Jane Odiwe Jane Austen Sequels

Wedding Fashions in the time of Jane Austen I've just been to a lovely spring wedding, and it got me thinking about the wedding fashions of the Georgian and Regency period. From the 1790s a wedding dress in white became the fashionable garment to wear, taking over from the white and silver dresses that had been worn by wealthy young women. Waistlines rose, sleeves became shorter and lace accessories not so regularly worn, although the bridal veil started to make its appearance at this time. Simple styles worn with less jewellery and diamonds were the order of the day, and lace veils were worn draped over the head for evening wear as well as wedding attire. 1804 The sheerest muslin from India was the most fashionable fabric, but silk, gauzes, fine cottens and linens also formed the basis of a wedding outfit. Machine made net, often embroidered was an alternative. The actress Elizabeth Farren who married Lord Derby at his house in Grosvenor Square in May, 1797 ...

Afternoon tea at the Fan Museum I love a beautiful fan, and they have been the must-have accessory for  young women in the UK since the 1500s. Though not widely used now I think most people with an interest in history of fashion wish they'd make a come-back!  The Fan Museum at Greenwich is dedicated to the history of fans and craft of fan making, and  holds over 5,000 fans and fan leaves with examples from all over the world from the 11th century to the present day.  This year the museum is celebrating its twenty fifth anniversary and the museum’s curators have handpicked an array of fans that showcase the extraordinary diversity of the museum’s holdings. Exhibition highlights include seventeenth century fans painted with mythological subjects, elaborately carved & gilt rococo confections, and twentieth century fans by artists George Barbier and Salvador Dali. They also do the most wonderful afternoon tea in a beautiful room painted with trom...

I'm absolutely thrilled with this wonderful review from Laura Boyle for Jane Austen Lives again - thank you, Laura! Imagine a world where Jane Austen and her favorite characters exist in a Downton Abbey atmosphere—Impossible, you say, and yet, apart from the passage of years, they are all gentlemen and gentlemen’s daughters, as Elizabeth Bennet so succinctly puts it. In Jane Odiwe’s latest novel, Jane Austen Lives Again , our favorite author does not die at 42 in Winchester, but is kept, somehow in stasis, until Dr. Lyford can not only cure her last lingering illness, but revive her again in the prime of her life. The scientific details are not spelled out, and honestly, it doesn’t matter, as Ms. Odiwe’s book will captivate you from the first. Finally we are able to see Jane “live again” sans vampires and magic, and enjoy her introduction to modern life in the 1920’s. Ms. Odiwe is unabashedly nostalgic about paying tribute to her favorite novels and stories of the period,...