Bletchley 1940s Weekend

So at the beginning of June, or it might have been the end of May (this year is going so quickly I can't keep up!), a regency dancing  friend and I discovered that we were both interested in all things 40s. So instead of going to our dance group's Regency tea dance, we decided to fast forward a century or so and go to our first 40s event. I love regency, but I am desperate to branch out and attend events for other eras. So 40s it was. :) We chose for our first event, a 40s weekend at Bletchley Park.

My sewing skills don't really extend past crafting, (though I have made the odd regency camp dress), so I decided to buy my outfit. Thankfully the vintage scene is big in Britain, so I had quite a large selection of clothes to choose from. I chose a late 30s style dress from the House of Foxy, and my brown and white Peggys from Royal Vintage had their first outing. 😁

A rather odd photo! But it shows my outfit.

Bletchley Park is a great place, but it is very much a work in progress as they are constantly looking for more funding to refurbish all the buildings that are scattered around the estate. I won't go into great detail as I wrote a few previous posts on Bletchley the last time I went there (non 40s event day). You can read the posts here.

Below are a quite a few photos of the event! :)

Some WAAF and RAF reenactors

The famous code-breaker Alan Turing's bear. SO adorable

Alan Turing as a boy! Even more adorable

Recreation of a 40's bedroom

Living room

The main house

The Library

Found a copy of Jo's Boys - someone had good taste. :) 

Lunch of Bubble and Squeak - amazingly I have managed to get through a British childhood without ever trying it. I have been missing out! It was delicious!!

Clever way to stop people touching the antique typewriters! 😄

Swing dancing on the lawns. 

Home guard practice.

This is the car that was used in the film "Enigma" with Kate Winslet.

When Calls the Heart Christmas Special 2016 - Costumes and other historical inaccuracies

So I know Christmas has been over for a while, but the last few months have been a bit hectic so I haven't gotten round to writing a review until now.

Anyone who has read my previous post on the subject of this Hallmark show, knows that I have a bit of a problem when it comes to the serious lack of historical accuracy of the show's costumes. They seem to be getting worse by the second. But for some reason, up until now, I kept watching the show. But after the Christmas special, no more!! This is saying a lot, as I love Christmas and I am a complete sucker for the traditional over cheesy Christmas films that Hallmark bring out every year. But this episode was too much. Along with the awful historical inaccuracies in the clothing/hair/makeup, the thing that got me the most was the Christmas tree lights in Rosemary and Le's house. They live in a small house in a small frontier town in the 1910s, there is no way the town's houses would have had electricity, Or even that one house would have had a generator. All the other lights in their house were gas lit, but the tree lights were definitely electric. I wonder, were they powered by fairy dust?! This, coupled with the quality of the story-line seriously dropping, means that the show is no longer watchable. It is so sad really as the show had so much potential at the beginning. Anyway, onward and upwards to brighter things - did anyone see the fabulous "Hidden Figures" - the clothing in that was amazing. :)

Malta Regency Weekend 2016

In April I spent a lovely week in Malta with some friends. It is somewhere I have wanted to visit for a while, mainly because my father was born there and my grandmother talks about there time there quite a bit.  We spent most of our time in the city of Valletta. 

The Grand Harbour

A very picturesque street

Georgian playing card stamps

We wondered around quite a few lovely museums. In one we found a sedan chair which rather suited Zack's outfit. :)

Meditating in the garden

Taking a boat across the Grand Harbour

Another view of the Grand Harbour

Old Mint Street - the steepest street in Valletta. 

Next - Regency Malta :)

When Calls the Heart - TV Series Costumes

I am a big fan of  the When Calls the Heart tv series, and was so excited when the new series aired over the weekend, but what is with the costumes and hairstyles???!!! As a historical clothing enthusiast, I can't help but get slightly irritated by the clear lack of historical accuracy when it comes to the costumes the actors wear and how their hair is styled, in both this series and the last. For a show that is set in the 1910s many of the outfits look like vintage-inspired modern clothes, or just plain modern.

Here are a few examples:

(Hallmark website)

The women look alright, but Jack (gentleman on the right) looks like he has just stepped out of a Ralph Lauren (don't get me wrong he looks good, but definitely not 1910s). And this is the outfit (or a very similar one) that he wears to lunch at a smart restaurant in Hamilton. What self-respecting man during that time period would go out to lunch in a smart city restaurant without wearing some sort of cravat/tie. I highly doubt the restaurant owners would allow him in their establishment whilst not wearing one. 

(Hallmark website)

This image could be from a modern day drama, with one of the characters having a penchant for wearing cravats! Why is the ladies hair not up? They are not in an informal setting, which would allow for such a relaxed style in that era. I'm sure I have read somewhere that up until the 1920s, loose hair = loose morals, so no respectable women would consider wearing their hair down in public. (I could be wrong though).

(Hallmark website)

 This image of Elizabeth and Jack could be 21st century aswell (minus the suitcases. Though I am sure there are vintage enthusiasts who use similar suitcases today). There was also one scene (which I couldn't find an image of) where Elizabeth's sister Julie is wearing a skirt with a giant slit up the back!!!

(Hallmark website)

However, some of the costumes aren't half bad. These outfits look much more period correct.

Edit: I now realise that the above photo was taken from Season 1 when they clothes were much better. They seem to be getting worse and worse each season (as does the hair and make up)!! :(

I don't profess to being an expert on Edwardian clothing, far from it, just an enthusiast who has visited many clothing museums and read a few books. It's just from everything I have learned most of the costumes look far from period correct. 

What do you all think? Any opinions/knowledge? I would be very interested to hear what anyone thinks.

A Regency Weekend in Lyme Regis - Part 2

To follow on from the last post - another photo-heavy post!! :)

At some time during the weekend we went for an adventurous walk up on (I want to say cliffs but I am not sure if that is entirely accurate!!) Anyway, it was a walk that Jane Austen was known to have taken. And the view from the cliff/mountain/hill was gorgeous.

Another view

And yet another.

At another point during the weekend, we also enjoyed a bit of dancing (because it wouldn't be a proper regency weekend without dancing! :)  )

Another item of clothing that I fell in love with - Karin's beautiful gown. Look at those sleeves!!!!!! She is a seriously talented seamstress!

I really should apologise for what is clearly a very slapdash post. It is far from smooth flowing! I have got to remember to document events as soon as possible after they have happened, otherwise I forget everything and end up with delightfully confusing post such as this one!!

This is an abandoned hotel where many famous people have stayed (I am pretty sure it is where Beatrix Potter was one of the said people). Sadly it is abandoned and in a bad way as I think there is some dispute between the current owner and the local community/council. If I recall correctly, the new owner is a property developing company, so you can guess what the argument is about. I really hope the building is saved and reopened as a hotel. We sneaked a looked through some of the windows and there was much faded grandeur to be seen. It must have been a very elegant hotel at one time.

Completely off topic but thought I had to include it - a Branksy drawing/mural in a quite corner of the town. 

This house is where Austen is believed to have stayed on one of her visits to Lyme. 

The house used as Captain Harvell's house in the 1970s version of Persuasion.

Congratulations if you have survived all the way to the end of the post! :) I hope you enjoyed it! I promise to try and make sure that the photos on my next post are at least in chronological order!! :)