jendobyns

I'm being lazy and not walking downstairs for the reference books, but from memory flannel in the period was wool, not the soft fuzzy cotton we know today. Twill or plain weave, woolen or worsted thread, smooth nap. There are even recipes in the period that tell you to use a flannel for straining things, those are definitely supposed to be wool. I also seem to remember that towels _might_ be of the lighter Turkish variety, but there are also common weaves like huckaback that make a fairly absorbent cloth which makes good towels and I'm pretty sure it is period. I don't have any references for the type of terry cloth towels we have now. Some still life paintings of the time show a cloth that could be napkin, table cloth, or towel, on the table. Some have texture and these might be a form of huck, or diaper. So using the art work could be a starting point for looking for the right fabric for a period appropriate towel when you go fabric shopping? Years ago I got two different pieces of huck toweling from a vendor called Carolina Calicoes. They are a natural colored cotton (but could also have been linen), shrank up quite a bit once washed, one turned out nice and absorbent, the other not so much. And they are part of my kit to this day. Mistress D.

Another article/update on the ship. Preservation work is taking place in Maryland. http://www.wbaltv.com/education/24775082/detail.html

Also missing are the treadles on two of them, and the third doesn't really appear to line up or match the one it's attached to in the photo. And without close-up or detail photos of them, I'd be worried something else is wrong. But if you're up for it, there appears to be enough pieces to cannibalize if you can do the work. An alternative to Ebay for these things is the Spinners and Weaver's Housekeeping (or House cleaning?) pages. Sort of a spinning and weaving specific auction site. Good luck!

A reasonable oil for the period would be olive oil. Mistress D.

Sigh, sorry about that, it wasn't supposed to be a reply at all!

We may be able to work together over there. I am working on making thread and weaving Spanish moss fibers... I'll be doing very basic drop spindle work and have an inkle to make straps and such.... You two need to get one of those giant spinning wheels. Then you could look like this: (Ok, maybe not exactly like that. ) Diane Stevens always brings a spinning wheel to P.o.P. (Pirates of Paynetown) and it really makes her display look cool. I considered the wheel... but then there is the issue of price, size, etc.... if someone is trying to get rid of one, even if it needs a little work, and it's a 'price i can't refuse' I may be willing to consider. Otherwise, I am on a budget.... Wow, I'd love to be joining you all down there, dyeing is something I could do to fill in the textiles demo (or spinning flax, since Jessi has wool covered). It sure would be easier to travel with a bucket than a wheel *g* Regarding a wheel, Diosa: I have a great wheel that needs a new home, not having space for it _and_ an aging mother in law. If this is something you'd be interested in, email me off list and we can discuss it. Mistress Dobyns

sliced, tossed in olive oil and sea salt, then roasted? zucchini and pumpkin breads and muffins you can freeze and have around for guests later (if you're not living on a boat w/ no storage space). Have you tried canning or freezing any of the things you've already made for the winter? Mistress Dobyns

Best of luck to you! And remember, if you need a fix, there are folks within an hour of you to play with. Mistress Dobyns

Sounds like there was a lack of understanding about fetal development by someone, and this could be some ignorant view of miscarriage, perhaps. Midwives would have been very much aware of the reality of such things, but the ignorant, or doctors who had not had the same experience as midwives, could go awry here.

In that case, Women's Costume of the Near and Middle East by Jennifer Scarce might be of some use to you. The pictures are all over the place as far as timeline is concerned, so you'll need to be careful about the dates, but there are some relevant to the GAoP. Also, google Lady Mary Wortley Montague images for portraits of her in Turkish clothing. She brought back the style after she and her husband were in Turkey as diplomats. (She also is credited with bringing back inoculation for Small Pox). If you do decide that you want to make an outfit that needs stays, you could use hemp cord instead of reed or metal boning, and should have a bit more flexibility. Some b-dance stuff works in stays, but it's definitely easier without *S*

Well, this was an old thread, but I think the answer to your question would be a resounding "Yes!" that renfaire getup is not historically accurate. And even the bodices that look like vests with tabs have been documented to the early part of the 20th Century (in Williamsburg, for early docents). Those are not to be confused with jumps, which are similar, frequently quilted and pretty much designed for a layer of warmth. If you can get your hands on a copy of Corsets and Crinolines, by Norah Waugh, that would be a good start to see how things should look by era. Also Patterns of Fashion by Janet Arnold, and Cut of Women's Clothes (also by Waugh). Years ago I attended a symposium with Sally Queen and Lynne Sorge who was doing tons of research on stays. The symposium was called "From Cone to Comfort", looking at the changing shape of a woman's fashionable silhouette from the end of the 17thC to the end of the 18thC. I can tell you now, there wasn't a single under-bust corset among them! The corset generator mentioned on a previous post is useful, but keep in mind it's designed for Elizabethan costuming, and doesn't come with tabs in the design (or didn't used to, that might have changed). If you decide to use it to get a basic pattern for your measurements, be sure to look at the period you're going to use for outer clothes and make sure it's the appropriate length and shape. And be sure to add tabs, they'll help keep it from digging into your waist (which can get painful after a day). And I was just informed today (from an attendee at one of the Williamsburg clothing workshops) that while stays themselves should be built to be comfortable for your body, the top where it rises from your arm pit in front should be uncomfortable if you slouch and roll your shoulders forward, as a way of reinforcing the proper period posture. Hope this helps a bit, too! Mistress Dobyns

I'm still catching up to this thread, and it has been interesting. If you watch the Supersizers Go/Eat series on YouTube, there's one for the Restoration Period, where they go into a fair amount of detail about the procedure for Pepys surgery, showing the type of chair he would have been sitting in (it has a big hole in the bottom) and some of the tools. This is how they set you up for the part about their recreated Stone Feast, where all sorts of interesting antics occur. Worth watching.

Well _that_ was interesting! And it has inspired me to find my copy of A Midwife's Tale, where she tended to treat people for worms a lot, to see what her methods were.

Happy Birthday Rumba Rue! I'll dedicate this cake I'm making right now to you!

Try looking for "sarouelles", which is apparently a form of Turkish trousers. Folkwear makes a pattern for them that is still popular. http://www.folkwear.com/119.html Also, if you look up sarouel, slightly different spelling, you can find some examples of another style, with an extremely loose, baggy crotch section and tight lower leg. Mistress Dobyns

Good Lord, that's just awful! Hopefully we'll eventually find out what type of cannon and why it blew. We just listened to an audiobook with descriptions of how a potato cannon works, and after reading this I'm glad my boys know when the "don't try this at home" caption should go up. Mistress Dobyns

This recipe appears in Ivan Day's "Cooking in Europe 1650-1850", a source of many interesting recipes we don't see very often. England, 1711, (Salmon, 105 -I think this is supposed to be William Salmon, The Family Dictionary, 1696, this particular recipe might be from a later edition) Take water, three quarters of a pint, choice red port, or rather choice sherry, half a pint, sugar chocolate a quarter of a pound, or something better, fine flour, or white starch, a quarter of an ounce, and a little salt; mix, dissolve and boil, and in about 12 minutes it will be done. But if you make it with chocolate without sugar, the proportion to the former water and wine, will be of chocolate, 2 ounces and a quarter, double refined sugar 3 ounces, fine flour or white starch, a quarter of an ounce, etc. as before. Ivan Day continues: This recipe is for a drink that is much richer than modern hot chocolate. Melt four ounces of a good-quality dark chocolate in the hot water and wine mixture and whip in half a teaspoon of cornstarch. If required, add extra sugar to sweeten it. The purpose of the cornstarch is to prevent the chocolate butter from separating out. Whip it with a chocolate mill if you have one. Use a balloon whisk if you do not. In Spain at this time, an iced whip of chocolate called Espuma de Chocolate was popular in the summer months. This was introduced into Naples during the seventeenth century, where it was developed into a frozen sorbet called scomiglia di Ciccolata. Mistress Dobyns who is now off to find a recipe for something alcoholic and fruity to go with this weather.

I don't know how to post audio files, but you do come up with the coolest things! Mistress Dobyns the technologically challenged

Welcome! My lads and I will be heading down your way sometime in July. First port 'o call will be Daytone, and then St Augustine! Mistress Dobyns