Today’s fashion plate choices for January are chosen from later in the Regency Era. Notice how far the waist fell from 1821 to 1824, as well as the increased puffiness of the sleeves at the shoulders. In both plates, the bonnets are much larger than typically seen during the earlier...
Whenever I picture folks writing in the bygone days of yore, I always envision the standard quill with pluming feathers. For some strange reason this seems so romantic and dashing! On the other hand, who doesn’t love imagining the marvel as new inventions were revealed? It must have been quite...
Today’s blog is a continuation from yesterday’s post about the history of Federal Hill, the plantation estate of the Rowan family that is now known worldwide as “My Old Kentucky Home.” Please read that article first as it sets the foundation for the Kentucky State song of the same name,...
Eight years ago I fulfilled a long-held dream to escape the fast becoming communist state of California. Together with my husband Steve and grown son Kyle, we embarked on a new phase of our lives in the beautiful bluegrass state of Kentucky. I’ve written previous blogs about our decision to...
SILK is a natural fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The highest quality silk is obtained from the cocoons made by the larvae of mulberry silkworms – Bombyx mori – which are raised in captivity in a process called sericulture. Other caterpillars produce “wild silks” that...
As a followup of sorts to my blog a couple of weeks ago on the history of stockings, it only made sense to pass on a bit of information on a device invented to mend those delicate foot and leg coverings. Socks and stockings have a bad tendency to wear...
The 19th century would see the end of Frost Fairs and the Thames freezing solid. Alas, this also means today’s blog is the last in my four-part series on the subject. Before reading on, be sure to check out the previous posts to understand the full context, links below in...
The cold spell known by scientists as the “little ice age” continued throughout the 18th century. So too did the hardships associated with such harsh weather, and so too did the Frost Fairs held when the River Thames running through London froze completely solid. Both the severe freezes and the...
Here in the northern hemisphere we are a bit over two weeks into winter. Where I live in Kentucky, it gets quite cold… or at least colder than when I lived in central California. For those living in Wyoming or Alaska, a few inches of snow sporadically falling and temperatures...
From roughly 1300 to 1850, planet Earth endured lower than normal temperatures in what is known by scientists as a “Little Ice Age.” During these centuries, temperatures fluctuated (as climate has always tended to do) with some years resulting in extreme frigidity. Long winters with heavier snowfalls and deep freezes...
“You know nothing, Jon Snow!” As it turns out, there is one John Snow who did know quite a great deal! Forgive me if the Game of Thrones reference is unfamiliar… or worse yet, a reminder of a fabulous TV show that ended up having the worse final seasons of...
In the 1700s, the Thames River in London was replete with eels. Surprisingly easy to catch, these slippery creatures were free for the grabbing, nutritious, and tasty. Nets were set upriver, and the bountiful harvests quickly became a dietary staple for London’s poor. On top of being cheap, they were...
Named after the small village of Gwennap located just outside Redruth in Cornwall, the Gwennap Pit came into existence as a natural depression formed by a collapse into an abandoned underground mine shaft. The massive pit was a chaotic cavity of stone and earth in a disorderly array. How long...
The repeating of parts of words to make new forms is called reduplication. There are various categories of reduplication words: rhyming, for example okey-dokey exact, for example wee-wee ablaut (vowel substitution), for example zig-zag The impetus for the coining of these seems to be nothing more than the enjoyment of wordplay....
There is a common joke that Auld Lang Syne is one of the most popular songs of which no one knows the full lyrics! Other than the chorus, this is largely the truth. Back in my long ago days of celebrating New Year’s Eve at a party, I can’t recall...
