Mr. Bingley, how do you like my flowers for your Ball?

I liked this updo better than the previous  photo I had posted but I still wasn't satisfied with this style either.

I played around with my hair a few more times before the Patriot's Ball and finally decided on a few simple braids brought up and pinned to my head. I really liked the simplicity of the look AND I knew it would look even cuter with some flowers looped in at the back. I was very happy with the way the whole look came together :)

I did all of the work on the over-dress, the under-dress, the stomacher, the underthings, and the corset by myself with the exception of the hem on the overdress. I couldn't seem to get it to cut straight because of the silkiness of the fabric. I took it to the tailor who was altering my brothers suits/tuxedos and she zipped it out very nicely!

The dress held up well for dancing. I lost a few straight pins that were holding the stomacher in place so I was thankful I used multiple pins with each tab! The only real issue I faced was with the back of my underdress continuing to slip out of the top of my overdress. I had pretty much created the dress pattern on my own and had forgotten to take into account how high the back of the underdress was compared to the back of the overdress. If you view the video posted on my facebook page from a week ago you will see what I mean :)

Our family had a wonderful time in Bristol. We made many new friends and already have plans to visit with several of them over the summer. Plans are to make the Patriot's Conference and Ball and annual event and I am already excited to hear more about the plans for next year!

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

For my first set of stays; My true love gave to me...

2 yards of muslin, and a new, working sewing machine ;)

When I was in Colorado visiting my fathers parents, my parents went to visit my mothers father for Thanksgiving and he sent two of my granny's sewing machines and a Serger home to me! Thank you Papaw!!!

 I really want to try and make a Georgian dress but need stays for that, even more than I do for my Regency dresses. I looked through my stash of patterns and found this one from McCall's. I am making it out of a plain white muslin, and eyelet's instead of grommets for lacing (since I am HORRIBLE at putting in grommets). I am almost done (but for attaching lining to corset once the boning is in). While waiting on the chance to get my boning, I  have decided that I will add a little decorative touch to one or two of the front panels. I started earlier today on the embroidery and will post a pic as soon as I have one. Though I fear my stitches are always very poor I think it will be all the more lovely knowing that I did it with my own hand, and hopefully one of my children can enjoy my toils many years from now when it gets passed down from myself to some dear little girl... 

If you have any tips for corsetry (yes, it's a "new" word :P), please share them if you can spare a moment here. I am very new to this, and though I am using a modern pattern for my stays this time, I hope to learn from it and make a set of 18th Century stays somewhere in the near future. (Hopefully with the help of your tips, and also a little guidance from the quick hands of my dear friend Laura at Tryon Palace...)

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Going to Tea

I am back home from Colorado to a much warmer (and muggier) North Carolina! I am thrilled to be back home with my parents and three little monkeys once again :)

One thing I love to do when visiting my Oma is to go to tea with her at Glen Eyrie Castle in Colorado Springs near Garden of the Gods, another favorite hangout...

Who wouldn't want to go to tea when you get to be dressed up in your Sunday best like this?

My Oma and I went to a Victorian Tea (how perfect?!? lol) on this visit. They had sweet little treats and I especially loved the raspberry swirl cookies, as well as the Brie cheese. Brie is one of my favorite cheeses to put on anything from crackers to Granny Smith apple slices. If you buy the Brie that still has the wax on it then you can slice off the top layer and pop it in the microwave for a few minutes to get it all ooey-gooey. It's just so lovely :D

We recently discovered the yumminess of Brie en Croute (similar to this one) over the holidays and my mother recreated it for our own New Years Eve snack table. Hers was a little different than the Christmas one we tasted because she used her very own fig jam and pecans. It was scrumdiddlyumptious!!

Did you discover any new treats this holiday season?

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Union Station Rocks...

My friend saw the HUGE RED PUMP and decided it was the perfect pic for to email me.

Union Station

The lovely HUGE red pump

Would make a great slide for fashion loving girls...

From across the way...

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

A trip (onto the patio), Muggish Days, and Opa's Cast

We've been having rather muggish, cold, and windy days here in the Springs. On Saturday, a nice bright day at the start, we decided to go out for breakfast since my cousin Austin was in town.

(Austin)

Walking out the door my Opa fell on the front porch by tripping over the itsy-bitsy door mat. We didn't know his foot was broken and we went about our day until he couldn't stand the pain :( It was rather muggish again in the end... When we came out of the commissary Pikes Peak was clouded by rain.

(Arrow points to the rain & clouds near Pikes Peak) 

We took Opa to the ER and got the X-rays in the afternoon. EARLY this morning he had surgery, the result being a screw in his foot, stitches, and a cast. But, he was feeling much better when he got home!

(Opa's cast with ILY in English and German.. plus plenty of other silly things)

(Opa in his chair downstairs)

(Cast Art)

(It's close to Halloween & Thanksgiving so I was in an artsy pumpkin-y mood and he only had 2 Sharpie pens... 

in 2 colors... Orange and Purple)

(Purple Cats are so much better than Black Ones :P )

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Simple Organization for Packing for a Trip

I have been in Colorado for the last few weeks visiting my Oma and Opa. I started working on several blog posts before I left and they have been in limbo waiting for me to get time to finish them up. I don't have a lot of computer time for blogging but I do hope to get a few of them up eventually!

When we were small children my momma chose and packed everything for everyone in the family, except my father. As my brothers and I got older, she would give us a list of the types of clothes she wanted to pack that we would need for the trip but left the choosing up to us. She has only recently let everyone pack their own bag, but she still hands out a list of requirements. I guess she wants to make sure my brothers don't end up in church somewhere away from home in cargo shorts and a white undershirt! LOL.

I have sort of taken the list one step further when I pack my bags. Let me show you what I mean:

This was taken so I could have an idea of what the outfit & jewelry might look like.

Have to look good, right?!

The dresses all spread out on the couch. I only ended up bringing 1/2 of what was actually all over the couch.

Everything on the floor and ready to be packed,

BEFORE I had the genius idea to use space bags!!

Here two outfits are drawn on the same paper, one on each side. This happened because I didn't have as much space to pack with on one of my trips to see Justin. And since I didn't want to re-draw one of them, I just packed both outfits!

Something sweet for church, work, or out to dinner, etc. If I change the skirt to my beaded pencil and it's perfect for a night at the Kennedy Center in DC!!

This one is actually from my outfit/fashion journal. I liked it when I wore it, and wanted to make sure I didn't forget it. As you can see from reading the scribbles all over, I wore this one a "Skype date" with Justin. :) This is one of the more detailed sketches.

When each and every outfit has been drawn up, I sit down and go through them to narrow downsize my bag. In this case I think I nixed between 7 and 12 outfits from the list. Including two I took out of my bag at the airport to check my bag without the extra fees. Each outfit is then packed away. Generally for a short trip I have about 6-10 outfits.

When I pack my bag, I set the outfit drawings between each outfit as they go in. Here though I think I had over 20 0outfits, not including all of my dresses, for a 3 month trip to Colorado. I changed they way I packed for this trip by using space bags, and placing the outfit sketches in my purse. (New since I'm more than a little OCD about packing.)

Each sketch includes a description of the outfit and alternative ideas for key pieces (like the Kennedy Center sketch above), an idea of when/where I might wear it, any possible jewelry options and combinations, shoes, coats, sweaters, etc. just to be sure I have all bases covered. And then it's off to catch my flight, or stow it away in the car.

How do you pack for long trips?! Do have fun with it, are you SUPER organized like me, or do you just kinda toss it all in and hope your hotel has an iron when you get there?

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Silly boy....

This... is Jesse. It looks like he was having fun over the July 4th holidays. Heck, We all were :D

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Goodbye & Rest in Peace

This blogpost is to inform you all that I will not be posting for a while. We just had a death in our family, and we are going back home to KY to take care of it.

Please keep my mom & our family in your prayers!!

In loving memory of:

Emma Belle Beard

Sept. 5, 1947 -Aug. 6, 2010

A good Christian woman, married to D.E. Beard for a good many years, and mother of 3.

Granny, Wife, Aunt, Mother, Daughter, Sister, Friend

You are loved Granny.

And many will miss you dearly but, we are rejoicing because we know you are in a far better place than here below!

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

The Photo of a Lifetime..

I love this Photographic Panorama taken by one of my friends with his iPhone. Can you say WOW to fantastic technology?! (And this coming from the woman who is not in the slightest technologically inclined...)

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

Oh dear goodness!!

Oh wow it has been a whole month EXACTLY since I posted. In the words of Americas sweetheart, Miss Shirley Temple, "Oh my goodness!!". I have had guests to stay, and I am now on vacation in MD with some family friends. I thought I would share a few photos so here goes...

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

A walk with you, 337 miles away...

We find ourselves missing people as we go throughout our days.. So, why not come up with a fun way to spend time together no matter what the distance that separates you is?

Today Justin and I took a "walk" around DC. He took photo's with his phone, and sent them to me, so I could see what he was seeing!! It was very fun to receive the photo's and to know that this was a new experience, and a fun one... that we were doing together.

Some of the detailing on the window and it's grates...
 

Some very pretty architectural detailing as well!

Lovely photo here :D

One of my favorite sorts of photo's are something called "Dutch Angles". Isn't it Fabulous?!

More in the way of beautiful architecture..

Love the pillars, and the little rosette ceiling pieces that join the corners of the squares together :D

Lovely Garden view...

Isn't the little spiral topiary adorable? I love sculptural things like that in a garden, they add so much visual interest, besides there just being pretty flowers.

 

A close-up of the Sun dial

Full Sun dial.. isn't the silvery hedge beautiful?

I bet it would be a breath taking site to see on a moonlit walk..

Outside of the Smithsonian Castle

National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden

The Silver Tree
Now, if only there was a money tree...

National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden

The Fountain



A view of the Fountain through the Gates




More of the lovely Fountain!



I have been to all of these places before with Justin, on my last visit to the DC/Maryland/Virginia area. So seeing them through pictures, and knowing we had walked there before was an extra special treat full of many fond memories.. 


So, when you find yourself missing that special someone, or your dear, dear friends..
Take a walk down memory lane, or see what interesting ways you can find to see each other!

-- A Victorian Cowgirl

My Recent Trip to Maryland and Washington DC

Inside the Smithsonian Castle

Outside the National Gallery of Art


A shot of Justin and I reflected in the mirrored artwork outside the National Gallery of Art, while touring the museums in DC.

The inner garden at The National Gallery of Art

I had a GREAT time on my recent trip to the DC area, and I can't wait to do it again...

-- A Victorian Cowgirl