Confession: for the last two days, I’ve been sitting around eating turkey and pie, not getting any exercise, and watching Deadwood DVDs. So, for this Saturday’s post I knew I had to find something where I could use lots of pictures. Something that wouldn’t take much brain-power, since I lost that a few slices of apple pie a la mode ago. Something that grows out of last week’s post. Something with–corsets! Yes! That’s what I need after mashed potatoes and gravy. Elizabethan Costuming 101.

The Basic Elements:

The Smock A basic garment, worn by all classes to help protect outer clothing. There are various styles–some are cut close to the body with a low, square neck and close-fitting, ungathered sleeves. Some have puffed sleeves gathered to cuffs. Generally made of linen.

Partlet A rectangular fill-in for the open-necked bodice. If a smock with a low, square neck is worn, this can go over it. It’s cut with a straight, standing collar, and can have a small ruff attached, or have a larger ruff pinned or basted to it.

Stockings These came to just above the knee, could be made of wool or fine silk yarn, tied by a ribbon garter.

Corset (or Stays, or Pair of Bodies) The Elizabethan corset, unlike the Victorian, is not designed to squeeze the waist to Scarlett O’Hara proportions, but to smooth the line of the torso into a cone shape and flatten the bosom into a high, mounded bustline. Made of heavy boning, generally with back lacing. Extant examples are very rare; this pic is a German corset from around 1598.

Farthingales There are 2 popular varieties: Spanish and French. The Spanish is the most flattering, a straight A-line angle from waist to hem. The French, or drum farthingale, is a large, crescent-shaped pad or rigid framework worn around the waist. This was the fashion later in the 16th century.

Bum roll A crescent-shaped pad worn around the waist, supporting most of the weight of the skirt.

Drawers Not generally worn by Englishwomen. Queen Elizabeth had a few Italian pairs, but they were a shocking, racy rarity.

Underskirt (or kirtle) with a decorated forepart A plain skirt, gored or pleated to fit over hoops, bum rolls, etc. The forepart is decorated, embroidered or made from fancy fabric, and it lies flat in a gentle, downward arc. Over this goes the overskirt, attached to the bodice to form the gown. The overskirt is split up the front.

Two common styles of bodice are the square-necked variety and the doublet (with standing collar, fastened down the front center. See the portrait of Mary Queen of Scots on the right).

Sleeves detachable, could match the bodice fabric or could be contrasting (sleeves were often used as a fairly easy way to try out new looks)

Surcoats were a popular loose, coat-like garment, either worn over the bodice and skirt for warmth or on their own over the undergarments. (See the portrait of Christina, Duchess of Milan, in black).

A few good sources to read more:

Queen Elizabeth’s Wardrobe Unlocked by Janet Arnold (this book is one of the great Prides of my book collection! One of the most valuable both in terms of money and information. Also check out her two volumes of Patterns of Fashion)

The Tudor Tailor by Ninya Mikhaila

The Tailor’s Pattern Book ( reprint of a Spanish book of cutting layouts from 1589)

Dressing the Elite: Clothes in Early Modern England by Susan Vincent

Funeral Effigies in Westminster Abbey by Anthony Harvey

And a few pics of my own costumes (match to the inspiration! The silver gown isn’t actually mine, though I wish it was–it belongs to the Folger Shakespeare Library)

I hope everyone had a great holiday! I think it may be time for me to get up off the couch before I need a corset and bum roll, too…

I am covered with embarrassment that I forgot to announce what will be the next movie we’re discussing in the Jane Austen Movie Club!

I’m so sorry! (And I also apologize to Janet, for posting this on her day without asking first!)

We will discuss the 2005 version of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, the one with Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen. And the discussion will be on Tuesday, December 4 — always the first Tuesday of the month.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled Riskiness…

Cara

Last week I blogged about the fun of doing amateur art, music, theatre, etc… without the pressure of making a career of it. Risky friend Susan Wilbanks commented that she enjoys singing, but though she has not yet sold a novel, her writing is not a hobby. I know what she means and I definitely don’t think it’s publication that separates the amateur writer from the professional.

It’s harder to put my finger on the difference, though.

There are people in Romance Writers of America who believe that membership in the organization confers professionalism. But some have been members for a decade or more, write sporadically or not at all and have not completed or submitted a manuscript. So I don’t think declaring oneself a professional is enough.

Part of it is that the pro seeks payment for her art (and that’s where finishing and submitting come in). She will take her craft seriously and strive to create work worthy of publication.

But it’s not just money either. Here’s what Steven Pressfield (THE WAR OF ART) says about the difference between the amateur and the professional: “The word amateur comes from the Latin root meaning ‘to love’. The conventional interpretation is that the amateur pursues his calling out of love, while the pro does it for money. Not the way I see it. In my view, the amateur does not love the game enough. If he did, he would not pursue it as a sideline, distinct from his ‘real’ vocation. The professional loves it so much he dedicates his life to it. He commits full-time.”
To me this quote feels a bit derogatory to the amateur (though perhaps it wasn’t intended that way). Nor do I think one has to write full time to be a professional. But I do believe it is about commitment. Being an amateur is like dating while being a pro is like marriage. One can walk away from a hobby but a true professional hangs in there.

Some writers say one should write every day. I agree with that in principle but I also suspect the ones who say that have wives to deal with sick kids and household disasters. I agree with a married, working friend of mine who once said there were times she wished she had a “wife”. 🙂

Whether or not one writes every day–or even takes occasional breaks from the writing–I do think it’s important to come up with goals (which can be modest) and a schedule (which doesn’t have to be anything like 9-5) and stick to it. At one point I was working a “regular job” 3 days a week and had a young baby. I wrote during her naps (when they happened) on my two days off and on Wednesday evenings and Sunday afternoons when my husband was able to babysit. The hours were erratic, but I showed up and did my best. LORD LANGDON’S KISS was the result.

So anyway, this is what I’ve come up with so far. A professional writer is one who strives to improve her mastery of the craft, one who sets goals and shows up for work even if she’s not in the mood.

What do you think makes a professional writer?

Elena
www.elenagreene.com