After much debate, changing my mind multiple times a day this week, I decided not to take these bonnets to the event this weekend. There were so many factors, from the weather to bandboxes to space and time.
I absolutely love how these 1860s striped bonnets came out. Each one is handsewn, combining two different plaits and blocked using an original millinery block.
For the first one, I combined black wheat straw with walnut brown abaca plait. This gives rich color and lines to this bonnet, accenting the curves of the spoon shaped high brim. This is very reminiscent of the striped bonnet in my collection.
This next 1860s bonnet combines natural wheat straw with walnut brown abaca plait. I think of striped cookies each time I look at this bonnet. It is that yummy.
Are you looking for an 1850s style or the lower brim, cottage bonnet style? Don’t worry, I have this bonnet available. It combines natural wheat and abaca plaits, giving a light, airy look to this bonnet.
I hope to get home from setting up at the museum after work in time to wire and finish a hat I am working on. Here is a sneak peek:
It isn’t often that I have pieces for each of these eras in my shop at the same time. Today, I do.
I just added this two tone fashion hat for the Civil War era. The tapered crown on this 1860s hat is a pale wheat, while the outer band of the brim is a deeper golden color.
Yesterday, I finished and listed my fourth bergère hat. This one has a double braided plait around the edge of the brim.
For the 1880s, I have this wide brimmed, tapered crown hat.
For the 1850s, I have this striped, two tone bonnet.
For the Regency era, I have two beehive style bonnets. (Currently on sale)
Today, I attended the Spring Fashion & Textile Symposium ay the Genesee Country Village and Museum. This was the third bi-annual fashion symposium.
Curator Brandon Brooks offered a captivating story of Hawaiian Kapa cloth, inspired by a dress in the RMSC collection. Brandon’s talks are always enjoyable. This time, I was so intrigued by how the fibers from a tree were pounded into cloth that I stopped taking notes.
The second speakers was Nellie Ludemann from the Seneca Falls Historical Society. (Nellie was one of the speakers at the Story of Fashion Symposium last Fall.) She spoke about the knitting mill in Seneca Falls, the longest running textile mill in New York. As an employer that hired predominantly women through most of the 20th century, I plan to follow future research. (The mill is now the home of the National Women’s Rights Hall of Fame.)
Lunch brought one of my favorite parts of these symposia: meeting new people. (Psst, I have a particular table I sit at, and see who sits down.) This lunch evolved into a fascinating discussion of math in fiber arts. I suspect if one of us didn’t check the time, we could have carried on exploring the discussion for another hour.
The first speaker after lunch was Angela from Burnley and Trowbridge. She presented part of her ongoing research based on a token book, a log of children that included swatches of their (or their parent’s) clothing for identification purposes. This hour was packed with so much information.
The final presentation of the day was from Rabbit Goody of Thistle Hill Weavers. She took us on a journey through some of her experiences producing and reproducing textiles for sites, cinema, and theater.
A sampling of textiles by Thistle Hill Weavers for cinema and theater.
The keynote for the Fall Symposium was announced at the end of the sessions. It is someone I know many will be excited to see. 😉
Love how this bergère hat came out. This is one of the designs that became stuck in my head while looking at extant hats and later in an allergen/Benadryl fog. I sewed through Saturday and Sunday to complete it. It is currently in my Etsy shop.
I worked a fine straw plait over the outer brim in a zigzag. Looped fine plait encircles the crown.
I like how the different straw plaits play against each other, the texture and color of the two natural straws.
This bergère measures 13.5″ in diameter now that it is dry. The crown is just under 5″ across. I did not wire this brim. Though, it could easily be wired.
After many years of being asked to make 17th and 18th century bergère hats, I have finally made one.
Why did I put off making this style? It came down to two factors: Shipping the brim size and sewing the brim size while keeping it flat.
While making 1850s hats with larger brims, I discovered 2 things: First, A certain library occasionally 14x14x6 inch boxes I can reuse. Second, I can shop said box with a hat for $18-$20 with insurance. This is notably better than the $40-$60+ for shipping large 1800-1830s bonnets; the price of which makes me cringe.
Last weekend, I was asked again about a 1770s bergère hat. This time, I decided to add it to my list, knowing I could fit a 14″ one in a box.
Since then, I started a spreadsheet of extant bergère with what measurements are available to check diameters of brim and crown. In doing so, I noted the types of straw used and couldn’t help notice the straw embellishments. (I know another milliner has been recreating some straw embroidery beautifully.) The loops and figures around the crown and brim caught my eye.
Ideas started churning.
Now, I have several bergère in my imaginations that need to become a reality.
This first bergère hat began at the beginning of the week. Upon reaching the end of the hank, it asked for an artisan edge.
The brim is 14″ across, on the smaller side of bergère hats yet nearly the maximum my countertop can handle. The crown is 5″ across and less than 1″ deep. I did not wire the edge of this brim knowing these brims are often worn curved and tied under the coiffure. This lack of wire feels odd and incomplete to me as I wire the vast majority of my other pieces. (I could wire future brims and shape them to hold an up turned back.)
This particular hat is first being offered to the person who inquired last weekend. If it does not match her needs, it will be available in my shop. I currently have 2 boxes for this size hat. I happen to have 1 more bergère started.
Please do tell me your thoughts about this style. Depending on the response, I will see to acquiring (purchasing) additional boxes. (I find I can ship a 16x16x4 box for the same price. I should be able to do this size brim on my counter. )
I put 4 pieces of millinery and two trios of Clara’s Corner Bookmarks on sale for the end of the month. I really want to see people enjoy these pieces.
I recently had two comments on Facebook that I feel I need to address in more depth. In a post asking for feedback on two 1850s bonnets, two followers commented:
“These scream the handmaids tail. Who would choose that look?” “While I think they are very pretty perhaps some think of them as similar to those worn inthe ‘The Handmaids Tale’.”
My first response focused on how different the bonnets in The Handmaids Tale, called “Wings”, are from my 1850s bonnets. This response was from the perspective of someone who has spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours looking at the shapes of straw bonnets and hats as they evolved through the nineteenth century. Pairing this up against a 20th & 21st century pop-culture reference is not fair. I will come back to this comparison, though.
My response after a decent night’s sleep is a bit more reflective. We know present day pop-culture influences how visitors perceive aspects of their museum visits, as well as trends in living history and historic costuming. The popularity of Bridgerton is a current example. The romantic, sensational series with its colorful Regency style gowns has drawn many to the Regency era with an emphasis on high fashion and color. (We shall see if this shifts to the Romantic era as (if) the series continues along the timeline.) For many, the Bridgerton books or series creates a positive feeling, one of love, romance, empowerment, up-beat music, inspiring colors, etc., for both visitors and costumers. An example of a less positive reaction would be the response from young visitors to a doll I used in a demonstration shortly after the release of the Annebelle movies (horror movies about a doll). I found the negative response so strong; I removed the doll from the table to eliminate the distraction. (Much more could be said regarding positive or negative underlying factors to connections and long-term results. Possibly another post.) With this context, knowing the visual association two individuals had connecting 1850s fashion bonnets with “wings” in TheHandmaid’s Tale is helpful in that it makes me aware of potential future responses.
To understand those potential responses, it helps to understand the “wings.” (Many thanks to several friends who either read the book more thoroughly and/or watched the series, and assisted with some informational gathering last night.) The “wings” are the white bonnets worn by the handmaids in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. Under the “wing” a cap-like head covering called a whipple, is worn. Many articles say Atwood was inspired by the white caps depicted on the Old Dutch Cleanser containers produced in the mid-twentieth century. These caps are white, reaching forward of the face. (I will look for an in-text description of the wing asap.)
The current series was/is costumed by Ane Crabtree. Her costume for Offred, played by Elizabeth Moss, can be seen at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. The “wing” is meant to have a tunnel-like brim that obscures the face from others while simultaneously limiting the gaze of the handmaid wearing it. In an article by Vulture, Crabtree describes the bonnet to be “a deliberate, physical impediment to control the women who wear them.” (Do read the entire section on the bonnets in this article.) Obviously, anyone who has spent time watching the series and/or reading the book at a level of making an emotional connection, could have a negative reaction to seeing a bonnet they visually relate to the wings.
Thus, pop-culture tags along with visitors’ base knowledge and personal experiences adding yet another dynamic to the interpretive experience.
What could this mean?
I am not sure how this specific influence will unfold as there are many factors both on screen and in real life. I anticipate, for some the bonnet in general may be seen as a restrictive garment similar to the connotation the corset has had for many years as a restrictive garment instead of a support garment. This could be useful in developing conversations if one is aware of the connection or it could be confusing and a lost opportunity if one is not.
Overall, I would love to have the time to explore the influence of pop-culture on visitor experience at historic site. We shall see if that is plausible.
A Visual Comparison – How I see the construction of The Handmaid’s Tale Bonnet vs an 1850s fashion bonnet:
When I look at the bonnets in The Handmaid’s Tale, my closest visual association is a type of Shaker bonnet made of woven straw. I see a solid white fabric bonnet constructed of a brim and crown. The brim is flat, having no rise from back to front. The front edge of the brim reaches far forward of the face. The brim side profile is rounded with no descending cheektabs. The crown is fabric draped over a molded form, pleated or gathered into the neckline. The pleated or gathered crown material is controlled by two rows of stitches with a small curtain falling below it. (I do not have a clear image directly from the back or inside.)
Ca 1840s straw bonnet with minimal rise in the brim that reaches forward of the face while cheektabs descend below the chin.
Comparing this to mid-1850s fashion bonnet: A straw bonnet of this time would be made from straw, while a silk bonnet would be silk over a foundation material. The top of the brim would be nearly flat in the 1840s. By the 1850s, the top of the brim would begin to rise. In the 1840s, the front edge of the brim would sit just forward of the face. As the bonnet moves into the 1850s, the front edge of the brim will pull back framing the edge of the face. From the side, the front of the brim descends into cheektabs that fall several inches below the side of the face. The cheektabs are wide in the 1840s, becoming narrower in the 1850s.
Beyond the shape and construction, I see a few other things when looking at the “wing”. We know the depth of the tunnel like brim is meant to obscure view of the face and limit what the wearer can see. The curve of the brim front into the sides would allow view of the ground immediately to the sides of the wearer if she has her head angled down. If her head was held up, the sides of the brim would block the view of her sides. This would cause her to walk with her head angled down if she need to see what was to her sides. I suspect the white material would cause increased glare on sunny days, possibly to an uncomfortable point. (This is why black parasols were more common during the 19th century than white
As I was headed out the door this morning, I noticed the level of chill in the air and realized my sense of time of year is still off. Locally, parts of winter felt like spring, completely throwing off my seasonally sensitive internal clock. Now that wet spring is here, the norm of chilly mornings followed by warm afternoons feels off. I even felt it driving home in the sun yesterday. To top off my timey wimey state, I found I have been a full week off in my planner. Good thing I’ve been using pencil.
With all of this time and space scattering here and there, I feel the need to put together a summary of the bits and pieces I’ve been working on lately….
New Short Videos
I recently added a TikTok account. With this, I have created a few reels. I added some to YouTube.
Book Study
A little bit ago, I started reading articles by Susan Ingalls Lewis who looks at the history of women, business, and employment in the nineteenth-century. Upon starting her book Unexceptional Women: Female Proprietors in Mid Nineteenth-Century Albany, New York, 1830-1885, I thought others would be interested in reading it as well. I started a book study group on Facebook. Currently, there isn’t much discussion in the group. I do hope that picks up as I find her research journey and work both fascinating and important to giving everyday women a voice. (Please let me know if you are interested in participating.)
Pockets
Somehow, I went from not having an April Pocket of the Month designed (because I pre-designed & scheduled several months) to creating 3 for this month. First came the embroidered Sun & Moon Pocket, a freehand design by me. I posted it to Patreon at the beginning of the month, so it would be available in time for people to make it for the Solar Eclipse. The pocket I made with the design got a little TV time, appearing in a local news story. Next, came the actual Pocket of the Month design, a Maze Pocket meant to be quilted or embroidered. This was inspired by the mazes posted in the Time Traveler’s Rabbit Hole. Then, this week, I found myself creating an Owl Pocket as a bonus pocket design. This is another freehand pocket design. It was inspired by what may have been a gag at work with owl faces coming out of the printer sporadically over a few days. I realize these most recent pocket designs have been freehand designs blending period inspiration and modern twists. I will make a point to include some purely historical pockets soon, possibly some patchwork.
Events
Now for more of the thinking ahead part (this has been muffled by projects at work and big grey area.) I think I need to break this down by month.
May – I will be doing a program for GCVM’s Civil War Living History. I will be moving to the Dressmaker’s Shop. My hope is that I will be able to pull off a good program in the midst of Regents planning and field testing without breaking myself.
June – June is undecided. I’ve been asked about doing a few things. I am hesitant to commit because I will likely be taking on more additional duties during exams.
July – This month has multiple programs I am looking forward to, including Independence Day, a women’s clothing program, and a recreational clothing program.
Projects (the self accountability list)
I have several non-millinery projects in various stages, including:
The silk globes from the Solar Spectacular. I have goals for each of the 4 that are started. I would like them to make a reappearance in October.
I have slowly been assembling ribbons for a ribbon bag. This will be a bag inspired by an original given to me years ago.
I keep wanting to make some patchwork cats (or just cushions.)
I am researching local recreational clothing for a summer program. I have a good idea of what I want to make. I just need to identify which fabric(s) in my collection is the right material(s)
If I Had My Own Blue Box: 