![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Quick pre-work post
Sep. 6th, 2014 07:18 amSo I had a fun surprise!patterning session on Thursday at the NYSHA storage facility - I didn't think they'd be able to take me on such short notice, but they were, and I hung out with this girl on a fellowship who was cataloguing men's clothing. As expected they have a lot of early 19th century clothing. They gave me printouts of the database search and we went through everything they'd gotten out for me; I nixed about half of it as too late, circled everything I wanted on the printout and then checked off the ones I'd done so that next time they know what I still need to see. What I patterned:
- a pair of 1790s short stays that I WISH I'D SEEN FOR MY THESIS but I didn't even know about this place. But they had no cups and would have been a lot easier to sew as well as being more supportive than what I ended up with. Not going in the book, but I'm going to make them. And maybe put them in my 18th century book when I get around to that.
- a spangled cotton mull ball dress with amazing botehs in the scalloped hem, probably worn over a white underdress. I'm dating it to ca. 1807 for now, but previous visiting experts put it at 1812 and the ~family lore says it was part of someone's trousseau in 1822, which is totally out of the question. I mean, maybe she took it with her when she left home or something, but it was not made for her trousseau and she probably never wore it.
- a print bib-front dress. At first I was really excited because I haven't found any of these to pattern yet, but it really is almost exactly the same pattern as Janet Arnold's. Bias bib, plackets added to the sides of the apron, long, squared train, reverse box pleats in back. Sleeves the same shape, back the same shape. I'll probably include it because a) I don't have any other bib fronts unless I go farther afield and find another big collection and b) it is valuable to show that two gowns have the same construction. But I wish I could find another. (This one was supposedly brought from Scotland by an immigrant in 1800.)
- another evening overdress, also related to the 1822 wedding woman. Later 19th century note attached claims it is her reception dress from after the wedding, but it looks several years later to me (the sleeves are enormous and the embroidery is pretty high on the skirt), and I'm not sure when the custom of changing into a reception gown arose, it seems kind of like a mid/late Victorian assumption based on contemporary habits.
I seem to have some thoughts on Kindle Unlimited. Mainly I think it could potentially be a bad thing for libraries, but I already barely try my library for ebooks anymore as it never has what I'm looking for (no Waugh! no Powell! I WANT TO READ BRIGHT YOUNG FICTION), and I don't think the solution is to handicap other services but to fix the libraries' problem and lower license fees for libraries or something. But I mean really, how many people saying it's wrong to use Kindle Unlimited for books you could get at the library would also think it's wrong to watch old seasons of a show on Netflix instead of getting that from the library too?
So many blog comments to respond to! I hope I get as many next week. IDK if you noticed but Lauren of American Duchess shared the link on FB and I've gotten over 1k hits from that.
- a pair of 1790s short stays that I WISH I'D SEEN FOR MY THESIS but I didn't even know about this place. But they had no cups and would have been a lot easier to sew as well as being more supportive than what I ended up with. Not going in the book, but I'm going to make them. And maybe put them in my 18th century book when I get around to that.
- a spangled cotton mull ball dress with amazing botehs in the scalloped hem, probably worn over a white underdress. I'm dating it to ca. 1807 for now, but previous visiting experts put it at 1812 and the ~family lore says it was part of someone's trousseau in 1822, which is totally out of the question. I mean, maybe she took it with her when she left home or something, but it was not made for her trousseau and she probably never wore it.
- a print bib-front dress. At first I was really excited because I haven't found any of these to pattern yet, but it really is almost exactly the same pattern as Janet Arnold's. Bias bib, plackets added to the sides of the apron, long, squared train, reverse box pleats in back. Sleeves the same shape, back the same shape. I'll probably include it because a) I don't have any other bib fronts unless I go farther afield and find another big collection and b) it is valuable to show that two gowns have the same construction. But I wish I could find another. (This one was supposedly brought from Scotland by an immigrant in 1800.)
- another evening overdress, also related to the 1822 wedding woman. Later 19th century note attached claims it is her reception dress from after the wedding, but it looks several years later to me (the sleeves are enormous and the embroidery is pretty high on the skirt), and I'm not sure when the custom of changing into a reception gown arose, it seems kind of like a mid/late Victorian assumption based on contemporary habits.
I seem to have some thoughts on Kindle Unlimited. Mainly I think it could potentially be a bad thing for libraries, but I already barely try my library for ebooks anymore as it never has what I'm looking for (no Waugh! no Powell! I WANT TO READ BRIGHT YOUNG FICTION), and I don't think the solution is to handicap other services but to fix the libraries' problem and lower license fees for libraries or something. But I mean really, how many people saying it's wrong to use Kindle Unlimited for books you could get at the library would also think it's wrong to watch old seasons of a show on Netflix instead of getting that from the library too?
So many blog comments to respond to! I hope I get as many next week. IDK if you noticed but Lauren of American Duchess shared the link on FB and I've gotten over 1k hits from that.
