November Book Tuesday

For this months book Tuesday we have a Dover reprint of  "Dress Making, Up to Date" from 1905.

Enjoy
The Victorian Society of Alberta

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques

Edited byKristina Harris

Publisher: Dover Publications

Shipping dimensions: 9" H x 7" W x 1" L

ISBN: 9780486404851

 

At the turn of the century, ladies of privilege could easily afford their own dressmakers, and even middle-class housewives occasionally employed competent seamstresses. But many women did their own sewing, often relying on Dressmaking, Up to Date, a how-to book published by the Butterick Publishing Company. First published in 1905 and widely considered the first modern American sewing book, this extremely rare volume is published here complete and unabridged.
This Butterick manual provides clear and concise instructions for altering patterns, hand-sewing stitches, and creating shirt-blouses, skirts, wedding and evening gowns, coats, jackets, maternity wear, undergarments, bathrobes, children's clothing, and many other articles of apparel. Today's costume historians and sewing enthusiasts will find fascinating instruction in such long-lost arts as boning a bodice perfectly, creating skirt sweepers and bust enhancers, concealing hooks and eyes, and other vintage dressmaking techniques.
An indispensable archive of information on late-Victorian and turn-of-the-century clothing, this volume will be of immense interest to anyone fascinated by the fashion and costume of the period. It will also be of value to needleworkers wanting to create accurate reproductions of Victorian-era costume, or to anyone interested in applying time-honored sewing techniques to a modern wardrobe.

October Fashion Friday

 Happy Halloween!

People seem to think corsets are scary so for this months Fashion Friday we have an excellent little video from Littleblossomdarling on Intstagram.

Check it out.

Enjoy
The Victorian Society of Alberta

October Book Tuesday

This month's Book Tuesday features a fiction book set in Alberta in 1905

"Good historically based fiction, about a small group of women homesteaders in the Alix, AB area."

Well worth a read!

Enjoy
The Victorian Society of Alberta

Truth and Reconciliation Day 2025

 It has been 10 years since the release of the TRC.

The Victorian Society of Alberta hold this closely.

In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, we honour and acknowledge Moh’kinsstis, and the traditional Treaty 7 territory and oral practices of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani, as well as the Îyâxe Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region 3 within the historical Northwest Métis homeland. Finally, we acknowledge all Nations – Indigenous and non – who live, work and play on this land, and who honour and celebrate this territory.

Check out The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) 

A place of learning and dialogue where the truths of Residential School Survivors, families and communities are honoured and kept safe for future generations.

The NCTR educates Canadians on the profound injustices inflicted on First Nations, Inuit and the Métis Nation by the forced removal of children to attend residential schools and the widespread abuse suffered in those schools.

We preserve the record of these human rights abuses, and promote continued research and learning on the legacy of residential schools. Our goal is to honour Survivors and to foster reconciliation and healing on the foundation of truth telling.

The NCTR was gifted the spirit name bezhig miigwan which, in Anishinaabemowin, the language of the Anishinaabe people, means “one feather.” The name’s a reminder that every Survivor needs to be shown the same respect and attention that an eagle feather deserves. The name also teaches us that we are vital to the work of reconciliation.

The NCTR is located on original lands of Anishinaabeg, Ininiwak, Anisininewuk, Dakota Oyate and Dene, the homeland of the Red River Métis, and home to many Inuit.

https://nctr.ca/publications-and-reports/reports/

September Fashion Friday

 This is a cool little YouTube short.

Can you guess how long you have to sit still for a period photo?

Enjoy
The Victorian Society of Alberta

Sneezing!

I have a cold so...

If you feel like you’re going to sneeze, make sure you do it correctly according to these late 19th century superstitions.

It was said to be lucky to sneeze to the right and unlucky to sneeze to the left.

It was considered unlucky to sneeze while putting on your shoes.

One should be careful to avoid sneezing three times in quick succession. It was said of sneezing in this manner:

“Once, a wish;

Twice, a kiss;

Three times a disappointment.“

A rhyme regarding sneezing during specific days of the week goes:

“Sneeze on Monday, sneeze for danger,

Sneeze on Tuesday, kiss a stranger,

Sneeze on Wednesday, sneeze for a letter,

Sneeze on Thursday, something better,

Sneeze on Friday, sneeze for sorrow,

Sneeze on Saturday, see your lover tomorrow.“

(There is no mention about sneezing on Sunday)

Victorian Society of Alberta

Happy Birthday Alberta!

One hundred and twenty years ago today Alberta became a province!