The Costumes of Cranford~ Mary Smith

Mary Smith's clothes are very smart and contrast to those of the other inhabitants of Cranford. Her stepmother "took her in hand." Mary herself doesn't seem to care much for fine things and worries that she will stand out. I love her outfits, though!

This dress is one of my absolute favourites. It seems to be a blue leaf print on a lighter blue/green background. She doesn't always wear the lace collar and belt with it but I think they look very pretty.

I like this gown too. The bodice is pointed and narrow, lace ruffled and buttons down the front. She is also wearing her signature straw bonnet with grey/white ribbons.

This is a very pretty gown of cream/light brown plaid/check. It has a few buttons. The bodice is gathered into a point. The sleeves are sewn of two pieces, a short cap and then a puffed sleeve. She also wears that belt with it sometimes.

This is her mourning-dress. The bodice is fitted and has two panels either side of a row of buttons. There is a black bow on the lace collar.

This is another of my favourites. It is a beigy/cream checked dress with a full skirt and fitted sleeves. 

I love this shoulder cape! It has tassels at the corners and is very elegant.

That's all for today! Hope you enjoyed!

Extol the Lord

So, my friend Laura King did a great post a while ago where you answer questions with song names. Put your iPod/Windows Media Player on shuffle and whatever song comes up, put it as the answer. I thought it sounded like fun!

Q. If someone says "How are you today?" you say?

Let It Go (Frozen)

Q. What would best describe your personality?

Headphones(Britt Nicole)Haha yes!

Q. How would you describe yourself?

Angel(Sarah Maclachlan) No way!

Q. What do you like in a guy/girl?

My Heart Will Go On!!???

Q. How do you feel today?

Peace and War(Jason Coghill)

Q. What is your life's purpose?

Carnival??

Q. What's your motto?

Demente(Tercer Cielo)This song is Spanish, by the way.

Q. What do your friends think of you?

Something in the Water(Brooke Fraser)Haha!

Q. What do your parents think of you?

Like A Star(Britt Nicole)

Q. What do you think about very often?

My Jesus, I Love Thee. Totally.

Q. What is 2+2?

When I'm with You(JJ Heller)Hey, it rhymes!!

Q. What do you think of your best friend?

Maid with the Flaxen Hair. Creepy.

Q. What do you think of the person you like?

Straight for Your Heart(Britt Nicole)Even creepier.

Q. What do you want to be when you grow up?

Evergreen(Carl Doy.);-)

Q.  What is your life story?

Sing sing sing(Chris Tomlin)Haha yes!

Q. What will you dance at your wedding?

Jack Kerouac(Brooke Fraser) Haha!

Q. What will they play at your funeral?

Sleep Away(Bob Acri)

Q. What is your hobby/interest?

Cinema Paradiso(Hayley Westernra)

Q. What is your biggest fear?

Life is a Highway(Rascal Flatts)

Q. What is your Biggest Secret?

Boom, Like That(Mark Knopfler)

Q. What do you want right now?

Orphans, Kingdoms(Brooke Fraser)

Q. What do you think of your friends?

You Lifted Me Out(Chris Tomlin)

Q. What is the worst thing that could happen?

  Romeo and Juliet(Mark Knopfler)!!

Q. What is one thing you regret?

Summer Rain(Hayley Westernra)

Q. What makes you laugh?

Un Lugar Celestial(Jaci Velasquez)Actually, no.:-)

Q. What makes you cry?

True Things(JJ Heller)No, but it makes me think.

Q. Will you ever get married?

Always(Kenny G)?!

Q. What scares you the most?

Perdoname(Pablo Alboran)No! I love this song!

Q. Does anyone like you?

The Nazgul Attack(Howard Shore; LOTR soundtrack)!!!!!

Q. If you could go back in time, what would you change?

Crown Him with Many Crowns??

Q. What hurts right now?

Shadowfeet(Brooke Fraser)

Q. What will you name this post? 

Psalm 147-Extol the Lord(Jason Coghill)

Well, there it is! I will update the Costumes of Cranford another time. Next post should hopefully be about the Country Dance!! Thanks for reading!

The Costumes of Cranford~Miss Deborah

Miss Deborah's clothes are very plain and reflect her serious nature. They are definitely much less colourful and pretty than Miss Matty's.

In this picture she is wearing a plain gray-brown gown with a flat pointed collar and a button front. She wears a black shawl and her usual white cap. Elizabeth Gaskell described Miss Deborah's bonnet as a 'jockey-cap' and it definitely looks like one. See below.

It doesn't have a very extended brim and is very loosely tied.

This is a shamefully short post but unfortunately I couldn't find any pictures of any more of her clothes!

I hope you enjoyed reading!

The Costumes of Cranford--Miss Matty

Hey everyone! Today I saw that I now have 6 followers! Yay! I know it's not many but it's a step up from only 4! ;-) So, I'll get to the point and start my blog series!

Miss Matty Jenkyns has her own style of dress as do all the ladies of Cranford. Most of her gowns appear to be designed in a Regency style, whereas Miss Pole's gowns, for example, are longer-waisted with bigger sleeves. This suggests that perhaps Miss Matty grew up in the Regency era and is accustomed to its fashions, while Miss Pole was a young lady during the Romantic period (eg Wives and Daughters) and prefers to dress in the style of her youth. I think Miss Matty's gowns are charming and show her sweet and gentle nature. I will look at a few in detail as well as her caps, bonnets and shawls.

I think this blue print may be my favourite of her dresses. She usually wears it with a large fichu and a pale blue belt. It matches particularly well with her straw bonnet with blue ties. 

In this picture we see Miss Matty's purple patterned gown. I think the pattern is gold or yellow, but it's hard to tell in this photo. Again, she wears a large fichu. Notice the difference in length between hers and Mary's.

Sometimes she also wears a short gray woolen shoulder cape over it. It looks like a plain garter knit with a bit of a ruffle at the edges.

This is my favourite of Miss Matty's shawls. It is a pale brown stripe and very large and drapey. I love the way the Cranford ladies wear their shawls.

Here is one of her caps. The ruffle frames her face and the cap is tied below her chin, while the back is a round puff shape.

I like this cap of hers the best. I couldn't find a picture of the back, nor one of her widow's cap, which I also like.I couldn't find her black mourning gown either, so this post is not very detailed!

Hope you enjoyed!

New Blog Series

Hey! So, I've been running out of ideas what to post. :-/ And I decided to do a blog series costume study type thing and I will be posting about the costumes of:

CRANFORD!!!!

The women's costumes mainly, but it will not be an exhaustive list. I will post about the wardrobes of:
Miss Deborah

Miss Matty

Mary Smith

Lady Ludlow

Mrs Forrester

Miss Pole

Miss Tomkinson

Caroline Tomkinson

Mrs Rose

Sophy Hutton

Lizzy/Helen Hutton

Martha

Dr. Harrison

Jessie Brown

I've also just finished making my Regency dress for an English Country Dance in Feb. (Can't wait, eh Laura King!!;-)) and I will post some pictures when I Get the Time.

Bye everyone!!!!