Tag Archives: 19th century

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Starting with Now

Hi, friends. It’s been hard to come up with things to post about. I wanted to post things that were related to my book which is set in the early 19th century. Things like clothes people wore, the events people attended, and/or who the king or queen was at the time.

The problem I’m running into is that I did all my research several years ago. You see, I wrote my book, then went back to college hoping to get a better job. In all that time of raising my family, working full-time, and studying for college classes there was no time to write much less think about writing.

Now, I’m trying to build an audience through this blog, twitter, Facebook, goodreads, and I don’t know what else. It’s been such a long time since the research that I don’t have time to go back and research it all again. The stories in my head I want to get down on paper and social networking is just taking so much of my time (along with everyday life).

So, from this time on, I’m going to start posting about what I’m researching on my current book. In reality, it won’t be much different. My second book is about two secondary characters in the first book. The time period is the same and hopefully this will give me a chance to get back to it.

Also, I started writing a short story. It’s set in the medieval time period. It has been so much fun to write, but it’s already close to 15,000 words. I don’t think I can really call it a short story. Plus, there is no spiritual aspect to the story and I would really like to go back and write it in. I have really gotten to know the heroine. I love how she has developed and I want to see what I can do with her in a novel. I haven’t really done any research on this time period, but I could post what I learn. The whole idea of doing that is that my audience can learn with me, so when they read the book they will know what they are reading.

Where do you draw inspiration for your blog?

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An Interview with a Character

Hello Friends! I had a great opportunity to interview a wonderful Christian lady. She is the mother of Lord Prestonshire from my book “The Search.” She is the Duchess of Blackfield and she agreed to answer a few questions for me. Here is my interview with her:

I smiled at Lady Blackfield as she sat down in a chair next to me. “Welcome Lady Blackfield and thank you for joining me.

Lady Blackfield smiled. “It’s my pleasure and, please, call me Eva.”

I placed my hand on my chest, “Oh, I don’t know if I can do that since you’re a duchess and all.”

Lady Blackfield rolled her eyes delicately, “Don’t be silly, dear, I’m just like anyone else. If you feel more comfortable, call me Lady Eva.”

I sat back in my chair beginning to feel quite at ease, “All right, if you insist. Lady Eva, your oldest son, Lord Prestonshire, met Cynthia Clarkston at a masquerade ball. It is my understanding that, though they danced together, when he left he had no idea who she was. Is that true? And if it is can you explain how that could have happen?”

Lady Blackfield laughed, “Yes, it is true, but you must remember it was a masquerade ball.”

I raised my eyebrows, “Oh, so Cynthia didn’t know it was Lord Prestonshire, either.”

Lady Blackfield shook her head, “Actually, she did know it was Preston. He didn’t wear a mask like everyone else. Before he left that evening, I questioned him about it. He said he thought it was silly since everyone knows everyone even if they wear masks.”

I smiled, “But he didn’t know everyone.”

Lady Blackfield grinned at me, “No, I think that is one of the things that intrigued Preston about Cynthia.”

I nodded, “What else do think drew Preston to Cynthia?”

Lady Blackfield hardly had to think about it, “Besides being very pretty, I think the mystery that surrounded her really intrigued him. For every question he found an answer for, there always seemed to be more questions.”

I nodded my head again, “I think you might be right. Well, I think that is all the questions I have for you right now. I appreciate you joining me and answering my questions.”

Lady Blackfield touched my arm, “Your very welcome.”

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19th Century Men’s Attire

Have you ever read something in a book and had no idea what they were talking about or describing? That’s happened to me a few times. Then when you keep coming across the same word you finally go to the internet to look it up. That is why I wanted to write things on my blog that you might find in my book. Today I want to tell you about men’s clothing.

Personally, I find some of it interesting. So here is a list of things you would see a man wear. Then I will tell you the things I found interesting:

  1. Shirts were linen and worn with a stock or cravat.
  2. A stock was a stiff neckband.
  3. A cravat was a square piece of cloth that was folded into a triangle and tied around the neck.
  4. A waistcoat, a type of vest, was standard with every riding coat.
  5. A “dress” riding coat was cut high in the front, double-breasted and was long-tailed in the back.
  6. A frock coat was worn during the day.
  7. Tights (pants) were made of buckskins.
  8. Tall boots.

Well, linen shirts aren’t to interesting unless you are watching the end of Pride and Prejudice where Mr. Darcy is walking through the field toward Lizzy. It was dawn; the breeze blows his frock coat around him as his walks through the grass wet with dew. His linen shirt is tucked into his pants, but is open at the neck. Well, you get the picture. Besides the intriguing glimpses into Lizzy’s life, the wealthy could afford to have several linen shirts. You could say it was a sign of wealth if you were always wearing a white linen shirt.

The color of a waistcoat and dress coat became darker as the century when by until you had the black and white formal attire that you may see even today. We call it a tuxedo. Even with the black and white formal attire there was always the cravat to give your attire some color. Some cravats could be quite extravagant.

Now, as far as the pants and boots, the beginning of the 19th century was a time when a more natural look was desirable. When I say pants were like tights, it means they were really tight. You know, like tights. Seriously, they were so tight men had to carry a separate coin purse because there was no room for pockets. Boots were tall for a very practical reason, what with all the riding men did.

One last thing I find interesting. Before the 19th century, men and women wore powdered wigs. Men wore pants that stopped at the knee, white socks that covered their calves. They had to wear the ruffled shirt and the coat with the big brass buttons. At the beginning of the 19th century men and women’s clothing may have changed but servants had to continue to wear the old style of dress.

We have come a long way in the way we dress, yet we seem to always be repeating the styles of the past. One thing that has gone in and out of popularity has been wearing wigs. Can you think of anything else that has gone in and out of popularity since the 18th century? Is there anything you wish would or would not go in and out of popularity? Leave a comment if you can think of something.