Hunter Boots

Don't let the title be deceiving. I've never gone hunting in my life. ;) There were times when I used to wish I could in my childhood days and around 10 years old I got to use a "22" once during a church-related father/daughter camp out. That was the one and only time, but was called "Annie Oakley" from some of the dads there since I hit every target (aka. pop cans and two-liter pop bottles). :P

Oh, but that was a side note. I was originally going to introduce you to the brand, Hunter Boots. My British-loving sister told me about them, and I had to agree that they were rather cute looking. But were they functional and comfortable to wear for possibly hours at a time? A couple of years I ago I found some rain boots on clearance at Target and my legs & feet greatly despised the hours I walked in them while living in Georgia, so comfort was a must.

Courtesy of Pinterest

I drove to a big shopping mall in the Big City to try on a pair and hopefully walk out with boots in my hand, but alas the ones they carried were not on sale and I wasn't about to pay full price. But they certainly met my demand for comfort! Happily, I found a pair on their website for nearly half the price with free shipping.

And they just arrived on the delivery truck today! Part of me feels guilty about investing in them, but I guess some people buy cowboy boots and some, well, buy rain boots. ;)

Polishing the Boots

Back in the day (only about 5-6 years ago...) when sewing Regency dresses were in vogue, a lady who had/has amazing skills in sewing was selling some of her garments and accessories on ebay. She was selling a pair of Regency-inspired boots and I bid up to $10 on them and won the bid.

It wasn't up until earlier this month did I pull them and out and wished to give them a little extra care. After all, they are a pretty little boot and would look great with Regency dresses or I think even could work for some Civil War reenacting or prairie-inspired outings (I read the Kirsten books and played with my doll Kirsten from Pleasant Company for hours a day as a child, and these boots look like her's...)

Contacting the wonderful owner of American Duchess whose shoes are her business, she replied by recommending some luster cream from her store to not only polish them, but soften and protect them. Just this morning I started working on a boot and have been oh so happy with how it's going.

Horrors of horrors, I pushed back my sewing machine, pulled out some scrap cotton fabric from the trash can and set to work on my sewing table. Any other table or counter in this house is being occupied, so I really had no other choice. Well, I could have gone to the garage but the lighting is quite terrible in there, not to mention cold!

 

Night and day difference, don't you think? And my "finished" boot hasn't even been brushed or polished with a dry cloth yet. :)

In Costume: a 1914 Afternoon Dress

Early this summer I took it upon myself to sew up an Edwardian dress after the similitude of dresses worn on Downton Abbey. I adore their picnic dresses worn at the end of the first season! For all the details and pictures of making it see a couple pictures here and the completion of it here.

 

On a lovely summer morning, I begged my siblings to take a couple pictures for you all, and here they are:

 

Have you any idea how hard it is to get a good picture of one's hairstyle? I myself tried in vain at least three dozen times. This one is probably the best one, thanks to my sister. I used the fantastic tutorial by Lass of Yesteryear's rendition of Lady Sybil's hair.

 

My shoes come from the amazingly talented woman of American Duchess. They are the Gibson style shoes that I was able to pick up when she was selling some "imperfects." I don't know about you, but I think they are as perfect as one could wish for! I'm trying not to covet her new 1930s line of shoes... Take a look at several other shoes she offers on my side bar just to the right. So many delicious choices!

Dressing up is entirely to much fun!

My brother told me to look at the tree when he took this shot, but what he didn't get was my other hand at the bottom of my hairstyle. You know, those "glam" shots that people often do? ;)

 

Ignore the pins sticking out of my hair. You don't want to know how many bobby pins and straight pins I used to keep my hair up!

And that my dear ladies, is all for this weekend. Perhaps sometime this fall I can do a real photoshoot of me in my Downton Abbey dinner gown and Titanic inspired accessories...