Royal Sussex Ladies Committee Meeting Report

22 April 2007

Our first meeting of the Ladies Committee went very smoothly. Many ideas and thoughts were tossed around during the meeting as well as a lovely tea with cake and sandwiches. We can never have enough tea. Also, we started a pin  box/cushion project that I found from Godey’s Lady’s book.  I provided an extensive packet for the ladies concerning personas and the ‘right and wrong’ of clothing, appearance and stature. In the packet was a list of economic classes and professions that women of the latter part of the 19th century had. We decided that our personas in the Royal Sussex Society would be daughters and widows of the middle class. It also works in conjunction with our clothing.

Speaking of clothing, we discussed taking a little field trip to the fabric outlets (date to be disclosed shortly) to see what we could find that was period correct. I gave the ladies examples of fabric used during the period c. 1880.

As for events, many ideas were passed around concerning what the women were to be doing. Painting, sewing, crafting, sporting and acting were all thought of. Our objective is to show the public what women of the period did in civilian life.

Attached is the introduction to what I gave the ladies in the packet. It sums up everything I wrote here.

“Creating an Accurate Portrayal"

On the following pages, I have researched and made copies of what women in the late Victorian era (particularly the natural form period (1876-1881) wore, were in terms of class, did as far as recreation was concerned, had (i.e. material things) and other little odd and ends that will prove to be very useful while creating your portrayal.

We have much more to follow by means of pictures and documents. For those of us who do 18th century (which is pretty much all of us), we find it much more difficult to figure out what material they used and how they conducted themselves day by day, especially for the civilians. Everyone paid close attention to what soldier’s wore, how they wore it, and when to wear it. So, for this time period, it should (hopefully) be a bit easier. We have the material, we have the documents. Every attempt to be historically accurate should be enforced.

The following items should be worn at all times while portraying a late Victorian lady:

-Chemise

- Corset (for the tiny waist, big hip look)

- Under skirt

- Over-skirt and jacket or

- Day Dress or

- Riding Habit or

- there’s a bunch to choose from!

- Cap, Bonnet or Hat

We should try to acquire most if not all these items to attain the look of a Victorian lady.

If there is one you do not find in the list, by all means research it and let us know what you find.

As for patterns : Any pattern starting from 1875 and ending at around 1886. We don’t want the huge bustle in the back though.

Fabric : No polyester. Sorry ladies, not yet!  Cotton was the most popular. After the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney, cotton became inexpensive. Silk was still upper class, so wearing a silk dress during a military event is no good.

Information for the male civilian, if the men so choose to go civilian for a day, will be coming shortly. The same goes for children.

Activities for the RSRS Ladies Committee

We will have plenty to do (now) during events. We will have our own area to demonstrate as well as do our own projects. As we well know, our activities are very different from military activities, such as: work on period crafts, having a tea, reading of period books, magazines and/ r newspapers, playing cards, singing & dancing, writing a letters to soldiers (since we are a regimental society), etc.

For demonstrations to the public beside the things I’ve just listed, we could :

- have a fashion show

- read aloud

- make period correct recipes

This should prove to be a very successful part of the society. We’ll show those ladies in Morristown that they are not the only ones who are ‘truly victorian’!  I hope that you are enthusiastic about this, as I am.  There are not many Victorian units around, especially ones with a ladies committee attached to them.

As for upcoming events, we have quite enough to work to do. I am very excited to see what we make of this committee. It is a great opportunity for women to get involved in this wonderful period in history and living history in general.

Your Humble Servant,

Vivianne Elizabeth Reid
(Vivian Davis)