Mr. Selfridge Season 1 review

I have had Mr. Selfridge on my "to watch" list since it first came out back in 2013. Then I would find other shows, watch those, and it kept getting bumped down the list. Then I needed something to watch while doing hand sewing. So I finally got around to watching the first season. Why didn't I do this sooner?

imdb.com

Mr. Selfridge stars Jeremy Piven in the lead role of Harry Selfridge, the American retail magnate who established the London department store of the same name. This ongoing series is based on the biography of Selfridge titled Shopping, Seduction, and Mr. Selfridge by Linda Woodhead. The first season starts in 1908 and covers the scope of Selfridge not only funding, but opening then establishing his store as a preeminent destination for the Edwardian shopper.

Last Touch-ups for the Bathing Costume

I'm on the homestretch now for finishing up my bathing costume. For the main portion, I just have to add buttons, the collar ties, and figure out how to attach the front inset.

The skirt is going to be easy, I just need to sew on a button and a buttonhole.

Hidden Killers of the Victorian/Edwardian Home review

As I work through some of the finishing touches of my bathing costume, I've been watching oodles of shows to pass the time. I found this via my recommended shows list from my watching history on Amazon Prime.

"The dawn of the 20th century ushered in an era of fresh inventions and innovations: Electricity, refrigeration and many other materials promised to make life easier and more convenient. But lack of understanding meant that they frequently led to death."

Battle of Five Forks Reenactment at Hale Farm

For the third year running, I traveled over to Hale Farm and Village for their annual Civil War reenactment. I got to wear my sheer striped dress to the event and while it was still very warm out, it was still much cooler than the calico dress I've worn in years past.

We walked around the village a bit and looked around the Union and Confederate camp sites. Kerry had gone with me again this year and he took a few photos while we were in the garden.

Bias, bias everywhere!

Since my idea to use soutache trim didn't pan out, I went with bias cut fabric strips to help trim out the swimsuit. I'm using some cream fabric that I already had on had, so I've been cutting, sewing, cutting some more, and then sewing even more. In short, I've never used this much bias before.

I've used bias strips before - for edging corsets and bodices, and I've used the pre-made stuff too for boning channels on bustles and crinolines. I'll readily admit though, that I've never made this much.

Of course one of the things I found is that cutting this much bias is easy, getting it ironed and folded turned out to be another challenge. When I first started ironing, the folds wouldn't stay very well and I would usually have to hand press them again while pinning everything. Then on a whim, I pulled out my Mary Ellen's Best Press and gave the fabric a light spritz before ironing. Oh what a difference!

About 6 yards of this stuff later, I started pinning and sewing. With the trim changes, my main inspiration is coming from this original piece.