At a formal dinner you must never take a second helping or you will find yourself dining alone. The Edwardian age (1901-1910), the last period of the English country house, was defined by its etiquette for those both upstairs and down. This 'golden era' of gentility had answers to everything. Discover the correct way to address tradesmen, how to produce a pomade against baldness, how to deal with gossip and ways to get a perfect shine to glass among many other indispensable gems in this Edwardian guide to life.
Compiled from lectures and blog posts on Edwardian Promenade, the Pocket Guide to Edwardian England poses to give a fun, frothy, but thorough look at the time period made popular by Downton Abbey and Upstairs Downstairs! From the royal family of Edward VII to the working class, to the servants who toiled in great country houses and their masters, to the mighty politicians and their goals. For anyone wanting a short and concise, yet deeply engrossing look at this opulent era, Pocket Guide to Edwardian England is just book to take you away.
TRAVEL BACK IN TIME WITH THE BBC'S RUTH GOODMAN We know what life was like for Victoria and Albert. But what was it like for a commoner - like you or me? How did it feel to cook with coal and wash with tea leaves? Drink beer for breakfast and clean your teeth with cuttlefish? Catch the omnibus to work and do the laundry in your corset? How to be a Victorian is a radical new approach to history; a journey back in time more personal than anything before, illuminating the overlapping worlds of health, sex, fashion, food, school, work and play. Surviving everyday life came down to the gritty details, the small necessities and tricks of living and this book will show you how. ______________________ 'Goodman skilfully creates a portrait of daily Victorian life with accessible, compelling, and deeply sensory prose' Erin Entrada Kelly 'We're lucky to have such a knowledgeable cicerone as Ruth Goodman . . . Revelatory' Alexandra Kimball 'Goodman's research is impeccable . . . taking the reader through an average day and presenting the oddities of life without condescension' Patricia Hagen
An “utterly brilliant” and deeply researched guide to the sights, smells, endless wonders, and profound changes of nineteenth century British history (Books Monthly, UK). Step into the past and experience the world of Victorian England, from clothing to cuisine, toilet arrangements to transport—and everything in between. A Visitor’s Guide to Victorian England is “a brilliant guided tour of Charles Dickens’s and other eminent Victorian Englishmen’s England, with insights into where and where not to go, what type of people you’re likely to meet, and what sights and sounds to watch out for . . . Utterly brilliant!” (Books Monthly, UK). Like going back in time, Higgs’s book shows armchair travelers how to find the best seat on an omnibus, fasten a corset, deal with unwanted insects and vermin, get in and out of a vehicle while wearing a crinoline, and avoid catching an infectious disease. Drawing on a wide range of sources, this book blends accurate historical details with compelling stories to bring alive the fascinating details of Victorian daily life. It is a must-read for seasoned social history fans, costume drama lovers, history students, and anyone with an interest in the nineteenth century.
Second edition of The Pocket Guide to Edwardian England, newly revised and expanded. The Edwardian Era simplified, organized, and easy to reference. Aimed towards writers of historical fiction, though genealogists, Downton Abbey fans, and the curious alike will find this an excellent starting point for their own research. Compiled from lectures and blog posts on Edwardian Promenade, as well as 70% more original content, Edwardian England: A Guide to Everyday Life, 1900-1914 poses to give a entry level, but thorough look at the time period made popular by Downton Abbey and Mr. Selfridge.
This book of handy hints for the new housewife was first published in the Edwardian era, and includes recipes, medical advice, fashion tips and the dangers that can lurk in the home (e.g. the unhealthiness of carpets and the poisonous colors of wallpaper). In this new edition, the most unusual entertaining pieces of advice have been collected together along with the charming contemporary advertisement and a fascinating section about folding serviettes.
!--StartFragment-- Follow-up to the hit BBC series Victorian Farm Victorian Farm sold over 40,000 copies (Nielsen Bookscan figures) Includes projects and recipes to try at home Following on from the hit BBC series Victorian Farm, this book accompanies a new 12-part BBC series. This time, Ruth Goodman, Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn take a leap forward in time to immerse themselves in an Edwardian community in the West Country. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Morwellham Quay was situated in a bustling and commercially prosperous region – a stunning rural landscape encompassing rolling farmland, wild moorland, tidal river, coast and forest, which supported a vibrant and diverse economy. Ruth, Peter and Alex will spend a year exploring all aspects of this working landscape - restoring boats, buildings and equipment, cultivating crops, fishing, rearing animals and rediscovering the lost heritage of this fascinating era as well as facing the challenges of increasingly commercial farming practices, fishing and community events. !--StartFragment--!--EndFragment--!--EndFragment--
“Meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated . . . indispensable to anyone interested in the era.” —Tasha Alexander, New York Times–bestselling author of the Lady Emily series What did a Victorian lady wear for a walk in the park? How did she style her hair for an evening at the theater? And what products might she have used to soothe a sunburn or treat an unsightly blemish? USA Today-bestselling author Mimi Matthews answers these questions and more as she takes readers on a decade-by-decade journey through Victorian fashion and beauty history. Women’s clothing changed dramatically during the course of the Victorian era. Necklines rose, waistlines dropped, and Gothic severity gave way to flounces and frills. Sleeves ballooned up and skirts billowed out. The crinoline morphed into the bustle and steam-molded corsets cinched women’s waists ever tighter. As fashion evolved, so too did trends in ladies’ hair care and cosmetics. An era which began by prizing natural, barefaced beauty ended with women purchasing lip and cheek rouge, false hairpieces and pomades, and fashionable perfumes. Using research from nineteenth-century beauty books, fashion magazines, and lady’s journals, the author of the Parish Orphans of Devon series brings Victorian fashion into modern day focus—and offers a glimpse of the social issues that influenced women’s clothing and the outrage that was a frequent response to those bold females who used fashion and beauty to assert their individuality and independence. “An elegant resource that I will be reaching for again and again.”—Deanna Raybourn, New York Times-bestselling author of the Veronica Speedwell novels
Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR A New York Times Book Review Editors Choice Selection An erudite romp through the intimate details of life in Tudor England, "Goodman's latest…is a revelation" (New York Times Book Review). On the heels of her triumphant How to Be a Victorian, Ruth Goodman travels even further back in English history to the era closest to her heart, the dramatic period from the crowning of Henry VII to the death of Elizabeth I. A celebrated master of British social and domestic history, Ruth Goodman draws on her own adventures living in re-created Tudor conditions to serve as our intrepid guide to sixteenth-century living. Proceeding from daybreak to bedtime, this “immersive, engrossing” (Slate) work pays tribute to the lives of those who labored through the era. From using soot from candle wax as toothpaste to malting grain for homemade ale, from the gruesome sport of bear-baiting to cuckolding and cross-dressing—the madcap habits and revealing intimacies of life in the time of Shakespeare are vividly rendered for the insatiably curious.
