janewilliams20

Among the other things I was doing, as a Victorian housemaid at Holkham Hall, was explaining the various cake samples on offer to the visitors who were about to eat them. One of these cakes was Seed Cake. This is a recipe from Mrs Beeton's cookery book: a fairly plain, heavy sponge, with a lot of caraway seeds in it. Part of my explanation was that if they'd read any Swallows and Amazons, Enid Blyton, or other books of that era, Seed Cake was what always went with the Lashings of Ginger Beer. As I rather expected, I got instant recognition from people my age or older, blank looks from teenagers, and partial response from the 20s and 30s. I was surprised by the response from junior-school age and younger. Quite a few were apparently reading "The Far-away Tree" at the moment (that's one I've never read myself). Perhaps half recognised "Famous Five".
What absolutely delighted me, though, was a very small girl whose face lit up at the mention of the Famous Five. Yes, she'd listened to them! She knew about seed cake, and was thrilled to try some. "Listened"? Yes - her big sister (currently holding her hand protectively) was reading the Famous Five to her every night, and they were about to start a really big story.  Reading a story to your little sister - isn't that so much nicer than squabbling over the remote control for the TV?

Found the Victorian boots, and got the Big Case out of the loft. Inside that, I have an extra petticoat, three lots of drawers, three aprons, the chatelaine, the sontag, a few pairs of stockings, plus some Posh Bits that I won't be needing. Also, the nightdress - the one item that isn't reproduction, it's the real thing (and very comfortable too). If I have room, I'll put the wrapper in - yes, 1850s style not 1880s, but it's a useful dressing gown and gives me a change if I need it. The white blouse goes in on similar principles.
What I can't find is any suitable headgear. There's a little lacy thing, a slatted bonnet (far too Southern ACW in style!) and a crocheted snood. Not sure what I need, but I may take white cotton with me and sew something when I get there.
And now, having drugged myself awake with coffee, off to make some food and then get back to the sewing of the blue blouse and skirt.

 A bit more sorting happened (sock drawer and a few others), more washing got done and hung, and that got the dining room clear enough to be used as a sewing room.
Pattern traced on to clear plastic.
Cheap calico dust-sheet ironed for use as the blouse mock-up (thanks, Dave).
Calico cut out from the patterns
After much puzzlement, faffing, pinning, unpinning, and re-pinning, mock-up mostly assembled: yoke is together, fronts and back are pleated and attached to yoke, sides are together. Sleeves and collar are assembled ready to be fitted to the body.
But I still have to try this on over the corset, make any adjustments, do the same cutting and assembly on the real fabric, , plus actually fitting the sleeves and the collar and doing all the hemming and buttons and button-holes.
Plus the skirt needs doing.... solid waistband with hooks, pleat fabric on to it... I think I may completely cheat and have a selvage at the bottom so  that I can avoid hemming if if I have to. I may decide to wear the blouse tucked into the skirt, not over it, so that I don't have to hem the bottom (and can get away with less buttons)
Because I have to get all this lot done, plus packing, by Thursday night (and not too late Thursday either), and I'm out Wednesday. Three evenings. I may take sewing into work with me to do in lunchbreak, and on the train on Wednesday. I'm starting to consider grabbing a short-notice day off to get the sewing done.

It arrived in the post from Holland yesterday: "Truly Victorian"'s "1880s Yoked Blouse". The idea was that now I'd know what was needed, so I could buy such at TORM. Sadly, while it tells me I'll need 2 2/3 yards of material, it fails to specify whether that's 45" or 60". It mentions a need for buttons, but fails to say how many or in what size, and suggests the type of material to use for interfacing, but fails to say how much, and on reading, never suggests where to use it. This is a blouse, not an outer coat or rigid bodice, I can't imagine adding interfacing anywhere, especially not in the heavy materials they suggested.

Searching the internet finds a PDF of the pattern sheet, but with added info on yardage: "45"/60" wide fabric" Huh? There's a difference, unless your cutting pattern for the 60" is extremely wasteful.

What I've found on Ebay is 45". I want enough for a skirt as well, and that can be pretty flexible. I've measured the skirt on my nice blue dress, the one I bought rather than made, and that's a 5-yard hem. If I get enough fabric to do this the same (and 4 yards would be plenty) that should give me enough spare for the blouse, if they got it wrong. 8 yards in total, at £7.50. £60... I think I'll see if TORM has anything cheaper, but I already know Herts Fabrics don't carry cotton, I emailed him and asked. The other fabric stall doesn't seem to do "on-line" - re-enacting the Middle Ages rather too thoroughly.

I think I've got some MOP buttons somewhere, though if I have time I'd prefer to do fabric-covered. Better check I've got enough scrap sheet cotton to do a mock-up.

Oh, and we'd better find the big table in the dining room again. Dave decided to redecorate, and the table's mostly folded up, and what's left is covered in boxes and dust-sheets.

Surprisngly well, actually. I got a lot of things done that weren't in the plan, mainly because I had a Dave around to enjoy, so we did things that it made sense to do together - like eating lunch out. Saturday he was working days, but Sunday he was on change-over, and Monday he managed to wake up much earlier than usual, so that was a day and a half of "ooh, look, I have a husband".  Lunches have occurred at the Lounge and at a Toby carvery. We also went to the Homebase 15% off day and got a new strimmer, a new laundry basket, and some more plants (aubergine that already has small fruit on, my one having failed due to neglect, and some herbs to go in the front bed), acquired and used bird food, watered everything that needed it, and on Monday, investigated a furniture place near the Toby and may have found a new 3-piece suite that isn't too expensive.

Despite two meals out, I've stayed in WW point limits, not even using exercise points or weeklies, and have lost 2kg this week. No major milestones, but I am now on less points per day than before. I'm feeling healthier - bouncy and efficient, with "brisk" being the default walk, rather than "amble" or "plod".

Techy stuff - both the new phone and the tablet now run Android 4. Ah, yes, new phone - Dave and I now both have phones from Virgin Media, same people who supply our broadband, TV, and landline. It's a pretty good deal. MIne's a Samsung Galaxy 2, and so far, I like. I'm very impressed by how easy transfer was - once the PAC code was in, and the number switched to the new phone, all my apps, wallpaper, everything, transferred itself automatically. Well, all except the WW app I use, that isn't on Android Market any more, so I had to re-download.
Also discovered that if I load Dropbox to the phone, it'll automatically upload any photos I take to my Dropbox account, so they're waiting on the PC for me when I get home. Handy!

Sewing? That kirtle has gone from a length of fabric and a cutting diagram on the back of an envelope to an almost-complete garment. Side-gussets, facing for the neckline (it's  a good job I never throw anything away, if you were to lay that facing out flat on the inside-out-kirtle so you could see the shape, it would look a lot like a linen trouser-leg, and for good reason).
I need to do some hand sewing where the gussets meet, to get the seams to work, and to finish off the ends of every seam so I don't have dangling threads or a tendency for things to come undone.
It would be a good idea to either finish all the seams properly (no chance) or to run the zig-zag machine over them (some chance) before they fray to death. It would be nice to hem the bottom, and the ends of the sleeves, rather than rely on the selvage to do the job.
What I've absolutely got to do, to make this usable, is the eyelets so the front opening can be laced up. Before that, I plan on sewing that facing seam in place on the outside - hand stitching is probably easier than the machine, as well as looking better.
Three evenings, plus some of Friday (morning before I leave the house, probable hand-sewing time in the hotel Friday night/Saturday morning). I'll do it.