It is universally agreed that having a decorated tree inside the house as a focal point of the Christmas season became a standard in the western world thanks to Prince Albert, consort to Queen Victoria. Indeed, the Prince — who hailed from Schloss Rosenau near Coburg in Germany — encouraged the import of his homeland’s… CONTINUE READING…
Almost every year I share information on Washington Irving and the wonderful chapters about Christmas including in his famous 1819 The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. The most recent blog on the topic is from the Christmas season in 2019 and can be read via the link below. Enjoy the excerpt from my novella,… CONTINUE READING…
Almost every year I share information on Washington Irving and the wonderful chapters about Christmas including in his famous 1819 The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. The most recent blog on the topic is from the Christmas season in 2019 and can be read via the link below. Enjoy the excerpt from my novella,… CONTINUE READING…
For the bulk of human history, even in the most advanced, cosmopolitan cities (such as London), streets were rough and downright filthy. Typically unpaved, mud was inevitable and thick. Garbage and human waste were commonly tossed from windows onto the street below, and imagine the quantity of horse droppings that must have been impossible to… CONTINUE READING…
In an era before Avon or Mary Kay, the fair maidens of the Regency Era relied upon homemade concoctions. Fortunately, well-bred ladies weren’t without resources. Magazines of the day devoted pages to the topic of cosmetics and skin care, in between fashion plates and gossip. Then, in 1811, a publication titled The Mirror of the… CONTINUE READING…
Continuing the theme of my blog on hat making – Millinery: A History of Headwear and the Profession – today I shall talk about the various styles of headwear worn by women during the Regency. First, before getting to the specifics and pretty photos, I shall try to shed some light on the differences between… CONTINUE READING…
For a while, during my exploring craft stage, I delved into the world of making hats and bonnets. Despite never being a huge fan of sewing, I discovered I was fairly good at it. I even opened an Etsy store and sold nearly all my stock! I ended up experimenting with my new-found crafting skills… CONTINUE READING…
I discovered the joy of fishing late in life, after moving to the lake-abundant state of Kentucky in 2013. My husband insisted we buy a boat (Why not, we’re retired!) and although I fully expected to spend my time on the lake reading a book, almost immediately I was hooked. Pun definitely intended! I’ve written… CONTINUE READING…
“If people turn to look at you on the street, you are not well dressed.” The above quote is attributed to George Bryan “Beau” Brummell, and he wasn’t being ironic. Brummell was the trendsetter and undisputed master of the perfect tailoring and simplicity of understated style which became a hallmark of the fashionable Regency Era… CONTINUE READING…
In April of 2019, I gave a speech for the members of the Louisville Romance Writers. The topic was Fashion for the Regency Era Woman. This is a subject I adore, as is evidenced by the money I’ve spent over the years on costumes. LOL! It also involves research into the history, another passion of… CONTINUE READING…
In half a minute Mrs. Cratchit entered — flushed, but smiling proudly — with the pudding, like a speckled cannon-ball, so hard and firm, blazing in half of half-a-quartern of ignited brandy, and bedight with Christmas holly stuck into the top. – Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol All of us, I presume, are familiar with the image… CONTINUE READING…
According to Clement Clark Moore, sugar-plums are so special that of all the possible delights a child might dream of, they top the list. The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads… So what exactly are these “sugar-plums” dancing in dreamland? At first glance the “sugar”… CONTINUE READING…
As my readers already know, the first three novels in The Darcy Saga series moved very slowly in time, covering the first year of Darcy and Elizabeth’s marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy ended as the winter of 1816 turned into 1817 with spring budding on the horizon and Lizzy expecting their first baby. Loving… CONTINUE READING…
Santa Claus, tinsel on trees, Frosty the Snowman, reindeer pulling a sleigh… These are a few of the current Christmas images we are familiar with in the US. What about yule logs, a boar’s head, community wassail bowls, a king of misrule, mince meat pies, and figgy pudding? Rarely are these traditions seen here in the… CONTINUE READING…
The general opinion is that wassailing is all about the apples and/or an ancient pagan ritual. Neither is true, but the origins are interesting nevertheless. Earliest traces are to a simple Anglo-Saxon/Old Norse toast — Waes Hael! — which translates to “be hale!” To this wish for good health, a fellow drinker would respond, Drinc Hael! As may… CONTINUE READING…
