jendobyns

Personal experience tells me that linen, left to it's own devices, can develop quite an aroma. Nothing like washing the household's small clothes after a week of marinading in the hamper to tell you how ripe it can get! I think I'll experiment and see what happens when you air it out and dry well after an event before washing next time. Maybe it won't be so bad. You could be on to something there Dogge, it could be the person, not the clothing, that smells!

Part of the process for making lye-water for washing, or to make soap, is to put a thick layer of straw/leaves/pine straw in a barrel that has a hole (or holes) in the bottom. Put your (hardwood) ash from the cooking fires into the barrel, and pour water in (or let it rain into the barrel). Catch the water in another non-reactive container (like a half barrel). When it is of sufficient strength to float an egg, you can use it for making soap. Or it can be used as-is. Adding fat of some sort makes soap (olive oil, beef tallow, what have you). There's more to the process but I won't go into that here, there are plenty of books on it out there. IIRC that the layer of plant material serves as a sort of filter. Pine straw sounds like an interesting twist, and there must be someone who has written on how it impacted period laundry. Travelers did note that the linens in the south tended to be less white than in the north, perhaps this could be why? I had always thought it was something to do with the water quality of southern coastal areas.

You forgot a healthy dose of sunshine and fresh air, and salt spray :-)

By the Sword Divided was an inspiration for 17C. Haven't seen that available anywhere except a couple of pieces on YouTube lately.

Interesting. And disturbing. Several points have been already mentioned regarding the use of reenactors in the footage. The point about safety is something of a joke, considering that the NPS in the past has required reenactors to pack up their black powder and keep it in a storage shed (wooden) so they could distribute the rounds for the battle. No telling whose cartridges you'd get back, and people don't all make them the same. And the PS staff were hanging around said storage building smoking. IF those kids picking up spent rounds for leftover powder might blow themselves up, what do they think an entire shed of the stuff will do? Several years ago my RevWar group attended an event in Puerto Rico, to promote historic tourism. We ran into the director of the regional branch of the NPS. She was a lovely woman and had a lot to say about how much they loved people like us. So we got a completely different reception than the over all tone of the NPS has been presenting more and more. Go figure. I would love to have the opportunity to sit down with her and find out what has changed. I also find it rather interesting that this video is (as far as I could tell) only featuring American Civil War Reenactors. Will have to watch it again to see if the living history demonstrators are all of that period as well. Perhaps it's a numbers issue. CW reenactors are a much larger group than most others, and this is a big year for them. As for disrespecting fallen heroes of a long ago war, what on earth do they think these guys do it for? Yeah, there's an element of "playing war", but for tourists it's a thought-provoking event. However, considering NPS gives preferential treatment to veterans, they just may have a completely different perspective. FWIW, RevWar events have been moving to private properties more and more lately, because the NPS is so difficult to work with. Private sites seem to be happy to have us. Smaller local museums and parks also seem more willing to take advantage of the resources we bring (and subsequent draw for the public). Let NPS do their thing. Eventually the bean counters will figure it out. Or not, and we just evolve. Sitting here and grousing about it, and squabbling here because we don't have the same perspective certainly isn't going to change how the people in charge do things up at NPS headquarters. If you want to do something, organize some sort of response to this video. Do something that will go viral, and see how the NPS does when they find out that perhaps this video was ill considered. Goodness knows this group has the resources! Jen NAI CIG

Milk chocolate, yep. Definitely animal fat in milk (and lots of other stuff in that chocolate). So perhaps that was the basis of my friend's thoughts, although it could just be that so many people give up chocolate for Lent he confused it with what's supposed to be of limits officially. Period chocolate can be wonderful, but it doesn't contain milk or any other type of animal fat, just it's own. It's also very different than what many of us are used to consuming. Personally, the higher the percentage of chocolate, the better in my book (the stuff I've ground contains cacao, sugar, and sometimes things like cinnamon, ginger and cayenne, depending on what receipt I'm using). That creamy, milky stuff just doesn't pack the same punch.

I was talking to my husband about this and he thought it was either Townsend, Godwin, or possibly even Smoke & Fire who carries the ivory note pads. Good idea for saving the entry, Mission. But having the original would be so much nicer

Not sure about the measuring part, but yes, the two leaf note taking thing should be little slivers of ivory. They were the notebook of the period and I think they could be cleaned off and re-used. There is a stylus for writing on it, and in the first sample, I think there's a razor. The spoon is really odd for an ear scoop, but it's so very tiny I'm not sure what else it would be used for. Too small for measuring tea, but perhaps medicines? The second example has a wonderful set of little scissors. And a cute little ear wax scoop/toothpick, which looks more like you'd expect considering other examples out there. If anyone is interested in having a little notebook like the ones in the etuis, I understand that they can be made by recycling old ivory piano keys. Some folks in the F&I/Revwar community played with this several years back. You might even be able to find reproductions being made & sold somewhere. Thanks for the links, those are lovely!

My leather jack is a heavy weight leather lined with pitch. Some folks use bee's wax, others food safe resin, to line them. Handle styles seem to vary as well. If you do a search on "leather jack drinking mug" several links will show up, which might help you some ideas. Oh, here's a link to one similar to mine (mine is straight, and I think the stitches are smaller): http://tinyurl.com/3m9cxwb Good luck!

No idea why there are rectangular cuts in the barrel, but the object to the right, that looks like a step-stool with a hole in it, is very interesting. It looks like a primitive close-stool, but also appears to be missing it's lid (if it was supposed to have one). If that's what it is, instead of an odd brazier. Either way, it's kind of odd and interesting.

Sigh. Gotta love internet sources, they are a lesson in why we should be skeptical of anything that isn't a primary or secondary source. Sorry, no. Pickling did not start in 1809 as that website would have you believe, nor did the practice of creating an "airtight" seal. People knew how to preserve food by sealing it from air much, much earlier, sometimes by pouring a layer of fat (or melted butter) which would congeal on the top of the container (frequently a form of pottery crock), then covering it further by various methods including, but not limited to, a thin membrane from an animal bladder (iirc, in my migraine state, it is pig's bladder), then covered further by more mouse and insect proof leather, which has been wetted first so it dries on tight. With pickling, this layer of fat isn't necessary, the acidity of the vinegar and the salt make an less than friendly environment for microbes, and people knew way back in time how to tell if something was "off". This information is sometimes found in manuals like Bartolomeo Scappi's "Opera" dated 1570 (how to tell if pickled tuna is still good comes to mind, book I, item 11). I tried to find an earlier source for pickling, as I'm pretty sure the technique goes back farther, but digging through middle English books with a migraine ain't happenin' today. So, here's an example prior to 1809, even prior to GAoP: Gervase Markham (1568?-1637), in The English Housewife, first edition published 1615, contains this: 15 Of preserving sallats. Your preserved sallats are of two kinds, either pickled, as are cucumbers, samphire, purslane, broom, and such like, or preserved with vinegar, as violets, primrose, cowslips, gillyflowers of all kinds, broom flowers, and for the most part any wholesome flower whatsorever. 16 [Of pickling sallets.] Now for the pickling of sallats, they are only boiled, and then drained from the water, spread upon a table, and good store of salt thrown over the, then when they are thorough cold, make a pickle with water, salt, and a little vinegar, and wit the same pot them up in close earthen pots, and serve them forth as occasion shall serve. I also have sources that post date these, but the point is that pickled food is OK for GAoP. Even things that _aren't_ cucumbers!

Drink lots of small beer and sweat. Really, it's Nature's cooling system and works well if you're using linen for small clothes. Or find a shade tree. Unless the sun is straight up, the sails should provide some shade for an off duty sailor. Also, foods that are cooling (like pickles mentioned earlier) can be helpful if at hand. I have also heard non-seagoing types refer to putting a cabbage leaf in the hat (and seen it done, too!) Wetting one's neck stock/kerchief can also help. We are people used to living in modern air conditioning for the most part. Those of us who have lifestyles that require outdoor work in summer get used to it. Monday I was working in the heat with a fire and braziers (3) going in the kitchen. It was a sauna, and I was stuck in modern clothing. It would have been more comfortable in petticoats. Better insulation from the heat that way. I know it seems counter intuitive, but staying dressed actually insulates you from the higher temps, just like it insulates from the cold. Think of it as keeping the cool _in_.

The style you brought back from Turkey sounds like the really ancient type that is common there, you find them in Roman digs and other places as well. The label for the metal one in the original post was rather misleading, that isn't the particular style that is the oldest, but oil lamps that burn fat and oil are very ancient, like the style you have. I have one that is more dish shaped, with a lip, and open. Burns olive oil quite nicely, although it smells kind of odd until you get used to it. The light it gives off is lovely. I think it is a 14C style. The 18C site where I volunteer has two, a betty lamp and a double cruzie lamp, which also burn oil. Very primitive style, but made of iron. There is an organization, called the Rushlight Society, which is, or was, devoted to early lighting. They have publications that it might be worth reading if you can get them. If it makes light, they probably cover it.

Oooh, thanks for that link, Grymm! I love the red!

Blood dirt and patina would be good on that. (Shorts? They wore shorts? I can think of several events where that would be nice...) Dutertre use the term " Caleçon" not breeches or brayet, so it really means underwear, mine on the pictures are actually 15th c linen braie, but base on my research the design would still fit. Apparently, the design of men's underwear didn't change for centuries. There's a pair of Thomas Jefferson's in a museum (Dewitt Wallace was where I saw them last) which doesn't look much different from early period braes. I think those were his winter drawers, of a fine, soft wool iirc.

It was a lovely day! Glad the Dobyns clan could be a part of it even if the rest of the red coats couldn't.

Sorry to hear that. It has been a boon to me. There is a trick to it but well worth mastering. I find that in addition to the contortion of laying my head almost perpendicular to its natural position I also have to concentrate on breathing through my mouth before I even start to pour. Ditto! It's kind of like learning to breath in a scuba mask, with your head at an odd angle. But worth mastering if you have frequent sinus infections.

Hey Mission, you could always substitute sugar nippers if you can't find one of those for your collection

After re-reading this, I would like to see the research on the theory of bacterial growth on/in wooden ware as a contributor of plague growth in the lower classes and the "blanket statement" of silver ware having a natural anti-bacterial quality. Arguing that plastic cutting boards are better is not the issue, it's silver & pewter vs wood. Where is the research?

Very cool stuff! Thank you for that! Loving the majolica pottery

Well, that link you read contained a link to this: http://faculty.vetme...uttingboard.htm In particular these paragraphs: Our research was first intended to develop means of disinfecting wooden cutting surfaces at home, so that they would be almost as safe as plastics. Our safety concern was that bacteria such as Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella, which might contaminate a work surface when raw meat was being prepared, ought not remain on the surface to contaminate other foods that might be eaten without further cooking. We soon found that disease bacteria such as these were not recoverable from wooden surfaces in a short time after they were applied, unless very large numbers were used. New plastic surfaces allowed the bacteria to persist, but were easily cleaned and disinfected. However, wooden boards that had been used and had many knife cuts acted almost the same as new wood, whereas plastic surfaces that were knife-scarred were impossible to clean and disinfect manually, especially when food residues such as chicken fat were present. Scanning electron micrographs revealed highly significant damage to plastic surfaces from knife cuts. and In addition to our laboratory research on this subject, we learned after arriving in California in June of 1995 that a case-control study of sporadic salmonellosis had been done in this region and included cutting boards among many risk factors assessed (Kass, P.H., et al., Disease determinants of sporadic salmonellosis in four northern California counties: a case control study of older children and adults. Ann. Epidemiol. 2:683-696, 1992.). The project had been conducted before our work began. It revealed that those using wooden cutting boards in their home kitchens were less than half as likely as average to contract salmonellosis (odds ratio 0.42, 95% confidence interval 0.22-0.81), those using synthetic (plastic or glass) cutting boards were about twice as likely as average to contract salmonellosis (O.R. 1.99, C.I. 1.03-3.85); and the effect of cleaning the board regularly after preparing meat on it was not statistically significant (O.R. 1.20, C.I. 0.54-2.68). We know of no similar research that has been done anywhere, so we regard it as the best epidemiological evidence available to date that wooden cutting boards are not a hazard to human health, but plastic cutting boards may be. I could probably do a bit more digging around in the microbiology/molecular/organic chemistry research available to explain why this might be so, as by now there has probably been some enterprising young grad student who has figured out the chemical basis for a reaction which would not allow bacteria to thrive on a wooden cutting board. I suspect it might be found under "tannins in wood". Hmm, maybe under archaeology and why certain sites have better preservation of organic matter than others due to tannin rich soil. But I have other things to do with my time right now, if you're curious, dig away!

Well it's been awful quiet around here without you all here. Could practically hear the bottles in the cellar fermenting.

My husband and I have full wigs from Betty Myers, wigmaker in Williamsburg. He hasn't had any complaints regarding it's comfort on hot days. I only wear mine for special occasions. But I have also heard good things regarding Madam Joan's Wee Wiggies. It all depends on if you want the wig to be something you can expose to view. With the Wee Wiggies, you have to keep your hat or bandanna or whatever, on your head to hide where it attaches. So you're stuck with a potentially hot extra layer either way. Just depends on what you are comfortable dealing with and how soon you want it and your budget. I do think Betty also makes queues as well. I just don't have a specific memory of one.

Would you mind showing me where you got this information from? Apparently my hardwood boards and buthcer block never heard of this. If they are not kept clean, they will mold and turn black, causing potentially serious health issues. Wood is used because it is easier on the knife blades. The reason many cutting surfaces are now made of some type of poly/plastic is because it is safer and easier to clean than wood. At least that is what my professional chef and butcher freinds have told me. Bo I don't think there was anything in my post advocating against keeping wooden cutting boards clean. Of course you would keep them clean, and dry them off after cleaning. If you're having problems with them turning black, they're not getting dry enough after washing. Same for mold. Wooden utensils need to be thoroughly dry before being stored. And a good dose of sunlight also helps (ALHFAM, over 10 years ago, discussion about sanitizing brewing equipment in the 18C vs. modern chemical methods). This link shows arguments for both wood and plastic cutting boards, with links to the research on wood: http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/cutting_board.htm

Wood has a natural anti bacterial property, it's one of the reasons we use it for cutting boards and butcher's block. But the big crack sounds like more than it's probably worth to repair as a drinking vessel. A dice cup sounds like a great alternative *G*