Edwardian women in black and white

By | August 19th, 2023|Categories: Edwardian Era, Fashion history, Women's History|

I am a fan of Edward Linley Sambourne and I didn’t even know it!  During my time as a women’s history researcher and blogger, I have used Sambourne’s photography multiple times, never realizing the source. I think because photography was emerging as such a popular medium during the Edwardian era I assumed that the plethora [...]

What's a woman's wallet, really?

By | August 15th, 2023|Categories: 1950s Fashions, Accessories, Edwardian Era, Fashion history|Tags: |

“Keys, phone, wallet…” like many of you this is my leaving-the-house mantra. I also almost never leave the house without my sunglasses, but I typically have those already on my body before I repeat the mantra. Like sunglasses; phones and wallets are things women have carried with them for less than a hundred years. When [...]

Ribbon corsets

By | August 10th, 2023|Categories: Edwardian Era, Fashion history, Underpinnings|Tags: , |

In my recent post about Victorian summer dresses, I came across photos of ventilated corsets; corsets made of ribbon or strips of fabric connecting the boning and ties. At first, I thought that they may have been a new summer-friendly invention of the late Victorian era but I came to learn that ribbon corsets were [...]

The multiple meanings of “corsage”

By | June 2nd, 2023|Categories: Edwardian Era, Victorian culture, Victorian Era|Tags: |

Today, most of us automatically think of high school dances when we hear the word “corsage.” Myself, I am envious when I see the photos and firmly believe that more of us should be given opportunities to wear flowers around our wrists!  But I digress… While we may picture prom dresses and photos on the [...]

Jean Beraud : Documenting the Belle Epoque

By | September 19th, 2022|Categories: Edwardian Era|Tags: , , |

The work of Jean Beraud was recently brought to my attention by a member of the Recollections team and I am so glad that it was! For the past several days I have been scouring the internet to find examples of his late Victorian and Belle Epoque paintings and enjoying every minute. His art is [...]

The titillating history of the tea dance

By | July 7th, 2022|Categories: Edwardian Era, Victorian Era, Victorian Era Celebrations|

This summer we have been exploring the history of Victorian tea culture. The mass popularity of tea in the 19th century led to new furniture, a growing amount of teaware, and new household schedules. It also led to social occasions that society molded around. This included afternoon tea, high tea, tea parties, and tea dances. [...]

Victorian and Edwardian combination garments

By | May 22nd, 2022|Categories: Edwardian Era, Fashion, Underpinnings, Victorian Era, Victorian Fashions|

I love wearing petticoats! Recently I wrote a post about the history of petticoats and discovered that our readers love them as well. I am also a big fan of the history of the corset and its variations over time. It is therefore surprising that I have never done much digging into the history or [...]

Antique Easter Greetings!

By | April 15th, 2022|Categories: Edwardian Era, Holidays, Victorian Era, Victorian Era Celebrations|Tags: , |

Happy Easter Recollections Community!  I have looked forward to writing posts this time of year since I came into the Recollections blog because Easter is such a pretty holiday and I know that many of our customers love celebrating it. I enjoy Easter and this time of year because I am such a firm believer [...]

The woman behind the Campbell's Soup Kids: Grace Drayton

By | April 7th, 2022|Categories: Edwardian Era, Women's History|

Because of my interest in paper dolls, I have wanted to research the origins of Dolly Dingle for a while now. What I have uncovered is the illustrious career of a pioneering female artist, Grace Drayton. You will no doubt be familiar with some of her most well-known cartoons, which she was creating during a [...]