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Regency Ladies' Day
Nov. 14th, 2009 08:01 pmToday was the Riversdale Regency Ladies' Day event - seven eventful hours at a local museum (this area is lousy with Regency/Colonial era houses turned into museums).
People came from all over the area - special shoutout to author Janet Mullany (who at one point let us in on her take in the paranormal Jane Austen anthology coming out next year. Miss Austen is getting quite the paranormal workout these days!) Another attendee - I don't know if she wants her name in LJ - was celebrating her birthday.
Riversdale is the Regency-era home built by the Calvert family, mostly overseen by Rosalie Calvert, whose many letters to her Belgian family survive and have been published. (One of the side conversations was over the very unusual name of the docent, who came from Antwerp just as Rosalie had. "I'm Flemish," the docent explained.
"You call yourself Flemish and not Belgian?"
"Oh, yes, dear!"
( We started with candying flowers. )
( Then we made perfume. )
The highlight of the day was the special presentation on hairstyles and embellishments by Stacy Hampton ( Sources, bibliography, websites, and instructions under cut. )
Luncheon consisted of pumpkin soup, turkey smoked sausage, corn muffins, locally churned butter, and 3 kinds of pickles made from beans, cucumbers, and cabbage grown on site.
We next had our choices of making a commonplace book - basically a scrapbook (one enterprising woman started a scrapbook of that day itself; it made me a bit sorry I've tossed the menu and program from A Taste of Amontillado) or making cards with flowers grown and pressed on site.
After that, we made herbal sashets. (The Russian sage looked pretty but over time, the scent's starting to get to me.)
Final event was to make scones and cupcake icing for the final tea (the cupcakes would also be decorated with the morning's candied pansies. ( The rest of the menu was... )
On the way out, we were each given two potted pansies, two hyacinth bulbs, and two tulip bulbs.
A very long day - it started at 10 and I walked back into the house at 5 - but a pleasant one. Apparently last year they did cosmetics. I'll keep an eye out for next year... and next year I'll be properly garbed. (They are offering a "Make a Regency Dress in a Weekend" event in January.)
People came from all over the area - special shoutout to author Janet Mullany (who at one point let us in on her take in the paranormal Jane Austen anthology coming out next year. Miss Austen is getting quite the paranormal workout these days!) Another attendee - I don't know if she wants her name in LJ - was celebrating her birthday.
Riversdale is the Regency-era home built by the Calvert family, mostly overseen by Rosalie Calvert, whose many letters to her Belgian family survive and have been published. (One of the side conversations was over the very unusual name of the docent, who came from Antwerp just as Rosalie had. "I'm Flemish," the docent explained.
"You call yourself Flemish and not Belgian?"
"Oh, yes, dear!"
( We started with candying flowers. )
( Then we made perfume. )
The highlight of the day was the special presentation on hairstyles and embellishments by Stacy Hampton ( Sources, bibliography, websites, and instructions under cut. )
Luncheon consisted of pumpkin soup, turkey smoked sausage, corn muffins, locally churned butter, and 3 kinds of pickles made from beans, cucumbers, and cabbage grown on site.
We next had our choices of making a commonplace book - basically a scrapbook (one enterprising woman started a scrapbook of that day itself; it made me a bit sorry I've tossed the menu and program from A Taste of Amontillado) or making cards with flowers grown and pressed on site.
After that, we made herbal sashets. (The Russian sage looked pretty but over time, the scent's starting to get to me.)
Final event was to make scones and cupcake icing for the final tea (the cupcakes would also be decorated with the morning's candied pansies. ( The rest of the menu was... )
On the way out, we were each given two potted pansies, two hyacinth bulbs, and two tulip bulbs.
A very long day - it started at 10 and I walked back into the house at 5 - but a pleasant one. Apparently last year they did cosmetics. I'll keep an eye out for next year... and next year I'll be properly garbed. (They are offering a "Make a Regency Dress in a Weekend" event in January.)
