A Weekend Link - 18th Century Fashion

Have you ever been reading a historical book or diary in which clothing is described - and you have no idea what certain terms mean? A website that might help you figure it all out is Glossary of 18th Century Costume Terminology.

Created by Sue Felshin, this site explains terms such as kissing strings, chatelaine, round gown, stay hood, and mantle.  Explanations are provided to describe the item and how it's used. After reading through this you'll have a better understanding of the clothing that your 18th century (1700s) ancestors wore. I highly recommend checking this site out.

Shoeless Country Kids

This is a photo of William Barfield and his family: wife, S. Frances Boatright; baby, JB; daughters, Thelma and Ledora; son, Charles.  This photo was probably taken in late 1910. They were a farming family living out in Swainsboro, Emanuel, Georgia.

There are a few reason I really like this photo, one of which is that the children are barefoot.  This is a formal portrait - but the children aren't wearing shoes.  This tells me that they might not have had shoes - or at least, didn't have nice enough shoes for the photo session. Or maybe that was the style?  Who knows.  But for whatever reason, the lack of shoes catches my eye and makes me enjoy this photo even more.