Making a Little Progress in the Home

Greetings Dear Ladies and welcome to The Manse. It is looking like a worn-out summer around here, but still there are always the delights of every season.

Today in the broadcast I talked a little about travel clothing and in my search for ideas, came across this paragraph regarding the travel customs of the 1800's:

Secondly, women travelers were advised to avoid conspicuous dress as that was noted to be “vulgar.” This meant women were to dress plainly and avoid unnecessary garniture, jewelry, or flowers, as “gay dress, or finery of any sort, when in a boat, stage, or [rail]car, lays a woman open to the most severe misconstruction.”[2] Additionally, one etiquette expert noted that “a quiet, unpretending dress, and dignified demeanor, will insure for a lady respect.”[3]

Read the rest of it on this wonderful site.

I also mentioned this photograph from Simple Social Graces by Linda Lichter, which shows the Victorians on vacation visiting the seaside. The caption compares it with todays mode of dress on vacations.

Description reads: Strollers on the Coney Island boardwalk on a summer day in 1897 show a sensibility about public dress and decorum that is in stark contrast in the modern era.

I talked about some of the things people did to prepare for travel and vacation, such as choosing travel clothing, shopping in tourist places, and keeping a travel vacation diary of sorts. 

It is a bit cooler around The Manse, as the temperature and colors are changing.

Ladies cotton plaid shirt: Time & Tru from WalMart

Plastic pumpkin soap dispenser: JoAnn Fabrics

"We are enjoying very nice weather."

A few years ago I made these fanciful fake pumpkins to go with my seafoam green decor, from fleece fabric called Minky, in mint green.

It is not too sunny around The Manse today but I hope I brought

some sunshine.

Today I showed a picture from the recent Victoria Magazine, of the way a designer paired furnishings in avocado green with bright spots of fushsia pink, from a decorating book called "The Collected Cottage."

I talked about how much more creative we could have been with this color we were saturated with in a previous decade. Now I see it in antique stores made very appealing.  The Tartan Topiary reviews many decorating books. Go through her videos to find one you like. Sometimes she features books by Victoria Magazine.

I mentioned the article  about introductions in

Greetings and Gestures in Austen’s Novels, by Rachel Dodge

Please go and read it for yourself, as it is explains why the process of making introductions was created;  namely to reduce the awkwardness of approaching someone by yourself.

To begin your day, I suggested a "prep" list, which, after you have got used to repeating,

can just list it as "prep" to warm your mind up to the day ahead.

One of the exercise ladies you might like, especially if you are of "a certain age" which we referred to as "vital", is

Natasha Mohan

Scroll through her videos and find a one or two minute exercise from bed or a chair to get started.

They do a lot to settle your mind and emotions, enabling you to focus.

I also talked about the spice "nutmeg" that has many benefits. You can do a search on it, and discover that it also helps lift the mood and prevent depression.

Please enjoy your home while you listen to the broadcast:

For the vanilla mousse cake filling recipe similar to the one used by Costco, most of the recipes that turned up on my search required a box of instant vanilla pudding. There were a few that listed only heavy cream, cream cheese, vanilla and confectioners (powdered) sugar.

If you want more information about 18th and 19th century travel clothes, you can view some of the period movies, where the creators have done fairly good research on the subject and reproduced the clothes.  The 1990's versions of the Jane Austen books are a nice representation of travel clothes. Here is one screenshot I found, when Elizabeth went by carriage with her aunt and uncle to the Lake Country and stopped to visit Pemberly. Her aunt and uncle are portrayed walking in the background, in similar understated clothing. 

 You can see the  colors and style cited in the link I posted  about travel ettiquette in the Regency era,  at the beginning of this article.