1850s and early 1860s actually wear when they laboured about the house? What skirt supports did they use? What techniques did they use for safety?

The letters/discussion in the Rural NYer make me think it wasn’t cut and dry, that there was quite a bit of variation in what women did and why.

How many times a day do we go up stairs and down cellar, each time carrying half of what we otherwise could if we had not to carry our dress in one hand; and even then one will step on the dress sometimes, and then the ugly rent must be mended. It may do for those who have nothing else to do to have the care and carry their swaddling clothes or hire others to do it, but for us, – the working bees of this world – away with it; it is nothing but slavery to fashion as ancient as the Heather Mythology, of more ancient still for what I know. (Moore’s Rural New Yorker, April 30, 1864.)

Now, just take some of those long dresses that have become faded at the bottom and in front, take out the front breadths, leaving about five, tear off the bottom leaving the skirt long enough to come half way from the knees to ankle joints, use the parts taken out for pants, prepare skirts to suit the length of the dress, running “shurs” in one for three or four hoops from the discarded skeleton, and with good thick-soled shoes or bootees you are well, becomingly dressed for any and all kinds of work that may fall to your lot. (Moore’s Rural New Yorker, April 23, 1864.)

I do not advocate short dresses anywhere but at home, at work. At church and on the street, I think long dresses much more becoming, and wear them myself. Short ones are only for work; have you any objections to them there? If you have, I would suggest that you put on long skirts, and wear them for one week, wash, mop, milk, work in the garden, and if necessary help plant corn. If you don’t lay them aside at the end of the week and say ladies, wear short dresses to work in by all means, you have more patience than falls tot helot of most mortals. Stellie. Prarie Home, Mich,. 1864. (Moore’s Rural New Yorker, August 6, 1864.)

Here in William Hemsley’s Baking Day, we see sacque bodice combined with a likely wool skirt. The skirt appears to be higher than the top of her foot as she does bend forward to work the bread. Her sleeves are rolled up.

This card image shows the skirt pulled up and back. The petticoat, not white, is likely mid-calf. Again, this woman is bending forward. Her sleeves are turned up.

I am making my lists of what to bring for my millinery impression at the GCV Civil War event weekend this year. Is there anything you wish I would bring? Any questions you would like me to cover?

**Remember: I will be in a different building this year. Find me on the Village Square, next to Ward Hovey in the Law Office.**

I am planning what materials I will take for my straw millinery demonstration at the GCV War of 1812/Jane Austen event. I want to bring a few different straw shapes for visitors to see. Are there any “you really should have” or “oh, I wish I could find” straw shapes that come to mind?

Tonight I offer two fancy plait straw bonnets and a youth size fashionable straw hat.

Loopy Straw Plait Bonnet

Wavy Plait Open Brim Bonnet

Youth Fashionable Straw Hat

This look at veils concentrates on the everyday veils of the  mid-19th century, the 1840s through 1860s. It does not include mourning veils.

I am calling this “Version 1” because, despite this post sitting in the drafts folder for well over a year, it does not include everything I want it to, including specific photos.

As some of you know, I have issues with sunlight that can trigger migraines or full-body crashes. So, veils are very important to me. This is very much a “don’t leave home without it” item.

You will notice each of the veils I wear are silk gauze. This is for two reasons. First, when we started exploring veils locally, some years ago, the silk gauze at Dharma was what we felt suitable. Our research has expanded. Second, personally, I find the gauze helps with my light issues nicely. I am kinda afraid to make the change to net. But, I will be giving net a try when I find a net that I feel mimics the feel of those originals I’ve held.

Veil Shapes

The most common shapes for veils included the wide rectangle and the semi-circle. In each shape, they tended to be wider than they are long, ranging approx from 30″to 40″ wide and 15 ” to 20″ long based on those I’ve been able to see in photos and in person.

Right above: A rectangular net veil, approx 36″ wide by 17″ deep. Right below: A semi-circular veil. I need to double check the dimensions, as I am pretty sure I bought this one but haven’t a clue where I put it.

There were some variations to these shapes. This example at the MET may be mid-century. It is a variation on a rectangle with the top and bottom edges curving.  There  is a shape I would call a petal, with two sides each an arc. At the bottom of the page, you will see a quasi-triangle shaped veil meant for windy weather.

Be sure to browse your favorite and local museums to see original veils.

Veil Materials

Let me first say I am utterly clueless about lace, or at least entirely lacking confidence in my knowledge of lace. I will leave the details of which lace is which and which is correct to those who have studied lace in depth.

That said. In minimum:

In terms of fibers, silk, linen, wool and cotton all come up for nineteenth century shawls in museum collections.

When looking at the net ground of net or net lace, you want little hexagons. You do not want the little rectangles or diamonds.

Veil Colors

The most commonly found veil colors for the century are black, white and ivory. We can also find blues and greens. These do tend to appear more frequently in earlier remaining veils then in those of the 40s, 50s and 60s.

To the left is an image of me in an 1820s bonnet with a green veil. This is a dyed silk gauze veil made by Bevin Lynn. I found this green to be gentle on the eyes when out in the sun, given moderate protection. It did not give glare as some white veils can do. It did play with the light giving a streaked color effect similar to what some migraines can produce.

I have also worn white and black veils. I find black silk gauze to give the most protection from the sun. It also gives the most vision dampening of the colors I’ve worn. White give some light protection. I prefer it on moderately sunny day for short walks across the tree filled square.

Attaching a Veil

This is how I attach my veil. Original veils show either a channel at the top of the veil or worked holes, through which a thin cord or ribbon can be drawn. In my veils, I prefer to put a small knot or loop in the end. This helps keep the cord from sliding back through and makes it easy to grab.

Once this cord/ribbon is drawn up, the veil can be positioned along the brim edge. I drape the veil over the back of the bonnet.

I prefer to pin just back from the edge. With my drawn bonnet, seen here, I pin under the second cane. On my straw bonnets, I pin a row behind the fancy plait or about the 3rd row back. The end pins are pinned upward sorta following the row of cane or plait. In the center top, I pin one or two pins across the veil, trying to catch the cord,

parallel to the cane or plait. (pinning perpendicular to the plait will allow the veil to pull forward or backward as it drapes.) Here you can see how this veil drapes forward and back. This is a silk gauze veil made for me by Bevin. It is trimmed in silk ribbon. It is a little longer than most 1860s veils. Some 1850s images do show a similar length.

Here Betsy Connolly is wearing a semi-circular veil. Notice how she doesn’t have the ends pooling on either side as a rectangular veil would.

Specialty Veils

Yep. That is what I am doing right now. Whining like a child. Okay, ice cream would be good too. But, look at this, here.

This is a transcription of an advertisement in a February, 1813 New Orleans Gazette offering a millinery subscription for a new hat for every Sunday. (Either a second transcription or a transcription of another advertisement can be seen here.)

To the Public

A New Hat Every Sunday for Thirteen Dollars a Year.

The subscriber has the honor to inform the public that he has opened a subscription for persons desirous of having a new hat every Sunday, the dampness and dust of this country is very injurious to hats and but few can keep a clean hat more than 15 days.

This has determined the subscriber to make such a proposition to the public, no person can keep a hat longer than 15 days, and they will be answerable for, all kinds of damages out of shape, stains and all other accidents, and the hat, if it or , found the lining is in any way injured another will be put in at the expense of the wearer. This especially will be kept with the greatest cleanliness and the punctuality, which will be observed induces to hope for its success. This list is limited to a certain number and as a number of persons have already subscribed, but a few will now be admitted.

E. Porte – Hatter

No. 11 St. Louis St.

The whine: I have so many questions…..

I want to see the original.

Is this for men’s hats or women’s? The advertisement is signed “hatter” indicating men’s hats. But, it is cataloged under millinery indicating women’s hats.

Is this more like a library subscription? Borrow and exchange?

Did they take the hats in and just clean them? or did they remake them if they were women’s hats?

Was there any connotation socially to participating in this type of subscription? Did people recognize the hat they wore last month?

Did subscriptions like this appear in other areas?

Was this financially viable for a hatter or milliner? Did the subscriptions cover the cost of new hats, cleaning, remaking?

Whine……

I am admittedly being cautious entering this season after last summer’s sun incident. I am sticking close to home. Luckily, close to home is one of the best historic villages in the country.

May – How is it May already? Really? I need to double check with Mom. But, I think we’ll be visitors for opening weekend at GCV on Mother’s Day. Btw, I just receive the May GCV newsletter that announced a new interim-CEO, Becky Wehle, granddaughter of founder Jack Wehle. How exciting for the 40th anniversary! Also for the anniversary, the Gallery has an excellent new exhibit called “40 and Fabulous.” Stay tuned for why I’ll be spending more time in the Gallery. Also, the museum has joined the Blue Star Museum program, inviting active duty military and their families to the museum for free.

June – I will be demonstrating the cottage industry aspects of straw millinery at GCV during their War of 1812/Jane Austen weekend. I can be found on Saturday in the Foster-Tufts house on the village square.

July – There’s no place like the Genesee Country Village for the 4th of July. Their Independence Day celebration is a lifelong favorite. I’ll be picnicking and enjoying the festivities. For the GCV Civil War weekend, aka “Mumford”, once again I will have my millinery impression. This year I can be found on the village square in the Insurance Office right next to Ward Hovey. The rest of July will be my little sister’s graduation and going away party.

August – I’m not sure what I’ll do for August. There is a little event in the suburb I work in, that I used to enjoy doing with Lily. It lands on her birthday weekend. I don’t know if I’ll want to do that event or not.

September – I may do an immersion event. While immersion events aren’t a big interest for me anymore (I love talking with visitors), it will be a nice event.

October – tbd

November – The Domestic Skill Symposium…. I can’t say much because nothing is official yet.

EDIT:

To-do list by July:

• Millinery sign
• Lots of band boxes with proper paper (okay, 3 more would be nice.)
• A couple more hat stands or heads (have half of each)

This evening I offer the first straw bonnet form of the season. This low crown straw form is suitable for 1850s through 1864 impressions. The crown has a gentle low rise to the brim. The tip is slightly oval to hold you coiffure. The straw is wired all the way around and sized to hold its shape. As always, my straw is entirely hand sewn.

Find this bonnet in my Etsy Shop.

I am having such indecision…. choosing which era…. choosing which fiber….

I want a garment appropriate for interpreting straw sewing in.

In one thought, I am picturing the white/grey/black large scale plaid linen that has been in the stash since I was considering it for a travel impression, paired with a pretty white with black windowpane. Linen should be comfortable and breathe. This would be cut for an 18-teen to early 1820 demo.

But… then….

I need honest thoughts on this long shortgown. It is not a US garment. It would look fabulous in this swoon worthy fabric shown to me.

For something for the 1850s, I would need to stick to cottons or wools. I suppose I could use the dark green and brown plaid that has been sitting in the stash for all too long. This would need to be a sacque and petti that matched.