Emmitt's 19th century proper clothing

Emmitt and I went to a civil war event near Boise, Idaho last week.

Last year I took Kenna since we were still attached for her nourishment needs, but this year I wanted to take the lad.  The girls are not fond of missing school, so it was the perfect idea.

But I had to get busy sewing for Emmitt.

I haven't really sewn any period clothing for him since he outgrew the dresses he used to wear.

So I found a shirt pattern Emily posted on her blog, Buns and Baskets.

I made Emmitt two shirts with this pattern that worked up really quickly. 

I used Emily's 5T math for the first one, and tweeked it a bit for my scrawny boy for the second one I made.

When Emmitt saw the shirts, he said

"Why do my shirts have flowers on them?"

I assured him all was well with his little flowers.



 

I have a friend who enjoys buying great things at thrift stores to rework into period clothing.

So, I got a few pairs of adult men's pants in linen, wool, and a heavy cotton from him and got busy.

I made linen trousers with suspenders and vest, cotton short trousers with suspenders and a vest, and then also a pair of wool trousers.

I couldn't find a suitable pattern, so I just made it up.

Which is pretty apparent, but its okay for the sweet boy.

Emmitt wore his linen trousers and vest the first day in Idaho. It was a warm day, gorgeous day actually, in the low 80s and so by the afternooon, Emmitt found the creek and I changed him into the short pants.

Emmitt has a super simple pair of elastic waisted church pants, and I just sort of laid them on the table and traced them, then did some more tweeking to make a pattern.

The linen trousers have three shell buttons in the front for a button fly opening. 

The braces, or suspenders, are very necessary for these trousers to stay up.

 

The vest is just a simple one, and on the linen one I made four fabric covered buttons.



There were around 1000 5th graders there on Friday, and of course they did some drilling.

Emmitt did as well, but was a bit shy about it because he couldn't remember what was his left and what was his right! Check out that cute cute hat too! 

 

The next day Emmitt wore the looser shirt with the cotton vest and short trousers.

These short ones are also button fly and also require suspenders to stay on.

They have just one wooden button in the fly, and wooden buttons for the braces, but the vest has self fabric buttons.

 

I made Emmitt wait until after lunch before he played in the creek on the second day.

He was of course joined by the sweet girls cooling off too.

 

I also just loved that President Lincoln watched my lad playing in the water.

For some reason, that just made me smile.

 

Emmitt and I had a great time with our sweet Idaho friends.

He of course said he will be going back next year.

He loved camping in our canvas tent with me and thought it was a great adventure.

The last morning, as I was cleaning up and packing up, the little lazy britches didn't want to wake up.

So, after everything in the tent was packed and loaded but him and his bed,

I drug his cot outside the tent so I could drop the tent.

He finally woke up, but said in a sleepy voice,

"Lets not go home mom, lets just stay here."

I am glad he had such a great time.

He made so many fun friends, and they were really great to be so good to him.

 



 

There was one pair of wool trousers I made that he didn't get the chance to wear in Idaho.

So, he wore them to church yesterday.

Matt gave me a "REALLY?" look, but it was Mother's Day and so I just got him dressed the way I wanted to!

 

I totally just made these up as well, but I was going for the drop front, or fall-front style.

So there are two buttons on each side to allow access.

These trousers actually stay up and in place without suspenders.

 



I had him wear the cotton vest to church just because it looked sharp, not to hide the suspenders like they would have done in the mid 1800s.  The weave, color, and pattern of the cotton vest and wool trousers are very different, but it still was a nice overall look.

 



 

Two of his sisters could not handle Emmitt getting his picture taken, without them in it as well.

So friends, that is Emmitt's new mid 1800s wardrobe I made him.

I really should have made him a coat too, just to be completely proper, but I usually work with a strict time limit!

He looks so handsome!

mechanics hat for E

I bought this men's XL 100% wool sweater at the local thrift store last year.  I threw it in the washer with hot water and washed it, then dried it in the dryer.  I did that twice.  It felted that wool sweater, and of course shrunk it like crazy. 

I intended to make some cute little wool shoes out of it for Kenna for civil war events as well as everyday footwear.  That never happened.

 



Emmitt needs a sweet new hat for a civil war event we are headed to next week, so I got out that wool sweater, used this tutorial, and made this cute little thing for him.

 



 

Its a bit big for him, but that will have to be okay.

Its also quite cozy and warm, not the ideal summer cap for a sweet 1860s lad, but that will have to be okay as well.  I should make him another one out of a lighter fabric, but it was either wool or just quilting cotton, and that wouldn't work either. 

So, I guess his head will be cozy next week because he loves it.

He did have some Easter candy in his cheek for this photo, I promise there isn't an impacted tooth!

And Kenna had to give it a whirl as well.
We are getting ready for our big trip!  YIPPEE!!

 



 

afternoon tea

 Kendal, Emmitt, and I attended an 1860s era Afternoon Tea last week.  It was perfect weather thankfully.  Spring is a hard time to plan around, but it turned out perfect.

We were instructed in the finer points of the game GRACES.  I definitely need some practice, but Kendal and Emmitt did pretty good thanks to Mrs Grant. 

We left Kelsey and Kenna home, so just the three of us spent the day together.  We had to borrow some clothing for sweet Emmitt, since he has grown out of all the dresses he wore a few years ago.  And since he didn't get in any 1860s time last year, he didn't have anything that fit him.

The company was lovely.  I sure enjoy my time warp friends!

Victoria, Kimberli, and Kay were some of them in attendance. 

Kay hosted the party and made all the delicious treats.  She did such a great job.  Thanks so much Kay! 

For any 1860s purists, I really am working on getting a new head covering, and sweet spoon bonnet!  Can't wait!

our Irish parade day

 Last Saturday the girls and I headed to Salt Lake City for the St. Patrick's Day Parade with our civil war group.  IT WAS A FREEZING COLD DAY!

Here they are trying to keep warm in the bitter cold wind.

I grabbed a few shawls as an after thought, glad I did.

 

 

Here we are last year, the weather was beautiful.  When we finished the parade, the girls wore shorts and we went out to lunch. 

 

 

This year when we finished, we just wanted to get in the car, out of the wind, and turn on the heater full blast.  That is exactly what we did!

 

But despite the cold cold day, the girls were so great.  Especially Kenna.  Her poor little chubby hands were purple from the cold. 

My friend Amanda has this awesome 1880s baby carrier that she rode in for the parade.  

Kelsey pulled her and it was great.   

 





The St Patrick's Day Parade is a pretty fun parade.  There are so many wild, green folks there as parade entries, and in the crowds. 

The parade goes through the Gateway Shopping Center which is really fun.  There were people in every nook and cranny, especially the sunny spots!  My friend Crusan had daughters in the parade and she watched the parade from an overhead crosswalk and snapped a few pictures for us.

 



Excuse my horrible petticoats, and I wish you could see Kenna being pulled behind Kelsey, but that is us.  We have such a fun group of friends that reenact with us.  They are all great.

 

It was a good day, and the heater in the car was wonderful. 

We look forward to next year and warmer weather.  Although I think this was the perfect excuse for me to make myself a civil war era coat, a paletot.  Oh, that would have been fantastic!

 

my civil war signature quilt

Anyone who knows me or reads about me, knows that I have a hard time finishing my quilting projects.  I really do.  I have a great idea, I LOVE to cut fabric, I love to sew it up, but usually I am just a border short of complete, and then I lose interest.  Well, I never lost interest with this quilt, it really just took me awhile to get the top completed. 

So, this one is FINISHED, excepting a few more signatures from my friends.  Not just any friends, my civil war reenacting friends.

I found the interior print of Grant and Lee at a wonderful quilt shop called Elaine's Quilt Block in Salt Lake City in the clearance fabric bin in the basement.  I bought two of the panels.  Two?  Why did I only buy two?  Who knows!  I held onto it for awhile and then decided to make a signature medallion style quilt with it in the center. 

So a few years ago I got busy making 5 inch square in a square signature blocks.  I took them along with me to various meetings and events that our civil war group was involved in, and had my friends sign them.  I am still missing a good handful of my Utah civil war friends, but I will catch up with them soon.

Well, a few days ago I put the final border on this baby and I am saying it is finished.  Its around 50 inches by 65 inches.  All the blocks are not signed yet.  I still have those Utah friends I have known for years that need to sign it, and then I made some wonderful Idaho friends last year.  Some of them have signed it, but not as many as I would like.  I am headed to Idaho for an event in two months and I can't wait to get a few more from those great folks.

I am a pretty sentimental person, and I love meeting people and making friends.  I think this quilt right here is going to be one of my favorite quilts I have ever made.  Just for the sake of all the memories that flow through my mind when I read the names of my friends that enjoy the mid 1860s with me.  Such wonderful times like singing songs around a fire, laughing over me falling down during the Virginia Reel, lacing up corsets and giggling over split drawers, eating cornbread and watching the guys roll cartridges, laughing in my tent with a lantern, cheesecake, and a mandolin, watching my kids jump rope and play with their cloth dolls and wooden swords, getting my hair done up into a bun just as the public arrive, and just spending great times with my favorite friends. Yep, a favorite quilt for sure.

Signature or memory quilts were very popular during the mid 1800s.  With many people headed west, going to war, or getting married and moving away, signature quilt blocks were made by loved ones and sent with those leaving as a sweet memento of friendship and kinship.  Unlike today with the ease of traveling, many times those farewells were final.  It was a wonderful way to remember those close to you and those you loved while you were away.  The reasons still apply today.  I want to remember these friends I have made, to have a little piece of them, and something to trigger beautiful memories.

Now, to get it off to the quilter.  Oh, and I gave that other Grant and Lee panel to a sweet lady last year who fell in love with it at an Elizabeth Stewart Clark sewing conference we were attending.  Her name was Luann.  Hopefully I see her again too.

mini Stars and Bars quilts

For our Inaugural Dinner last month, I made these two Stars and Bars mini quilts to be signed as a token of our appreciation for our outgoing commanding officers.

 

I think they turned out pretty well.  As far as quilted fabric goes, and considering they aren't even a useful size, the guys seemed to like them.  I think mostly because they are both Rebels at heart.



Kris and Caleb did a great job leading our Fort Douglas Museum Living History Detachment.  We had a pretty great 2013 year.

Everyone that was at the dinner in January signed the mini quilts.  There were many members of our crew that were missing, but hopefully they can catch up and sign them some time.

We enjoyed a delicious potluck dinner and of course the crazy company.  We elected new officers for 2014 and we look forward to another great year playing in the 1860s. 

Oh, and I even got to share a birthday cake with General Robert E Lee, what an honor! 

Its so hard for me to quilt in the summer!

It is so hard for me to get much quilting done in the summer. 

I suppose since Kenna sleeps in my sewing room, that doesn't help.

But I did get this sweet thing back from the machine quilter a few days ago.

This is a Friendship Quilt Block quilt from a few years ago. 

Meaning that some of the Dutchmans Puzzle blocks were made by some friends from my local quilt guild.

I think it turned out great. Now my most dreaded part - the binding.

This is a simple quilt I made for one of my civil war reenacting friends. 

He usually portrays a Confederate Infantry soldier, so I made this quilt to look like one of the quilts a family member or a ladies aid society would have made and sent to the soldiers in the field.

I used all civil war reproduction fabrics and attached this label.

It says " Made for J.P. Merton.

I pray you will return to us safely.

R. Crane"

I get to deliver this quilt to its new owner next week. I hope he likes it!

13 of my family members have been involved in a really fun friendship block exchange over the past year. We have a reunion coming up next month where we raffle off items to raise money for the reunion the following year. My aunt had a fun idea to have us each make a block and put together a quilt for the reunion. There is always a gorgeous quilt made every year, so this is just an additional quilt.

I put the quilt top together yesterday, since we all decided on a patriotic theme for our blocks. I need to add one more border of blue, maybe two, and then get this baby completed by Labor Day.

It has been such a fun project with blocks made by family members from age 11 to 72ish. 

Then that brings me to this sweetheart. I have blogged about it before, but I FINALLY got it bound last week and entered it into our county fair. 

I made it in 2011 as a block of the month for our local quilt guild. 

It is called Time Marches On, and each block represents a time period or war the United States has been involved in.  Of course I used civil war reproduction fabrics, and traditional block patterns so it could be used at my civil war events.

I love combining quilting and civil war whenever possible.

So, that is some of the sewing I have been able to get finished recently. It is too nice outside to be sewing. And too many weeds to pull as well.