Dollinger Farm

Tags

18th century, reenacting

Dollinger Farm is a family farm in Chanahon, IL. It’s your stereotypical family fall-time-collect-your-pumpkin-while-your-child-screams farm. The grounds and site are very nice. There is a cute little petting zoo, a nice pumpkin patch, and treat van that makes elephant ears. So why not throw in a Revolutionary War camp/battle? That’s “fall timey” I think. The camps were spread out among beautiful tall oak trees at the base of a hill and the ground gently sloped down to the family farm house. For as many people were milling around the goat pen and elephant ear van, I’m surprised more people didn’t wander up to the camps. I’m sure we didn’t smell as bad as the goats.

I tried out a new impression that I’ve been mulling over since September. I found documentation for a British woman who worked as a spy for the Brits and part of what is actually documented about her was that she snuck into French camps to collect information on the number of men, the number of weapons/artillery, etc. This woman snuck in under the premise of a vegetable seller too. I think it’s awesome. So much to play with! So I tried out a scenario with a few girls. I prefer to be in first person and to draw people into our world (without freaking them out too much). I was walking down the road with a basket of squash and sweet potatoes and saw three girls. I just walked right up to them and asked if they were busy. They said no, so I inquire if they wanted to help me with a special mission. I laid our plan. There were three girls and I gave each of them a job. We would casually stroll into the British camp (the one camp where I knew people who would play along), and I would bid the soldiers good day. One girl would ask what the one was knitting, the other girl would ask if they wanted some vegetables, and the third girl would count all the British soldiers she could see. Genius. What could go wrong? Oh only that my friends didn’t want to buy vegetables so they got a little surly. Hahahaha. We actually had a good time and later on my friend was all “what was that?!!!” He was impressed (I think) with my gall of bringing in people to their camp as spies. Heh. I’ll call it a mild success. I will keep playing around with ideas. Mainly I need questions to ask the kids to get them talking and get them involved.

My only other qualm with the event is that it was not clearly communicated (not to me at least) where the battle was taking place. Everyone wants to see the battle. I get that. However, Sat morning started out cold so I had on lots of layers, including my new triple lined wool jacket. Well as the time drew near for the battle, the public was wandering down the road and seeing a person in “old timey” clothes they stopped to ask me. Well everyone remembered the Civil War battle being on top of the hill. Great let’s climb the hill. Alright. Good idea in 4 petticoats and semi-high-heeled shoes that don’t offer the greatest support. I love trekking up and down gravel roads said no one ever. Turns out the battle was not up there. Nope. It was off in this tiny little field. No idea why. But we made it just in time.

Here are a smattering of photos from the event:

The last few pics are of the 4th Conn who slept outside on straw. The temperature got down in to the low 40s at night I think. They are a campaign unit and love sleeping under the stars.

Overall, I would love to be at the site again, just hopefully with warmer weather and more communication about the location of scheduled activities.

Harvest Supper at Apple River Fort

Tags

1830s, 19th century clothing, Apple River Fort, food, Harvest Supper, Ox Bow Tavern, reenacting

The basics: Apple River Fort is located in Elizabeth, IL. It’s a little fort from the Black Hawk Wars. To welcome autumn, they have an intimate supper for the public (advanced ticket purchase necessary). The Ox Bow Tavern cooks the five course dinner. This year the menu was as follows:

1st course – pepper pot soup and pumpkin biscuits w/ jam

2nd course – cheshire pie and Jefferson’s mac ‘n cheese with sour dough bread

3r course – fish cakes and collards with wheat bread

4th course – sauer braten and spaetzel with red cabbage and dark bread

5th course – assorted pies, cookies, and cakes for dessert

It was really excellent to cook over a nice hearth. The other oddly delightful moment that was totally unexpected was being asked to serve at table and I was running back and forth from the house where we cooked and the block house where the diners were located. It was just like Downton Abbey!!! Only 1830s!!

Now for all the pictures!

 

 

Inside the cabin that served as the kitchen…

 

 

 

 

 

Food prep…

Cheshire pie = layer of fried smoked pork sprinkled with nutmeg, a layer of apples sprinkle with sugar, repeat. Add top pie crust. Bake in baking kettle.

 

 

 

 

Apple pudding (not on the menu; we made it for fun).

 

 

 

Cooking outside…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Setting the table for the guests…

(I think Mr. Carson would be proud!)

 

 

 

 

 

With our guests…

 

Obligatory selfies…

 

 

 

Warm Clothing for Cold Weather: it works!

Tags

18th century, living history, Ox Bow Tavern, reenacting

The annual encampment at Cantigny near Chicago took place Sept 12 – 13. While it was not as cold as last year, it was still good weather for wool (at least in the morning and at night!). I’m so glad I’m adding more wool items to my wardrobe.

I will be posting photos of me in the clothing once the photographer edits and posts them. A huge thank you in advance to Divine Memories by Alexis.

For now, here are my photos from the event.

Sliced citrus fruits are floating in tea punch….waiting for consumption.

 

Citrus fruits are ready to be put to use in syllabubs

 

 

Grating nutmeg

 

Of all the photos I took this weekend, this one is by far my favorite. N grated nutmeg for use in a variety of dishes that weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bigos! Best stew ever: sausage, cabbage, onions, mushrooms, garlic….nom nom.

 

Napping…..long weekend

 

 

 

The lovely Christina from On Living History

 

 

 

My obligatory selfie for the event. Here I am wearing my new wool jacket.

Challenge #6 Out of my Comfort Zone

Tags

1830s, 19th century clothing, Historical Sew Monthly, living history, sewing projects

Normally, I’ve been sewing 18th century and early 19th century, but nothing past 1815. This was a perfect challenge for me because I literally did not have to think super hard about what to make because the plans had been laid for this dress.

Here is me at Apple River Fort! (You can tell it’s a fort because of the wooden palisade behind me).

1830s Dress

Underneath: 2 petticoats: 1 plain and my new corded one. I think the corded one gave it the perfect poof! While I feel pretty girly in my 1780 – 1815 wardrobes because I portray women, I’m usually ripping meat apart with my hands and my apron is super dirty. But at this event, I did not have any cooking duties, so that, combined with my poofy skirt, made me feel ultra girly!!! Or maybe it was the sleeves? Or the brand new first worn American Duchess Gettysburg boots?!!!! Yeah it could have been those! (I totally forgot to take a picture at this event where I showed them off. Will need to do so in a photo shoot soon).

I really like this style of dress. It was extremely comfortable. The only part that felt a little odd were the shoulder/arm holes. I’m not exactly sure if they were too small or what. When I made the mock up, it fit perfectly. I was like oh yes, this is comfortable. Swell. Then when I actually attached the sleeves, I was like hmmm. Well too late now. I do have an extra one or one and a half yards left of the fabric. If needed to, I could redo the sleeves or add another panel to the skirt. I can’t decide which, if either of those, needs to be done.

Because I was on a huge time crunch to get this thing done (literally cranked it out in two weekends) I did not make a tutorial or anything. There are enough of those online already. Also if I were truly a lady of the 1830s, I don’t think I would have been showing my arms/wrists, however, I did not put on the cuffs on the sleeves because I did not have time. Woops!! But no one asked me why I had them rolled up, which I found odd because it’s not like I was scrubbing floors or anything.

What the item is (and why it was out of your comfort zone): early 1830s Day Dress. It is out of my comfort zone because I have never made anything in this time period that involves piping. I drool over the creations on other people’s blogs who produce gorgeous pelisse’s or spencers etc with perfect piping. Jealousy was a good motivator and I figured if they can do it, I can do it! I sewed the piping by hand and then found when I constructed the bodice, it was easier to feel where I should place stitches along the piping to get it to lay neatly and be uniform in how much of the piping is seen.

The Challenge: Out of my comfort zone

Fabric: 100% cotton with brown background a peachy/pinky/coral vine-y pattern to it. Up close I love it. Far away, it just looks brown like so much of my “day dresses” in my historic clothing wardrobe.

Here is a picture from Andoverfabrics.com Jo Morton’s collection:

Pattern: Period Impressions 1828 Day Dress

Year: 1828 (officially), but I dropped the waist line about 2 inches because I needed the dress to work for 1830s also and the waists dropped a bit.

Notions: Hooks and eyes from my friend’s stash

How historically accurate is it? 92% I think the neckline is supposed to be piped (it’s not); and I’m not exactly sure about the waistband. I know it’s how “it’s supposed to look,” but I would like to know the proper historical construction so I can do it correctly the second time around. Oh and I machine stitched all the seams you can’t see because I did not have that much time. But for the record, my piping was all made by hand – I did not use the machine for that.

Hours to complete: Several weekends – two of which were 8+ hrs of sewing both Sat and Sun. I had the pattern drafted in Feb, but did not get around to it until later.

First worn: A few weekends ago for a new event where I *needed* to be in 1830s!!

Total cost: $50.00 for the fabric (I think).

 

The other thing I want to make to go with this outfit is a pretty white collar – one that is just coming into fashion in the 1830s. I also want to try my hand at white embroidery work for this project. I think it would really dress up the ensemble a lot. While I love my fichu that I have thrown over my shoulders, I feel like it hides the waist part of my dress and some of the sleeves. The next thing I’m debating about making are the under sleeve poufs of obnoxiousness. That may be one of those projects that looks simple but turns out to be a bit more complicated. We shall see.

Oh and the next 1830s dress I make will be pink. And maybe a green one. I don’t have anything green in my historic clothing wardrobe.

 

Challenge #1 – Foundations – Corded Petticoat

Tags

1830s, 1840s, 19th century clothing, corded petticoat, historic clothing, Historical Sew Monthly, sewing projects, Undergarments

Just getting around to finally posting about the first challenge now that it’s, oh gee, the end of May. Woops!!

In preparation for some 1830s/1840s events I will be attending in the next year, I made my own corded petticoat. I hemmed (no pun intended. ha) and hawed about whether I should just buy one, but I already had fabric and the cording and I figured, how hard can this really be? It was time time consuming (like I had read on several blogs), but mine required more hand sewing because the fabric I used was a heavier duty muslin that once folded, is very difficult to push a needle through with bare fingers, thus requiring me to wear my leather quilter’s thimble (no I don’t quilt). This made it bearable. I used this information to guide me.

If I can (read: have the time), I usually prefer to hand sew everything for the time periods where a sewing machine was not around. But with school and coaching responsibilities, winter sew projects have a bit less time dedicated to them and I needed to wear the item Memorial Day weekend (the day I’m writing this), so I did what I needed to do to get it done on time and that meant hand sewing all the channels and the waist band, but machine sewing the side seam.

Also because of my time restraints, I have very few construction process photos and so this is not a tutorial. But here are some “making of” photos:

Sewing the cords with Twiggy’s help

(I don’t know if anyone else experienced this when using cording, but my cat LOVED the smell/texture of the rope. She could not stop rolling all over it. I had to open up a separate package of cording and put it off to the side for her so she would not roll around on my fabric. However, white fabric and white cat works well…).

Just a few notes about my construction process:

1. All cords are sewn with a basic running stitch.

2. Fabric is 80 inches wide.

3. I sewed on the “right side” of the fabric and constantly folded my fabric over on itself to get the cording in nice and tight.

4. Not sure if this is period correct, but I had the fabric out flat while I was sewing in the cording. This actually lead to a boo boo. I left a few centimeters at each edge free of cording because I knew I would machine sew the side seam. I didn’t think my older machine could handle going through the thicker fabric plus the rope and the last thing I needed was for the needle to break because it’s my last one. So……really nice stiff cording all the way around except right along the side seam resulted in a collapsing side seam area. When I have it under my dress, it’s not super noticeable but when I first put on the finished petticoat and noticed this it was like a “awwwww oh no! (but too late now!)” moment. *sigh*. Redo.

5. The other thing I “messed up” was measuring my waist. I have wide hips which keeps things from sliding down. However, my waist is significantly smaller than my hips. I swear I measured the fit of the final waist size before I attached the waist band. However, it was at least 5 inches too big!!!! How did this hapen? NO IDEA! Grrrrr. When I recently wore it, it worked just fine and was in no danger of falling off. Now I’m debating whether to re-do part of the waist band or just add hooks and eyes and call it good.

Overall, I’m SUPER excited to have this kind of petticoat now!!! I can’t wait to make more 1830s/40s dresses to wear over it. I want one in ever color!

 

(Ignore the top thing on the dress form, it’s the mock-up for the 1830s dress).

 

Challenge #1 – Foundations

What the item is: corded petticoat

The challenge: foundations

Fabric: creamy off white muslin

Pattern: none, a rectangle, but based on these.

Year: 1830s/40s

Historical Accuracy: 80% – all materials are cotton. Most of it is hand sewn. I’m not sure if laying it out flat and folding it up as I laid in the cording is historically accurate though. I machine sewed the double running stitch for gathering the waist band because I was not going to hand sew 80 inches twice.

Hours to complete: several weekends. One of those weekends resulted in two days of 8 hours of sewing (minimal half hour breaks in between to feed myself and change the load of wash).

First worn: Memorial Day Weekend at Apple River Fort

Total cost: aprox $10.00 for the cording; all other materials I had on hand

And just a few more photos!

One seam. It opens all the way to 10 inches down from top of waist band. The waist band is actually at the bottom of the picture.

Up close cording at the very bottom.

More progress on Miss F’s Dress – Attaching skirt and bodice

Tags

Miss F's Dress 1815, Regency, sewing projects

I wasn’t happy with my pleating job last time. It sat for a week on the dress form across the living room where I stared at it. I made tinier pleats and ended up getting nine on each side. I love pleats.

First try:

 

Second try:

 

With the new pleating job, I moved the sides of the back skirt back just a tad. I basted the pleats into place and sewed the skirt to the bodice. It hangs quite nicely now and looks even better than I had planned/hoped.

On the dress form:

 

The way the gathers ended up on in the middle, it looks like a bunch of pleats, but it’s not.

I’ve decided that because I will need to double check the bib/apront part that goes over the bust, I have to make a mock up first. The same goes for the sleeves. My sister is larger than me in these areas and I can’t risk anything. She also gets cranky if clothing is too tight. Hehe. It’s an adventure!!!

Progress on Miss F’s Dress

Tags

Miss F's Dress 1815, Regency, sewing projects

The HSM 2015 is really forcing me to kick it in to high gear. I realized I have less than 160 some days until Waterloo. Deadline fear?!! Perhaps. But not yet. I could have been working on this over Christmas break, but instead I did something else. And what that is, I can’t exactly recall.

Yesterday’s achievements:

– Cutting out both skirt panels

– Cutting angled gores for front skirt panel

– Stitching gores to front panel

This does not seem like a lot of work and probably more advanced seamstresses could accomplish this in a few hours. But I was washing clothes, cooking food, playing with the cat AND my sister is 5’11”. I think I’ve said this before, but sewing her side seams will be the longest part of most of my sewing time.

 

Kitty helping determine how to cut the pattern.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the front panel, the top of the picture shows the gore lined up. The bottom of the picture, where you can barely see the pins, is the gore pinned in place and ready to be sewn. Under the pins, I did a medium sized basting stitch. Then I did a rolled hem and whipstitched it in place, making tiny pin pricks going through both layers of fabric. The result is kind of like a French seam. All the raw edges are encased.

P.S. Though the fabric looks blue-ish in the photo, there is a tad more green to it. I’m not sure this would fit in to the “blue challenge” though. Trying to figure out where it does fit….

Year in Review in which I ruminate about past and future sewing projects

Tags

18th century clothing, 19th century clothing, future sewing projects, historic clothing, Regency, sewing projects

 

The past week and a half of 2014 has resulted in cloudy skies and zero sun. The Monday after Christmas in the UP, there was a ton of sun for our drive home. I had to capture that sun through the snow-covered branches before we left town in case I didn’t see sun again the rest of the winter.

Despite the sun, the kitty was not a huge fan of the icy temps and only spent a few seconds outside.

 

I did not meet any of the challenges for the 2014 Historical Sew Fortnightly, except the first one. Woops. But I finally got to wear my creation a year later at an event! Hurray! I’m a little disappointed in myself, but by now I should realize that Christmas break is deceptive in that I think I have all this time to sew and then forensics season starts and I coach every day from 3 – 6 p.m. and when I get home, I barely have enough time to make dinner. By 8 p.m. every night, I’m washing my face, brushing my teeth, and then crawling in bed to read. Sewing until midnight – totally not feasible. I’m still determined to finish my projects though that would have fit into the challenges from last year. Though I won’t post them on the HSF fb page, I’ll still post them here eventually (aka once they’re finished).

Unfinished projects:

I think many of these did not get finished because I ran into roadblocks. Sometimes I don’t know what stopped me from just pushing through and figuring it out on my own. Maybe fear of getting it wrong and not having enough fabric? I don’t know. It’s frustrating to say the least.

Yellow Regency Half Robe – which would have fit into “bodice,” “yellow,” and “political” challenges

– Roadblock: I was worried that if I didn’t have a proper Regency corset, that if I sewed the bustline in place, it would be wrong and I’d have to take it out and redo it. That’s not a huge deal at all because it’s a simple, straight seam.

– Why it’s still not finished: Sleeves are sewn together, just not attached because I’m lazy. And I wasn’t sure how to properly line up the seam for the sleeve, but I figured it out with the brown gown and now I’m just lazy.

Wool Jacket – which would have fit into “black and white” and “bodice” challenges

– Roadblock: I ran out of time. I decided to flatline the outer pieces of wool with an inner wool lining and that took an exorbitant amount of time to cut out the pattern for each piece a third time. I still have to cut out the sleeves, but I’m waiting on that because I still never figured out the exact size for the sleeve pattern from when I jumped into the blue striped jacket.

– Why it’s still not finished: The event I needed it for came and went back in mid November so now I don’t have a real reason to finish it except maybe for an event in April when that winter chill is still in the air. I’ll shoot for finishing it over spring break? Ok so I lost motivation and was lazy again.

Pink Bedgown – which would have fit into the “pink” challenge

– Roadblock: I thought I lost the last bit of pink fabric I needed for gussets and insert for collar. I found it.

– Why it’s still not finished: Other projects took over my life/living room. This was one of those, it’ll be nice to have when it’s finished garments, so I tend to work on it slowly at an event because it’s a nice conversation piece. (Except when I’m tavern staff, there is zero time for sewing).

Miss F’s Dress

– Roadblock: Time. Midweek since summer, I would casually daydream about working on this dress and then all this other stuff got in the way: mainly back to back weekend events for about a month.

– Why it’s still not finished: See above. Considering this will be the 4th time working with this pattern, I don’t have an excuse at all. We need it for June. June. Deadline is in 5 months. I *think* I have time.

Blue striped Jacket

– Roadblock: I gained weight (but not a lot) since I first fit this pattern and stopped lacing my stays as tight as I used to. I didn’t remake/remeasure my mock up – woops – and so I had major fit issues (which almost brought me to tears) until friends came to my rescue at an event and helped me magically fit a piece into the sides. Oh yeah and then the first sleeve pattern I used for my rose gown DID NOT fit me at all (huge muscles right here), and attempting to fit the mock up sleeve on me was akin to stuffing gobs of sausage into a too small casing. Ha.

– Why it’s still not finished: Sleeves have yet to be refit. Other projects took over. I got lazy – again – gee….is there a pattern here?

 

Finished Projects Review:

Brown striped regency gown – this gown is delightful to wear once I recut the sides and hemmed it in front and added loops to the back to hold up the ties. I want three more like this. But I really should branch out. First wore it to Years of Napoleon in June. This one will go to Waterloo with me.

Grey wool petticoat – I needed another wool petticoat simply for warmth. Normally I always wear just one because I’ve found that the slightest breeze or drop in temps at events makes me cold. (I’m such a baby, I know). Because I love making petticoats, they now take me about 5 – 6 hrs (depending on life), when I was getting ready for the event in mid-November it was either struggle with trying to line the wool jacket and cut out sleeves and line them and sew them and attempt to not cry OR sew two rectangles together. Rectangles it was! I’m all about binding the hem with tape and I chose a dark navy from WM Booth Draper…..well somehow we mis-measured and I was short by 10 inches. So Mr. Booth kindly gave me the missing tape and sewed it on himself!! Wow such service from the draper. I first wore the grey petticoat to The Gathering where, upon dressing and skipping about in my new garment by the fire when I went to fill the coffee pot, Mr. B the elder, accidentally splattered bacon grease on me; my apron caught most of it, but there are a few spots on the petticoat – not super visible except to me. Christening by fire?

Regency cotton petticoat with shoulder straps – I couldn’t wear my flannel petticoat to an event in June, so I needed this one. It’s heavy duty so it actually puffs out my brown Regency gown a tad. This is not a super flowy-graceful-go-to-the-ball petticoat. I still need one of those. But it’s not see through either so at the end of the event after it closed to the public, off came the gown and I sat around in my petticoat and drank wine with my friend. It was very lady-like.

1920 Robe de Style Prom (chaperone) dress – I really wanted a period appropriate dress to wear when I chaperoned prom. I’ve always really wanted a purple prom dress. While I had major shapewear on underneath the dress, the style was oh so comfy!!! It’s just a basic shift on top with a super poufy skirt that could be embellished multiple ways, so many in fact that I just couldn’t settle on one type of trim! I would love to make another dress like this.

 2015 Insanity Sewing

My goals for this year are simple: at least by the event for which I want to wear them, have the unfinished items finished. If I get any more specific than that, it may lead to more laziness. I also realized that most items don’t get finished unless I NEED to wear them to an event. Isn’t that how it is with most of us?

After a very successful first person immersion experience, a group of us here in SE WI/N IL are stepping into the 1830s. We are outfitting ourselves as well as assisting volunteers at the Macktown Living History Center in IL in full 1830s period clothing. Our goal is to sew a bunch of wardrobes for a handful of us who will put on a Christmas first person immersion experience open to the public. (I think that’s our goal the last I chatted with everyone, but plans morph as the year goes, and we are open to all possibilities).

A bit of background about me to get up to my new found love: the 1830s. When I first truly started historical clothing research, I was 19. I was obsessed with the 1890s. I love the graceful feminine lines and the sleek way the skirts fit at the waist and then flared out down around the ankles. I stared at countless images of antique dresses online. Then I had a 1920s dress made for me. I picked the fabric – a pretty blue check – and while it wasn’t the 1890s dream dress I wanted, it was a fun style. A few years pass, college finishes and my teaching career launches. I drag my then boyfriend to a Rev War reenactment north of Milwaukee and I fell in love with the style of the late 1700s. The lines were so simple. The women walked so gracefully. I had to have it!!!! I joined a unit and I taught myself to sew. At the beginning of this time, I did not particularly care for the Regency era. Something about the empire waists weirded me out. Then I was invited to several Regency events. Well I sat down and learned how to use my Viking Turissa. I loved the dress I produced. The Regency style was soooooo comfortable. It was a new kind of graceful. Not having heavy petticoats tied around my waist WAS freeing. Wow!! New time period adored.

As I jumped on pinterest and started looking at images, I was disgusted by the 1820s through 1840s. The odd poofy sleeves. The bell shaped skirts. Ick. I couldn’t stand it. I don’t like droopy shoulder lines at all in dresses. I have a small upper body and while I don’t want 1980s pointy/pouffy sleeves or 1890s leg-o-mutton sleeve insanity, I prefer some structure. But then my group said, hey we should really stop interpreting the 1780s at this site because that’s not historically accurate and we really need to be true progressives and get our stuff together for a full blown 1830s impression. Excuse me? Ummm….search pinterest, interesting – some tasteful styles are not too over the top. I like the colors and patterns of most fabric. Hey! I think I adore the 1830s!!!!!! When do we start sewing? 🙂

This brings us back to the present: my 1830s wardrobe. I have stunning pink cotton fabric that I really want to make into a fancy day dress or more simple Christmas party dress. I also acquired American Duchess Gettysburg boots for this time period (courtesy of my mother-in-law’s Christmas present). (I’m breaking them in slowly; the other day when I was tidying, I slipped them on and they are divine!!!!). This wardrobe will literally be built from the bottom up….or is it the inside out? Like all of us who have been doing this for a while know, you can’t really make that gorgeous Christmas dress until you’ve completed your foundation pieces. Patience is key!!!!

1830s Wardrobe Checklist

Have:

– 1 white cotton petticoat

– multiple cotton stockings and one silk pair

– chemise (technically it’s for an earlier time period, but I think it will work)

– one white linen apron (that is very dirty from incessant almost daily use for the past two years)

– boots

Need:

– corset!!! (The ladies in our group are torn on making our own or just biting the bullet and ordering from a company who will custom make them. The big question: does the $400.00 trump the time / frustration of sewing your own?)

– another 2 – 3 petticoats, at least one of which must be wool if we are first wearing these items at a Christmas event (WI could be deathly cold as early as Oct so one never knows!). I also think one of these must be corded.

– knitted bosom friend

– new cap

– new bonnet (I’m not sure if my Regency era bonnet will work for this time period. I kind of want a different style just because you know….why not?)

– two dresses – one for house work and the other for the party!!! woot! I think the day dress will be wool – again because our first event will be in winter and I will not freeze in cotton, but the pink cotton fabric I have already will most likely turn into a Christmas dress!

– dress patterns

– fun Christmas dress up shoes (I have the shoes; I intend to trim them with pink embellishments to match my dress – hurray!)

And lastly, my “general sewing dream project list for the way off sometime future provided I have an event to wear it to” list

– Downton Abbey 1912 – 1918 style dress

– Chemise a la reine with a royal purple silk sash (to be worn at my oh so fabulous Regency style birthday tea party that I am still planning)

– late 1700s linen working class gown

– quilted petticoat

– Regency era white ball gown

– some type of 1790s style gown

 

Fingers crossed for a mostly successful 2015. I’m not going to be overly optimistic so that come September, I say, “oh gee, I was going to do that…but yeah woops.” I want to be pleasantly satisfied with my achievements.

Ordinary Courage – A 1st person immersion event – Part 1: Expectations and Preparations

Tags

18th century, living history, reenacting, The simple life

I have not been involved in reenacting/living history or historical sewing for as long as some people, but I’ve thrown myself pretty well in to the progressive side of it. For example, I feel I may have indicated in a past entry or two that I can’t not hand sew now if I’m making a garment for the 18th and early 19th century. And now any item that I consider buying must follow period correct specifications. It’s become some what of a mission w/ a little bit of obsession thrown in for good measure.

Anyway, this weekend, I’m attending a first person 48 hr immersion event. It is a small group of people who have decided we will act out/recreate a chapter from the memoirs of Joseph Plumb Martin. Although we are in Illinois, the historic site is Milltown, Pennsylvania. The soldiers are off foraging and doing “man things” all weekend while the ladies will be, well, doing “woman things.”

Over the past week, I’ve been mulling over everything that needs to get done and then I realized that my thoughts fell into three separate categories:

I. Expectations – bad/good and II. Preparations

I. Expectations – bad/troublesome

I’m starting with the not so great first. It’s odd, but I tend to stress over new events. I’m mostly gung-ho excited, but then there is this brief, “what if?” that washes over me and makes me anxious to the point of making my stomach do flips and/or my skin breaking out (not cool).

Freezing Temperatures

Because this particular event is near the end of November and I live in the Midwest, I’m mostly worried about freezing. I’ve been to two other cold weather events. I survived and actually I think they acclimated my body to dealing with colder weather. However, I had the option of wearing long underwear. But this weekend is the most progressive/hard core authentic it can get i.e. zero modern anything. I’m pushing myself to the extreme and going to see how it goes. If my upper thighs freeze, it is what it is. Sucks to suck.

And I keep telling myself, if they can do it, so can I. It’s not the end of the world. We are in a stone building. I have no reason to really go outside unless I’m cooking or using the outhouse. Therefore, I think it will give me a good feeling for what it really was like to be a woman and be stuck inside all day. If this is what I am to learn, I only wish I could be doing this for a week or more because that could give me a better gauge of whether or not I could hack it.

Lack of sanitation/running water

Well you’re going to learn way more about me than you probably cared to know. In the past few years, I’ve become a tad OCD about sanitation. I have to wash my hands a lot especially during food prep. Not having this luxury makes me a tad queasy. Though we will have a wash stand, but no running water. Aaaaaahhh!!! Outhouses don’t bother me though. I just want warm water to wash my hands.

II. Expectations – good/excited for

Tasty food 

We always have the most delicious food at events. I love it. I crave it when I’m at home in the winter. I have never been disappointed in anything I’ve tried – even oysters – and I don’t eat a lot of seafood (except fresh Lake Superior Whitefish).

Seeing all my dear friends

I think many of us will agree that awesome friends keep us in the hobby. My living history friends have become some of my nearest and dearest friends since I’ve become involved in the hobby. I love having a hobby that brings together like-minded people.

First Person 

For the majority of events that I’m at, we are in first person. Occasionally we’ll slip into 3rd person depending on the conversation, but 99% of the time, we are awesomely in character. This weekend gives me another opportunity to expand my repertoire and really become someone from that time period.

I will portray the daughter of one of the other ladies who is attending. We’ve been going back and forth over the weekend about what my name should be. Right now it’s between Ella Rose and Abigail. I, however, don’t particularly like Abigail currently because I just finished watching The Crucible and the character of Abigail annoys me (I have some friends named Abby and I don’t hate them, so no offense if anyone who reads this has that name). I also wanted to choose a name that was in my family, but we are Polish and the people we are portraying this weekend are German Pennsylvanians I believe…so, that’s not really working out.

Time away from technology 

It’s rather ironic that as I type this on my laptop to post on the internet while I watch Mr. H play video games, I’m excited about getting away from all of it for two days. I am constantly bombarded with emails all day long – upwards of 50 per day. It’s too much. Why can’t you just call me? OR walk down the hall and tell me to my face? I will admit that I love connecting with historical sewers and living historians on facebook and reading their blogs because it is a wealth of information. Truly having so much research/advice at our fingertips does wonders for improving your knowledge. However, the day to day realities of living in a digital world is so exhausting that at the end of the day, I just want to be outside or in a cozy room talking face to face with people who matter to me. My phone will be shut off Fri night around 8 p.m. once I text Mr. H that I have safely arrived at the site. I won’t turn it back on until I sit in my car to head home and I call Mr. H to tell him I’m leaving.

Historic buildings

My dad is an architect. The majority of my family’s library are books about architecture, interior decorating, and home repair. My preferred lazy reading was pulling the book, A Field Guide to American Houses off the shelf and memorizing the various architectural subtleties between an Italianate and a Second Empire so when we drove around through old neighborhoods I could point out the differences. Therefore, the fact that I get to stay overnight and live in a building from the 1830s is beyond a dream. (I currently live in an old home). But this historic building is somehow different. We get to stay there and come together as a family and it’s just amazing. And besides, a solid stone house is way better than a tent in wind/rain/snow.

III. Preparations

Sewing

Two weeks ago I found out about this event. I didn’t think much of it. Suddenly over the weekend I have to make/acquire all of these items. I had put off finishing my new wool jacket/short gown because I figured I was done for the season and why rush? Well, now I am rushing. Though I won’t stress myself out over it because if I don’t have to go outside, I won’t. The lining is mostly sewed together, but it does not help that I’m taking 45 min to write this entry when I should be sewing.

I also decided over the weekend that I should finally get around to making myself some linen bags to carry my stuff in. I’m saving my money to buy a portmanteau and have a friend make some wooden boxes for me. But hey, why not sew a giant rectangle by hand in a few days because you don’t have a million other things to do – right?

Paring down the fluff

You tend to acquire a lot of stuff with this hobby. And for some events, even though it is only two days, you think, yep I need ALL of my stuff. All 10 petticoats, both jackets, a cloak (even though the forecast is 70+), and five different colored stockings (because one pair might get wet or a friend may need to borrow some). For this event, I literally only need what I can carry – literally in one to two loads – and only my warmest clothes. That’s it. And this brings me to my next point.

Realizing what you don’t have

When you acquire a lot of stuff, and then you go to the extreme (weather or immersion), you realize quickly what you don’t have. For me? Zero period correct wool blankets or coverlets, mittens, hat, scarf, wool stockings. How do I not have this stuff?! Luckily, my other friends have extras and are helping me out. Sweet.

Reading

An immersion event taken from a particular chapter of a memoir or diary requires that you read said chapter and become fairly knowledgeable about the people, places, and time period. Reading takes a bit of time to digest (take notes, memorize, reread) and I can’t very well read and sew at the same time. Grrrr. But learning new stuff is fun!

The lady in charge also gave us some things to consider:

“To get yourself in the period, research happenings in Pennsylvania in November 1777. What battles have already happened. How is the war going? Who is winning? Think about your own situation such as how long you have lived in Milltown? There is a back and forth concerning the name of the town. Some call it Milltown and others want to call it Downingsville. Think about what you would be doing during the day and be engaged in the activity. Cleaning chores, sewing in the morning, knitting in the afternoon. Visiting neighbors if you think it safe. What is your family history? How long have you lived in the colonies? Where is your family from? How many children do you have, those of us who are married? What might your future plans be? Moving west into Ohio country or Kentucky country? What about Indians? What if the British come back? Where are your foods hidden?”

Leaving for the weekend before a major holiday

I have company arriving on Wed afternoon. I will be gone all weekend. Mr. H will be tidying by his lonesome. I’ve already cleaned a fair amount last weekend (dusting, vacuuming, etc) and when I return I will just need to tidy and put away all my period clothing/stuff before everyone arrives. Being out of town can be stressful before people arrive, but I’m determined to make it work!

 

Only a few more days to go! I can’t wait to see what this new experience will bring. The next post will be a first person (from the viewpoint of my character) account of the weekend, with a follow-up reflection of did the event meet/exceed my expectations.

 

 

 

Frenchmen’s Frolic – The Ox Bow Tavern will serve you now…

Tags

18th century, living history, Ox Bow Tavern, reenacting, The simple life

There’s nothing like staying in a historic building for a weekend and making it your home. It’s the best. While I don’t mind tent camping (and I am extremely grateful to every man who has set up a tent for me at events), I much prefer sturdy walls that keep out large raccoons and the cold air. Macktown, in Rockton, IL is a glorious little site along the Rock River. The weekend before the event, we cleaned the entire building so that we could live in it. Part of the fun of using this building again is figuring out how to set up the furniture in a way that is comfortable and easy for our guests to use and allows for the workers to move quickly from one room to the other when working/serving.

I think my layout of having the tables kind of form a T-pattern worked. It was snug, that’s for sure, but there was much more room to walk about. There is a rather large cabinet in the kitchen area that is in a very dysfunctional spot and I wish it could be moved. Our other change was at night when everyone joined us Sat evening, we put up two tables in the bedroom – one against the wall and the other in the doorway that leads to the main dining room and had a “bar” window. Mr. B the younger manned the bar and that kept the drinks safe from greedy little hands.

Returning the following weekend, was like going home. It was so odd, yet comforting. Swept floors, clean windows, space upstairs for sleeping. I was ready.

 

I arrived Friday evening and set to work finishing my petticoat that I was to wear the next day. Sewing by candlelight – ah what could be better?!

For two and a half days, the building is transformed into The Ox Bow Tavern. The women slept downstairs and some men upstairs and a few in the tavern area.

Women’s area

We slept two in the bed, and four on the floor. It was cozy.

Saturday morning was bright and cold. I try to get dressed quickly, but it never happens. I’m usually out of bed by 5:45/6 a.m. and then I need help with stays, have to make sure all my petticoats are on in the right order and that they are tied snugly, and then that my fichu and cap are arranged properly/attractively. All the while, men are bustling about getting the fire going, the other cook’s helpers (who somehow get dressed more quickly than me) are prepping food, and “father” is chastising me for being in various states of undress.

Even though we are rushing to start the meal so it’s ready for guests, I love how the sun slowly creeps up over the river as we put the room in order; time stands still for just a bit. Breakfast is porridge and bacon. It’s an Ox Bow staple and favorite by all guests. I’m not sure what would happen if we served anything but that. Our hash is divine as well, but people must have their porridge and meat!

 

There is a frantic mad rush for about an hour as women bustle around the kitchen dishing out porridge and making sure the guests are satisfied. Because of the cool autumn temperatures, everyone wanted to pile into the dining room at once.

Once everyone leaves, it’s time for the tavern staff to eat…

Mr. B the younger finds a spot on the stairs – a fitting spot for his station in life.

And a young recruit and cook sneak morsels in the kitchen.

 

 

 

And clean up….

Mrs. Blodgett instructs B about upcoming tasks to be accomplished.

A clean pile of dishes ready to be put back on the shelves.

 

As the day progressed, the women prepped food for midday meal and the men cooked it. (Nothing like cleaning up from the first meal so you can start the second).

Fun colored carrots and potatoes for the soup!

 

 

 

 

Women bustling about.

 

Making important decisions about which bread to use.

 

Mrs. Blodgett rules the kitchen.

 

Mr. Blodgett rules the fire and cooks oysters, soups, and ducks.

 

 

Throughout the day and well into the night, we welcomed an outstanding musician. My favorite tune is Staten Island.

 

A few men and myself even found time to practice our shooting skills.

Our resident soldier demonstrated proper technique first so the new recruit could hone his skills.

 

Mr. Blodgett then demonstrated for his daughter how best to aim and fire.

I took my turn.

 

After the fun and games it was back to work preparing for evening meal, which was for the family and staff only. We used our fine china!

 

Everyone journeyed back to The Ox Bow for a night of revelry and merriment. We had a full house!

 

 

 

A small group of women congregate in the kitchen to exchange news and gossip.

 

As usual, the family and staff fell in to bed around midnight and slept peacefully until 5:45 the next morning when we awoke to frost on the ground. It was beautiful to watch the sun rise through the fog.

Unfortunately, frosty mornings do not mean water should not be fetched. B was ready and willing to brave the elements.

 

Family and staff gather around the morning fire to receive instructions for the day.

The daily routine was the same as the day before, and the afternoon was warm, allowing a brief respite in the form of a walk, which lead to random leaf collecting.

And this leaf!

 

Goodbye little stone house; you’ve served us well again. We look forward to our next event when we can all come together as a family/staff and provide a superb experience for everyone.