Kristen: Jane Austen's Birthday Party!

Let me preface this post with the following statement: I need sleep. If at times my text is confusing, I apologize! Within the past week I've participated in a Civil War Christmas "party," Jane Austen's birthday party complete with Regency dress and underpinnings, wrote /edited a 15 page paper, and finished a website for class (http://18thcenturyclothing.weebly.com/). Yet it was all worth it! You've already read my post here about my Civil War party...now for Jane Austen's birthday!

 I am a proud member of JASNA, the Jane Austen Society of North America. This fall I went to a tea party/book discussion that I mentioned in a previous post. I was ecstatic to be invited to a birthday celebration for Ms. Austen with such a lovely group of women, and at the Inn at St. John's, a former seminary!

The chapel itself was gorgeous! I was one of only a few women who dressed in Regency attire, so there was a *gasp* when I walked into the room! After a short blessing we headed down to the banquet room, where a party was set to honor Jane Austen's birthday!

We first started with a toast...and since I didn't have my license (left in the car) they wouldn't serve me champagne! My 26th birthday in one week, and I toasted with sparkling grape juice! Everyone at the table had a good laugh at that one...After our meal, we sang "Happy Birthday" and ate some cake.

Our host had little prizes for the tables if we could answer enough trivia about Pride and Prejudice without the use of modern devices. One of the women at my table could nearly quote the book! We didn't win, but I did learn A LOT about the text itself, and that I truly was in a room of Austenites! They also had a little lending library and games that we could admire. Did you know Jane Austen has an action figure????

Did I mention that everyone kept snapping pictures of me? I was quite a novelty; one women even commented that I looked like dear Jane herself! I take pride in the time/research that I invested in this ensemble. 

Finally, I had to return home. Along the way I stopped at my Aunt's house to hem my cousin's choir dress. I made her take a few pictures, since the lighting at the party was difficult. I'm reminded of how well everything fell together. Seven yards of light yellow cotton voile fabric, several feet of embroidered leaves, a set of short stays, a sleeveless chemise, white stockings, dainty black slippers, perfectly curled hair with grecian hair band, my own teardrop pearl earrings, reproduction ring, and a silk/wool shawl imported from India...so many pieces had to fall together *just so* in order to make this work. I'm glad it did! As my first Regency wardrobe, it certainly displays the advancement of my sewing skills.

It has finally happened...I am an Austenite! It's not enough to read her writing...I needed to spend some time in "her clothing" to truly understand her. 

Now I shall SLEEP! That is, until I start sewing for The Historical Sew Fortnightly...more on that later, you nosy reader you...

~Kristen

Check out my 18th Century Website!

http://18thcenturyclothing.weebly.com/

Kristen: An Announcement of Epic Educational Proportions

Now dear reader, you may be wondering why I have not written in a bit. Well, the reasons are fairly exhausting:

1. Beau has left for school-no time to write.
2. House is disaster-cleaning ensued.
3. Teaching has begun-no energy left!
4. Master's classes have started-readings galore.

It's that last point I'd like to address-my classes. Currently I am halfway through my Master's Degree in English, with a focus on Composition and Rhetoric. One class is called "Modernism and Modernity," while the other mostly studies Restoration and 18th century literature. The amount of reading would be fatal to many a person; my English background and mad reading skillz have prepared me for such workloads.

This attitude will change by November...

Furthermore, my 18th century literature class calls for regular weekly blog posts, which I will be doing right here! I am excited that my academic world and hobby life can now cross. This will continue throughout the entire semester, pushing more of my research on 18th century life and clothing. What better way to study than to look at the writings of the people in that time?

Some sexy ankle showing is in order!

In case you are dying to know (as I'm sure you are...), here is my reading list for the next few months:

-Srinivas Avaramudan-Tropicopolitans: Colonialism and Agency

-Aphra Behn-Oroonoko

-John Gay-The Beggar's Opera

-Mary Wortley Montagu-The Turkish Embassy Letters

-Addison & Steele- Commerce of Everyday Life

-Alexander Pope-Major Works

-Frances Burney-Evalina

-Samuel Johnson-The History or Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia 

-Olaudah Equiano-The Interesting Narrative

Whew! I will be extremely busy, but happy that the blog is being updated weekly. Also, if you have read any of these books or would like to know more past my writings, please comment! I love (constructive) feedback as it will improve my writing skills. Plus, I love good research!

I'm off to the...err...reading block?

~Kristen

Kristen: Fort Wayne, 18th Century Inspiration

This might be a little secret (no wait, I posted it on Facebook!) but I have been researching 18th century clothing as of late. It doesn't help that I attended a Revolutionary War reenactment with my fiancee and the Giorlandos a few weeks back. Of course I have forgotten to post those photos...

My fiancee had never seen the fort (a gem in Detroit) and I had never been there as a spectator. It's odd; I felt that I was dressed wrong! The first thing I noticed about the reenactors is that they remind me quite a bit of the Civil War. The wooden tables and chairs, tents, and cooking fires all reminded me of "home."

All of the people were very friendly and willing to answer questions. Hmm, that sounds familiar! The doctor and his tools were especially interesting, as my fiancee recognized a few from his medical studies.

 

We continued exploring Fort Wayne, and even ate lunch on one of the porches of a house. It really is a shame that this place was so misused for such a time. All of the history in this fort, and it was abused by the people of Detroit. Thankfully, there are those willing to donate their time and money to the fort, fixing it up inch by inch. If you're interested in knowing more, you can look at their facebook page here and donate here.

Finally, I MUST talk about the clothing! Since I am not well-versed in 18th century clothing, it was difficult for me to completely know every bit of clothing, though I did note a lack of stays on several women. Was this common? My Civil War dress just doesn't fit right without proper undergarments, though it might be different for this era. Also, I saw many pockets!

So here is the big reveal...I've already made 18th century stays! It is not perfect by any means, but I am proud that I jumped right in. It is better to have sewn and lost...then to have never cut at all! My next post will show its construction, and hopefully me in it. Also, Port Sanilac is coming soon, in all of its reenacting glory...

~Kristen