19th Century Life
Assembled from vintage issues of Peterson's Magazine, a popular nineteenth-century ladies periodical that premiered in 1842, here is an authentic gallery of Civil War-era clothing patterns for women, children, and men. The author of many books on historic fashion, Seleshanko has compiled this new, original volume of wonderfully usable antique garment designs to delight costume designers, historians, Civil War reconstructionists, and antiques collectors alike! During the 1860s, the Civil War left Americans with shortages of all kinds -- including clothing resources. Peterson's pattern diagrams were of enormous help to women who no longer had the opportunity to purchase their clothing abroad or visit their local dressmaker. This one-of-a-kind collection showcases sixty historically accurate nineteenth-century garment designs. Included are a Chemise, the Madeline Wrapper, and a Polonaise Dinner Dress for ladies...a Knickerbocker Suit and Loose Jacket and Waistcoat for boys...and a Tunic and Cape and Basquine Dress for girls...and, for men, a handsome Smoking Cap. 60 patterns. Over 300 diagrams and illustrations. Publisher: Paperback, 120 pages. Measures 8.25" x 11" x 0.3". Weighs 12.6 oz.
Though it was common for women of the 18th and 19th centuries to keep personal albums of their own needlework designs, few of these hand-drawn pattern books survive intact. This rare volume, signed and dated 1815 by Elizabeth M. Townshend, appears to be just such a collection -- an authentic treasury of embroidery designs dating from the early days of the Republic. Brimming with nearly 200 timeless, functional designs, this priceless sourcebook ranges from highly stylized repeat patterns, to more realistic floral bouquets, to traditional patterns for cutwork edgings, to large-scale motifs suitable for crewel embroidery. You'll find miniature baskets (a popular motif of the day) and dainty leaf patterns, planned perhaps for a petticoat or waistcoat. Other lovely designs are ideal for embellishing the collar or cuffs of a favorite dress, adding an elegant touch to linens, curtains, undergarments, tablecloths, etc. While most of the patterns are small in scale and probably intended for use with silk threads, several are particularly effective worked in wool. The stitches Elizabeth Townshend would have used are the same stitches we use today -- seed stitch, outline, and stem stitches, chain stitch, loop stitch, and herringbone stitch -- making these appealing designs as accessible to modern embroidery enthusiasts as they were to the nation's first needle artists. Early American Embroidery Designs is not only a treasury of needlework inspiration; it's an authentic slice of Americana. Use it to create your own "heirlooms" and add antique charm to a myriad of wardrobes and household and gift items. Publisher: Dover Publications. Paperback, 42 Pages. Measures 10.9"x8.25"x0.16" . Weighs 2.6 oz.
For early American households, the herb garden was an all-purpose medicine chest. Herbs were used to treat apoplexy (lily of the valley), asthma (burdock, horehound), boils (onion), tuberculosis (chickweed, coltsfoot), palpitations (saffron, valerian), jaundice (speedwell, nettles, toad flax), toothache (dittander), hemorrhage (yarrow), hypochondria (mustard, viper grass), wrinkles (cowslip juice), cancers (bean-leaf juice), and various other ailments. But herbs were used for a host of other purposes as well -- and in this fascinating book, readers will find a wealth of information on the uses of herbs by homemakers of the past, including more than 500 authentic recipes, given exactly as they appeared in their original sources. Selected from such early American cookbook classics as Miss Leslie's Directions for Cookery, Mary Randolph's The Virginia Housewife, Lydia Child's The American Frugal Housewife, and other rare publications, the recipes cover the use of herbs for medicinal, culinary, cosmetic, and other purposes. Readers will discover not only how herbs were used in making vegetable and meat dishes, gravies and sauces, cakes, pies, soups, and beverages, but also how our ancestors employed them in making dyes, furniture polish, insecticides, spot removers, perfumes, hair tonics, soaps, tooth powders, and numerous other products. While some formulas are completely fantastic, others (such as a sunburn ointment made from hog's lard and elder flowers) were based on long experience and produced excellent results. More than 100 fine nineteenth-century engravings of herbs add to the charm of this enchanting volume -- an invaluable reference and guide for plant lovers and herb enthusiasts that will delight and astound the twentieth-century reader. (Library Journal). Publisher: Dover Publications. Paperback, 152 pages. Measures 6.25" x 9.25" x 0.3". Weighs 8.5 oz.
Dating back to the Civil War era, Quoits was a fun children’s game for kids living in politically divided Ohio State. A historical replica, our wooden quoits hob and ring recreates what young children in Cuyahoga Valley National Park would have played during the mid to late 19th century. An immigrant community, kids of all races played Quoits together and at the height of the Civil War, many were kidnapped and sold into slavery. Wooden hob approx. 3.5’’ tall; 2 rings approx. 2.5’’ diameter. Eco-friendly multiplayer table top game for kids aged 3+. Handmade in the USA.
In the fall of 1870, a massive flood engulfed parts of Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. What began near Charlottesville as welcome rain at the end of a drought-plagued summer quickly turned into a downpour as it moved west and then north through the Shenandoah Valley. The James, Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers rose, and flooding washed out fields, farms and entire towns. The impact was immense in terms of destruction, casualties and depth of water. The only warning that Richmond, downriver from the worst of the storm, had of the wall of water bearing down on it was a telegram. In this account, public historian Paula Green details not only the flood but also the process of recovery in an era before modern relief programs. Author: Paula F. Green. Publisher: The History Press. Paperback, 208 pages. Measures 6" x 9" x 0.5". Weighs 15.5 oz.
Since the invention of photography there has not been a history of fashion completely illustrated by photographs -- until this one. Photography historian Alison Gernsheim first studied Victorian and Edwardian fashion in order to be able to date photographs in her collection. Of course the photos soon proved to be the best of all fashion plates -- authentic, detailed, as decorative and charming as top fashion illustration. When united with identifications and descriptions of the chief costume articles, and a commentary that includes childhood memories of the period, the resulting history is doubly indispensable -- equally useful and delightful to serious and casual readers. The invention of photography preceded that of the crinoline by about a decade. Pre-crinoline bonnets, stovepipe hats, and deep décolletage are featured in the first of these 235 illustrations -- including a beautiful 1840 daguerreotype portrait of a lady that is the earliest study of its kind extant. From 1855 to the 1870s the crinoline gave shape (whether barrel, bell, teapot, or otherwise) to English women, and their shapes fill many of these full and half-page photos. English men went beardless in top hats and frock coats; as in other eras, the sporting wear of the previous generation became acceptable morning and evening town attire. Styles and accoutrements came and went -- moustaches, straw hats, bustles and bodice line, petticoats, corsets, shawls and falsies, flounces, ruffles, lace, and materials -- satin, silk, velvet, woolen underwear, full-length sable, and osprey feathers. Many of the models for these fashions were already fashionable enough -- Oscar Wilde, Aubrey Beardsley, Lillie Langtry, Winston Churchill, many archdukes, duchesses, counts, princes, and Queen Victoria herself. Photographers are identified where possible, and include Nadar, Lewis Carroll, and the Downeys. Every photograph is captioned and annotated. Publisher: Dover Publications. Paperback, 152 pages. Measures 6.25" x 9.25" x 0.25". Weighs 13 oz.
A woman of many gifts, Margaret Fuller (1810-1850) is most aptly remembered as America's first true feminist. In her brief yet fruitful life, she was variously author, editor, literary and social critic, journalist, poet, and revolutionary. She was also one of the few female members of the prestigious Transcendentalist movement, whose ranks included Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and many other prominent New England intellectuals of the day. As co-editor of the transcendentalist journal, The Dial, Fuller was able to give voice to her groundbreaking social critique on woman's place in society, the genesis of the book that was later to become Woman in the Nineteenth Century. Published in 1843, this essay was entitled The Great Lawsuit: Man versus Men, Woman versus Women. First published in book form in 1845, Woman in the Nineteenth Century was correctly perceived as the controversial document that it was: receiving acclaim and achieving popular success in some quarters (the first printing sold out within a week), at the same time that it inspired vicious attacks from opponents of the embryonic women's movement. In this book, whose style is characterized by the trademark textual diversity of the transcendentalists, Fuller articulates values arising from her passionate belief in justice and equality for all humankind, with a particular focus on women. Although her notion of basic rights certainly includes those of an educational, economic, and legal nature, it is intellectual expansion and changes in the prevailing attitudes towards women (by men and women) that Fuller cherishes far above the superficial manifestations of liberation. A classic of feminist thought that helped bring about the Seneca Falls Women's Convention three years after its publication, Woman in the Nineteenth Century inspired her contemporaries Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony to speak of Fuller as possessing more influence upon the thought of American women than any woman previous to her time. Publisher: Dover Publications. Paperback, 132 pages. Measures 5" x 8" x 0.25". Weighs 3.8 oz.
Includes cotton fabric, stuffing, pins, thread, yarn, and easy photo illustrated instructions. Each kit comes with random fabric for doll dress. Doll measures 8" x 9.5" x 1". Package measures 8.5" x 12" x 3". Weighs 2.8 oz.
Includes cotton fabric, stuffing, pins, thread, yarn, and easy photo illustrated instructions. Doll measures 8" x 9.5" x 1". Package measures 8.5" x 12" x 3". Weighs 2.8 oz.