Jump, Jive, and Wail- Swing Kids

Swing Kids, starring Robert Sean Leonard, Kenneth Branagh, and Christian Bale amongst others, is a film about the pro-jazz, non-conformist youth of Hamburg, Germany at the start of WWII. Contrary to the pressure to be nationalistic, somber and join the Hitler Youth these hipsters embraced American fashions, Swing, and a certain "joie de vivre" that authorities found unsettling, even dangerous. In the film, a group of friends finds themselves challenged by prejudice, familial pressures, and their own still-developing sense of morality. Each one makes a choice, but do those choices bring them closer together or tear them apart?

I'm not going to answer that for you, you'll have to watch it for yourself. Be assured that the movie has lots of thrilling swing dance scenes with high-flying aerials (acrobatic moves), jumping music, and plenty of the pathos for which the main actors are well-known. Robert Sean Leonard, in particular, is brilliant as a kid named Peter whose father died after enduring harsh interrogation for his supposed Socialist views. Peter's widowed mother is not eager to lose her son as well, and Kenneth Branagh is only too eager to help her and her family through his Nazi governmental ties. It begins with a party and ends with a party, but the in-between is anything but joyful. If you liked Dead Poet's Society you will likewise enjoy Swing Kids. You know what's going to happen from the start, but like a great piece of music, you've got to listen to all of the notes.

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Italian Renaissance Hairstyles

In keeping with my last post on Italian Renaissance costume I thought we would take a look at something we didn't touch much on; hairstyles. They were extremely varying; up and down, braided, netted, entwined with silks and ribbons, even pearls, and, of course, dyed, bleached, and curled. The only thing in somewhat short supply seems to be hats, and really who would want to cover up what you had spent so much time constructing? "Do you have any idea how long it took me to get the curls placed?!" 1544 Portrait of Laura da Pola by Lotto Occasionally a small cap, or scuffia, was worn either with side curls, or with most of the hair stuffed up underneathe:- 1490 portrait by Ghirlandaio 1502 Betrothal 1510 Portrait by Araldi Another notable hair decoration was the reta, or hairnet. Some of these were beaded, some woven in decorative patterns, and some left very simple. 1505-1508 Siena 1545 Lavinia Under and around these ornamentations, o...

How Our Ancestors Slept

As someone who wakes up during the night feeling frustratingly refreshed...and then struggles to rise in the morning, I found this article to be a kind of vindication. Apparently the way we sleep has changed. For more information you can visit the link here .

The De Berry Project- The Fabric and shoes

As I mentioned last time I am working on a version of the outfit to the left for an event coming up soon in July. I wanted something with a hat to shade my face, and not too hot since we are going to be outside in the middle of a Virginian summer. The fabric gods were not kind, when I went to my local fabric stores. There was really nothing in the right weight, color, pattern, fiber, or amount; especially the amount since I need about 8 yards for the undergown and 10 yards for the overdress. Part of the problem is that there are no waist seams, so each piece has to be cut from a long continuous length of material. Also, those sleeves are about four yards by themselves. I resigned myself to ordering online, which I hate doing because it's so hard to be sure of the color etc without seeing it in person, and by the time the fabric arrives often there just isn't time to send it back and get something else. I went first to an oldie, but a goodie; Thai silks. I knew they would...

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