Amphorae

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...

I don't usually post the same thing on both of my blogs, but this news is worth repeating! There is a brand new re-enactment group called the Regency Society of Virginia . This is of particular interest to people like me who live near Washington, D.C. and have despaired of finding a casual (but knowledgeable) group of people on the East Coast who aren't doing Revolutionary or Civil War events. I quote from their website:- " Do you adore Jane Austen and her works (or the movies based upon them)?  Are you a War of 1812 or Napoleonic Wars re-enactor?  Perhaps you love the fashions of the Regency era or wish you had a place to wear such finery?  Enjoy the elegance of an English Country Dance?... We are a group of early 19th century enthusiasts who seek to unite all those who wish to recapture the refinement and civil society of this by-gone age.  Join us in this, our inaugural year, as we host workshops, costumed events, lectures and more with a disti...