American Duchess Historic Shoes Blog
New Vintage Goodness in The Boutique
Last weekend's trip to Sacramento Towne brought back quite a few very lovely vintage items for the American Duchess Boutique on Etsy. Among them were two great hats, vintage kid...
18th Century Shoes - The Second to Last Step
The shoe as it arrived, white in color. I added the rhinestone tension buckle. For those of you who have been following the production of the upcoming 18th c. shoes,...
How To Make an 18th Century Wig from an Affordable "Costume" Wig
Earlier this week I espied on HalloweenCostumes.com a "Marie Antoinette" wig that looked surprisingly good. My criteria for judging this goodness were the overall shape, color of the hair (it...
A Sudden Wrap-Front Gown of the 1790s
I say "sudden" because one afternoon I had no such thing, and by that evening I did, or at least half of one. But there's been much planning and some...
"Why Don't I Look Right?" : Getting The Look Spot-On with Historical Costumes
I often get questions, or read comment threads, about why a historical ensemble doesn't look just right, and it's got me thinking about the things to consider when putting together...
American Duchess 18th century Fabric Collection (1750-1800) on Spoonflower
A couple weeks ago I went on a fabric-designing binge, fueled by my desire for 18th century historic prints. I designed a small collection based on my favorite sprigged muslins,...
What's Next in the World of Historical Costuming?
Downton Abbey, 2010 No doubt our hobby of historical costuming follows trends, and usually it is very influenced by what period films have or will be coming out. For awhile...
Three New Old Hats for Vintage Fun and Hattitude
I've listed three "new" hats in the American Duchess Boutique on Etsy, for your consideration. These are three of my favorites, especially the grey fur felt one, with the recently...
Costume Analytics: A White Wedding Gown from Tidens Toj Museum
This time on Costume Analytics we're going to look at a very late 18th century gown from a lovely little online collection called Tidens Toj (translated to "Future Clothes."). I...
1780s Half-Boned Stays
Finished - they close edge-to-edge across my bust, but I also like them open like this - more thrust! See the difference in shape between these and Olympe's? In my...
Costume Modeling with Ron, a Photo Shoot for Future Paintings
Last weekend I had the pleasure of pulling *almost* every costume I still have out of my closet and modeling them for an outstanding illustrator, Ron Spears, who wanted to...
American Duchess on the Today Show (Squee!)
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy This is pretty awesome! Too bad the coat is sold out, lol - hope Garmz decides to do...