The Victorian Era is named for Queen Victoria, who reigned from 1837 to 1901. As you might imagine, fashions changed dramatically over this 60-year span, but the changes didn’t happen as quickly as you might think. During the early years of the Victorian age, travel and communication were much slower than today, so a particular [...]
We hope you will enjoy making this beloved decoration. Depending on the paper you use, and the embellishments you choose, your cones can be very simple, very elegant, or anything in between. The materials are easy to obtain, and the technique for making them can be mastered by even the very young. Materials: Paper [...]
Those Victorians, who from today’s point of view seemed to have a decidedly morbid bent, were fascinated by the idea of being able to communicate with departed loved ones. Though it was first brought to the market in 1890, the parlour game known as the Ouija board had been around for many years before [...]
The Edwardian Era is named for Queen Victoria’s son Edward, who ascended to the throne upon her death in 1901. This was to become an age of unparalleled luxury as the bustles, stiff silks and wools of the 1890’s gave way to the new decorative Art Noveau style. The French termed this period la Belle [...]
Do you love to wear retro styles? The seemingly always-casual clothing of today hardly compares to dresses with little capped sleeves, Peter Pan collars, bodices tailored to hug the waist, and swingy full circle skirts. What feminine heart couldn’t love a short-sleeved cashmere sweater or a string of pearls to wear with absolutely everything? For [...]
Originally released in 1960, the movie “The Magnificent Seven” starring Yul Brenner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn, Brad Dexter, and James Coburn, was a huge hit worldwide. Within a few years, the movie had been translated into a dozen languages and was being enjoyed in nearly every country [...]
In 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald published a novel called “The Great Gatsby”. Set at the height of the Roaring 20’s, the book gave readers a peek at the emotional and material extravagances of the lifestyle of the “rich and famous” of the day, as exemplified in the person of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious business magnate. [...]
While it is apparent that Steampunk style is rapidly becoming mainstream, we thought it might be interesting to explore a bit of the actual culture a bit more closely. First – let’s agree that the premise is based on the “future worlds” created by several authors including, but not limited to, Jules Verne, K.W. Jeter [...]
Early Victorians generally had little interest in visiting the ocean for any reason, but somewhere around the mid-1800’s doctors started recommending spas and mineral waters as a cure for many ailments. Natural hot springs – like the Glenwood Springs mentioned in an earlier Blog article – became popular places for fashionable Victorians to go to [...]