I just love this illustration, don’t you? Gennady Spirin. Illustration from ‘The White Cat” So I’ve been reading Jean Hunnisett’s Period Costume for Stage & Screen: Patterns for Women’s Dress 1500-1800, and recalling…
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V186: Happy 4th of July
Happy Independence Day! Enjoy your BBQs, fireworks, and fun time with friends! The 4th is a great time to dress up patriotically, too. I tried the “Happy Pompadour” hairstyle from “Vintage Hairstyling:…
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V185: The Polonaise Jacket of Doom and Hell
Du…Du Hast…Du Hast Mich You know those projects that just don’t want to be made, and give you trouble all the way through to the violent end? This is one of those.…
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V184: My First Real 18th Century Shoe Buckles
Ebay is such a wonderous place. I won an auction for these awesome 18th century shoe buckles – only $35!! They were quite brown when they arrived from England, but a little…
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V183: July Call For Sponsors
Hi All! Do you have an online shop or a business you think might benefit from advertising here on American Duchess? Well happy days, for the first time I am accepting sponsored…
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V182: The Lovely Bones: Reliquary Busts of Female Saints
Last night a beautiful image popped up on my Pinterest feed … this one. Her name is not known – a companion of, or a saint herself? What do you think her…
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V181: Small Biz Betties: The Small Biz Triple Crown – Blog, Facebook, and Storefront
Hello again, all you small biz betties out there. This week we will start getting in to the nuts and bolts of how to start your business online, with something I call…
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V180: A Little Georgian Humor
This delightful image popped up on my Pinterest feed the other day, and I just had to share it with you… Henry Bunbury – “Me, my wife, and Daughter” There are quite…
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V179: More Georgian Jackets … Decisions, Decisions
I certainly have a love affair with 18th c. jackets. They’re just so darned cute! Now I get to decide, yet again, what kind of jacket to make from 2 yards of…
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V178: 1770s Polonaise Jacket Progress
I haven’t been in a super-sewing mood, but I have made a little progress on the polonaise jacket planned for our Colonial Williamsburg trip this coming October. I draped the pattern for…
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V177: Cool Georgian Fashion Plate Mirror Art
I received a lovely gift from Oscar and Debbie, of VintageDancer.com – two 18th century fashion plate mirror artworks. They cam from a local auction and are hella cool and perfect for…
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V176: Lovely 1920s n’ 30s Textiles
Yesterday Debbie (Vintage Dancer) and I attended a delightful show-n-tell of 1920s and 30s clothing. The select pieces the presenter brought were goooorgeous. Here are some detail photos of a handful of…
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V175: Rockabilly Outfit Day
Today I went to a presentation on vintage clothing, which gave occasion to wear something, well, vintage-y. I didn’t want to mess with hair or girdles, so I wore this… The End.
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V174: My First Costume Piece…Ever
Today I’m going to purposefully embarrass myself with a photo of my very first piece of costume ever. I mean “very first piece of costume ever” as the first thing I sewed…
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V173: New “Coming Soon” Historical Accessories to Get Excited About
I can’t help it – I get excited about new products I’m working on, and I want to share them with you! There are cool things in the works. I have dreams…
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V172: Vintage 1940s, 50s and 60s Patterns
Yesterday I received a wonderful gift from Beth – four gorgeous vintage sewing patterns! I looooove vintage patterns. There is something about them that just makes sewing with one a real treat,…
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V171: A Vintage Button Hook
We’ve all seen these funny little tools. What are they for, even? We no longer wear button-up shoes these days, but back in the 1920s and prior, this was an essential tool…
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V170: What Is Inside an American Duchess Shoe?
All this mess makes up one Astoria shoe Hi Ladies! Today I’d like to show you just what makes up a pair of American Duchess shoes. It’s good to know what you’re…
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V169: The Pony Express Re-Ride at Fort Churchill, NV
This past Thursday, my parents and I ventured out to Fort Churchill, Nevada, to see the Pony Express Association’s annual re-ride event, in which riders travel the same route, in the same…
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V167: Small Biz Betties: Discovering What the Market Needs
Welcome back to Small Biz Betties, where we’ll be talking about starting and maintaining your own small, niche business. Today let’s discuss the most important thing, your IDEA. Every small business starts…