From: Gretchen Miller Date: Wed, 24 May 1995 18:27:50 -0400 (EDT) Subject: H-Costume Digest, Volume 311, 5/24/95 The Historic Costume List Digest, Volume 311, May 24, 1995 Send items for the list to h-costume@andrew.cmu.edu (or reply to this message). Send subscription/deletion requests and inquiries to h-costume-request@andrew.cmu.edu Enjoy! ------------------------------ Topics: Interesting articles in Issue 14 "Civil War Lady" Question and answer: Source of buckskin and patterns Philip's Farewell The care and feeding of silk Sewing help 500-1500 Purpose of mouth braces ISO: Bulk emery powder ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: VICKI@lib.uttyl.edu Date: Thu, 18 May 1995 15:34:36 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Civil War Lady Issue no. 14 of _Civil War Lady_ arrived yesterday. Articles of possible interest to h-costume include: "Sacks & Dressing Gowns" by Saundra Altman (well illustrated with CDV's and illustrations from Godey's and Peterson's) "Fragrances of the Past" by J. Wong (Eau de Cologne Imperiale, 1856, various items from Caswell-Massey) "On 19th Century Cosmetics" by Jen Mescher (includes recipes from Godey's and other sources) There are also three black and white photographs. The cover is of a woman, from about her knees up. She is wearing a scoop bonnet with flowers and grain, lace around the face, and very broad ribbon ties. She is wearing a plain dark silk dress with gathered wrist (?), leather gloves, chunky bracelet, earrings, and fringed solid shawl with a woven lighter stripe near the outer edges. The inside front cover is a young mother and child--the mother is wearing a vertically striped dres with bishop sleeves pleated into the armseye, white scalloped collar and narrow white cuff--no jewelry or head covering. The baby is in a typical off the shoulders, short sleeve dress with dark braiding above hem, black patent shoes, and striped stockings. The back cover is of a older woman in a dark silk dress, V front pinned in place, pleated skirt, with white chemisette closed with a brooch, lace mitts, dark silk shawl with knotted fringe, and she is wearing a white cap. One of my other lists has various journals "farmed out" to individuals who list the table of contents of new issues so that everyone can stay informed of current developments. Could we do that? I've been trying to hit _Civil War Lady_, _Citizens' Companion_, and _Lady's Gallery_, although I've been hitting the mid-nineteenth century only. Just a thought. Vicki Betts vicki@lib.uttyl.edu ---------------- ------------------------------ From: Ladyspnr@aol.com Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 08:59:01 -0400 Subject: Buckskin Well, I just received great news and not so great news last night from my better half (husband). He has FINALLY agreed to attend some local re-enactments with the kids and me. YEAH, after seven years I may have a husband there in reality instead of "out foraging"! Now the not so great part, he will NOT wear knee breeches. Said he feels like a sissy. Oh well. He wants me to make him a buckskin outfit like the trappers/voyagers he saw at a festival last year. Okay, where does one find patterns for a buckskin outfit from the mid- to late 1700's? Also, where does one purchase skins that doesn't cost an arm, leg, eye, and everything in between? :-l Does anyone have any suggestions? Karri P.S. saw a cute quote the other day "Ignorance is curable, stupidity is forever" I agree. :-) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 10:26:49 -0400 (EDT) From: "Philip Edward Cutone, III" Subject: Goodbye (from the temp. list admin) Well, its been a bit rocky... but the worst is over.... there was a period of time yesterday where the messages were bouncing... for this I apologize. Please resend your message if you never saw it. Gretchen will be back monday so it's been a pleasure working for you all. Take care and happy costuming! In Service, Philip Edward Cutone III "The Internet is totally out of control, impossible to map accurately, and being used far beyond its original intentions. So far, so good." Dr. Dobb's Journal May 1993 ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 08:11:17 -0700 (PDT) From: Lori Kishimoto Subject: The Care and Feeding of Silk The following is an article on washing silk, reprinted here by permission of the author (in her own words, "Better your fingers than mine!"). It appeared in the April 1994 issue of JAREEDA, a magazine for Middle Eastern Dance artists. This is in reference to the dying and undying of silks posts that appeared here several weeks ago. I appologize for the delay -- I've been very busy, and then lost my copy of the article! With appologies to the author, I have included mostly only the sections that pertain to the "care and feeding," as I *do* value my fingers! Lori Kishimoto ========================================================= SUGGESTIONS FOR WASHING SILK by Shakira of Columbus, Ohio Many dancers are discovering the beauty and lyricism of pure silk veils. Get the right weight, and they have a "loft," softness, and fluid, swirling quality that no other material has (although the new microfiber and some better-quality light chiffons come close). They demand a different approach to the veil (as indeed every veil does to some extent)... silk veils also demand a different approach in terms of care! A number of publications, electronic and otherwise, detail varying methods of cleaning silk. I've compiled a synthesis of their advice for you in this article. First off, no one is sanguine about taking silk to the dry cleaners -- unless you know you cleaners well and trust them absolutely. Older and finer silks may not stand up to the process, indeed, but the real rub is that many cleaners recycle their cleaning solutions. Therefore, you might want to take only your darkest silks there, as reused cleaning fluids can cause lighter silks to come out grayed. Hand-washing and rinsing is generally recommended, even for stained silk. Woolite is *not* recommended! Instead the silk should be washed (which consists of gentle swishing) in one of the following mixes: cool water, Ivory Snow, and Lemon Joy dishwashing liquid or some other lemon-based liquid; water and quilt-washing liquid; or water and Orvus. The latter is recommended by Lyn Dearborn, my most thorough and detailed source on caring for silk. Orvus is available from farm supplies -- and occassionally quilt shops and museums that handle fabric. It is (get this) used by dairies to wash cows' teats before milking, and as such, is perfectly pH-balanced, with no harmful chemicals... If your silk veil has any stains, allow it to sit for some time in your washing solution. If you elect to use the lemon-based liquid, you can rinse your silk in cool water -- by hand, or in the machine, as will be discussed in a moment. If you use a pH-balanced solution, such as quilt cleaner or Orvus (moo!), it's important to rinse with a slightly acid solution. Lyn recommends a capful of white vinegar to half a machine of water, or a very dilute solution of glacial acetic acid. Why the acid solution? Unlike other fabrics, silk needs an acid environment, whereas soaps -- even natural ones, Lyn adds -- are almost always basic. (Egad, you high school chemistry teacher was right -- everyone needs to know *some* chemistry, even Middle Eastern dancers!) Suppose you choose to use the washer, either for rinsing only, or for soaking, or for even washing your lovely silk. Obviously, you won't want to have residue from previous, harsher washings in there! "Be sure," Lyn admonishes, "that you haven't had bleach in there before washing silk!" Rinsing the washer first is appropriate in any case, as even the seemingly-ubiquitous Tide can contain bleach-type chemicals or harsh soaps. That done, fill your washer with water and your choice of washing solution, and turn on the agitator to mix well. Then put in your piece of silk, gently submerging it, and either let it sit for "a long time," per Lyn, or "if really dirty, hand rub or agitate on gentle for about 25 *seconds*." You can use the spin cycle of your washer to remove the soapy water. When this is complete, take out your now-wet silk, refill your water with clean rinse water, replace the silk in it, and let it sit. Lyn recommends repeating this spinout-refill-soak cycle several times. When the water looks clean and clear of soap, remove the silk and add the vinegar or other acid solution, if necessary, mix, then replace the silk for the final rinse, soak, and spin. As to drying, drip drying is possible unless the silk is very heavy with water and fairly fragile. In this case you can eliminate some of the water by running a blow dryer on its coolest setting some distance from your silk (with the silk lying so it doesn't dry wrong or stretch). Alternatively, you can press out some of the water by blotting it with towels (gently!), or dry it lying on towels. For the latter, you may need to switch your veil to drier towels frequently if you need to dry it quickly. Once all this is done, I like to use single or multiple skirt hangers, not pants hangers, to hang my silk veils. I recommend getting ones with rubber clip-guards and not too much tension in the clip, if possible. I place the clips about a yard or more apart so that the veil hangs softly in a drape... rather than being stretched tight between the clips...; or held in a large "U" at the very ends... This creates a natural, soft drape. If the "worst should happen" and the veils are creased in this position, at least it will be a natural, draped-looking crease, not a geometric fold! If you've purchase a silk veil from a source that recommends other methods, by all means feel free to follow their instructions. The purpose of this article has been to give simple, general guidelines to those trying out a new, wonderful silk veil. I hope it was helpful, and happy dancing! ---------------- ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 11:25:55 -0400 From: hls6@po.CWRU.Edu (Heather L. Sutton) Subject: 500 - 1500 ? I'm a newbie to this group...and I am wondering if there is much talk of mideival dress and costumes.... I am interested in what they wore...both men and women, as well as which patterns (current) that are simple to alter into that time period... I also have heard that the women wore cloth to cover their hair... how long should it be? Any other info on this period would be greatly appreciated. Also, any sewing tips would be a great help. Especially when working with leather...my other half fights and is trying to find out about sewing the leather parts of his armour. Thanks, Heather ------------------------------ Subject: Re: 500 - 1500 ? Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 12:42:04 -0400 From: Elizabeth Lear Actually, we talk a lot about that period, but in order for us to help you we'd need more detail about what exact time period and country you are interested in. For example, many women in many countries in many different times covered their hair for various reasons and in various manners. We're not of much help telling you how long the cloth is and how to wear it or even what the cloth should be made of without knowing where and when you mean. ...eliz ------------------------------ From: ccary@tiara.wpd.sgi.com (Christina Cary) Date: Fri, 19 May 1995 10:08:09 -0700 Subject: Re: H-Costume Digest, Volume 308, 5/19/95 On May 19, 9:42am, Philip Edward Cutone, III wrote: > Subject: H-Costume Digest, Volume 308, 5/19/95 > ------------------------------ > Date: Sat, 13 May 1995 11:05:03 -0400 > From: Tracy023@aol.com > Subject: Re: documentation on maiming > Reply-To: h-costume+@andrew.cmu.edu > > I may have missed it but didn't notice anyone mention braces on kids' > teeth. This hardly qualifies as "maiming," any more than a haircut does. > Before anyone gets excited and argues that braces are a health tool to > improve the bite and prolong the life of the teeth, just ask yourself how > often you hear people use the health argument as opposed to "s/he will be so > good looking once they get their teeth straightened." People don't use the health argument as much because they really don't know about it. They aren't medical professionals, and like most humans, are concerned with their appearance. Proper correction of the bite is an orthodontist's specialty. My parents are very tight-fisted, anti-glamour people, and believe me, they would never spend a dime on beautification of anything. But my dad paid $1200 in the 1970s to have my teeth straightened because I would have had serious dental problems without it. The "beautification" aspect is a side-effect of a process that is intended to correct and prevent dental problems. And it is a very welcome side-effect. Have you heard anyone say, "Gee, I really miss my crooked teeth, I wish they weren't so straight now"? Also, there is nothing wrong or trivial or superficial about improving your appearance or that of your child. People who are embarassed about some aspect of their appearance can suffer from low self-esteem and shyness. This can affect their social life and personal happiness. I knew a guy in grad school who literally never smiled because he was embarassed about his crooked teeth. He even talked without moving his lips very much. Yet he could chew perfectly well. He may not have needed orthodontia to survive, but he sure needed the "beautification" aspect. > And has anyone looked > closely at what dentists today put kids through in the name of keeping down > the cost of braces? Children are treated like cattle....peering ghoulishly into the faces of the > children stretched out in the chairs... You are really exaggerating. I have visited several orthodontists over the years and never saw such conditions. As a teenager I was treated in a common room, but the experience did not scar me for life. In fact, I didn't even notice it. > In these kinds of cases, shy and sensitive boys and girls can > feel humiliated- Or they might feel just fine. They'll feel a lot worse if they have to grow up with crooked teeth that ruin their smile and cause early decay and uneven wear. > it is > one area of "modern medicine" that I think definitely is still in the dark > ages and fits the criteria of maiming [mentally and physically] for > beautification. Again, the "beautification" is a side-effect of correcting a condition that usually leads to dental problems. Christina -- First name: Christina Last name: Cary E-mail address: ccary@tiara.wpd.sgi.com _______________________________________________________________________ ------------------------------ From: Edward Wright Date: Fri, 19 May 95 11:23:18 TZ Subject: RE: Buckskin | Now the not so great part, he will NOT wear knee breeches. Said he feels | like a sissy. Oh well. He wants me to make him a buckskin outfit like the | trappers/voyagers he saw at a festival last year. Okay, where does one find | patterns for a buckskin outfit from the mid- to late 1700's? Also, where | does one purchase skins that doesn't cost an arm, leg, eye, and everything in | between? :-l Amazon Dry Goods carries the patterns. As for the hides, if there's a Leather Factory near you, their prices are usually cheaper than Tandy Leather, and they offer (at least at their main store in Fort Worth) a 10% discount for SCA, reenactors, etc. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 22 May 1995 07:36:35 -0500 (CDT) From: Elizabeth Coffey Subject: RE: Looking for emery I'm posting for a friend. She is looking for a source for bulk emery powder. The stuff that is used in little sewing strawberries for sharpening handsewing needles. If you know of a source, please contact me. Thanks - Elizabeth (Libby) Coffey cseac.@bgu.edu ------------------------------ End of Volume 311 -----------------------