Friday Funny

Remember September 11th

Take today to honor and remember those affected by terrorism. Terrorism is living in constant fear.  It is fearing going outside. It is fearing for your family members.  It is being afraid to speak and too scared to listen.  It is being at home, but not feeling safe. It is not feeling safe anywhere.   

  

 Terrorism is not just something that happens on a grand scale, perpetrated by scary men from foreign lands, although it sometimes is. More often are the terrorists in your own countries, towns, neighborhoods or even households.

September 11^th shouldn’t be remembered for the fear. The legacy of September 11^th is that for the first time in a long time, everyone stood together. In the pain, confusion, and madness, strangers helped each other, stood together and gave willingly. 

With millions standing together, fear became courage.   

Whether it’s American terrorism in the Middle East, American terrorism in the United States, Middle Easter terrorism in the United States, Syrian terrorism in Syria,  terrorism in your home, or terrorism at school, it is all the same.  No one should be afraid to live.

Remember September 11^th.  As Nelson Mandela said “courage [is] not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” Always stand up against terrorism. Help others turn fear into courage. Through courage, terrorism no longer exists.    

Please remember those affected by the 9/11 terrorist attacks as well as everyone affected by terrorism everywhere in the world and honor and learn from those who fought it or continue to do so. 

Peterson Magazine's Princess Capote Hood Pattern from 1862

This hood is a pretty alternative to the Red Riding Hood that I posted last Friday. Both hoods were published in Peterson's Magazine in 1862 and are constructed similarly.

The ruffles, braid and tassel make this hood an intricate and pretty accessory.

Of course, I am very interested in any headwear that allows me to lay down while wearing it. Farby, I know. But there's nothing like walking a few miles in your corset and heavy dress and sneaking into your tent for a few minutes of temporary relief. You fluff up your blankets and try to lay down for a few minutes, and your bonnet or hat are in the way, making laying down impossible. By the time you get your bonnet or hat off, it's generally time to start cooking. :) 

This is a pretty hood and would be a nice thing to have come the colder events. Enjoy the nice cool weather we've been having. 

Red Riding Hood from Peterson's Magazine 1862

One can imagine the fashionable lady, walking down the street, a bright red rose in the bleak, snowy streets.   

This pretty little hood was published in Peterson's Magazine in 1862. This hood was meant to make a statement. The instructions directed fashionable ladies to procure the most brilliant scarlet that could be had. It also touted the ease of make and the prettiness of finished hood.

While not the typical riding cloak we think of when we hear the term "riding hood," this hood evokes the headwear of  François Fleury-Richard's "Red Riding Hood" from 1820.




Similar hoods were already popular in the 1860s, this particular style was an imaginative twist to a winter wardrobe staple. It seems like a good weekend project, just in time for the colder events to come.  

 

François Fleury-Richard

Some very pretty examples of this hood made up:

• Mackin-Art: The Red Riding Hood
• Diary of a Seamstress: A Red Riding Hood
• The Story of a Seamstress: The Little Red Riding Hood That Isn't Red

The Beauty of Valley Forge

We finally have a day of sweater weather. Everyone is back in school. The days are getting shorter and everyone is settling down from summer.

It's a strange feeling, sitting back as people are busily collecting school books, learning the ropes of their new classes and decorating their dorms.

Outside the birds are collecting sticks and the squirrels are busy burying those last few nuts.

It really is weird to have a chance to stop while everyone else is spinning.








I had a chance to do this recently. Andy and I went for a walk through Valley Forge. It's a place filled with beauty, despite the tragedies that made it famous. It is easy to imagine how this beauty affected the soldiers as they saw the first buds of spring pushing through the snow.

If you are one of those people being swirled around in the whirlwind of September, make sure to take a few well deserved breaks to admire the things going on around you. It's beautiful.