I’ve started researching for a book, studying up on American culture around the turn of the 20th century.    It’s just fascinating, obsessing me as I try to set the scene…how did they dress?  what did they eat and drink?  what sort of transportation did they use?  what music did they listen to?  what books and newspapers did they read?  what was school like?  on and on…

I got to cogitating on women’s undergarments and how they speak of our ever-changing, but always confusing, body-image…

My novel starts in the Edwardian Era,  which was the mid-1890’s  until WWI.  During that time, corsets loosened and desirable women’s shapes  changed rather dramatically.  You can see  by these silhouettes:

I remember my mom and her sisters wore girdles, but by the 1960’s young girls were not expected to cinch in their waists, though we did have some elastic in our garter belts…  Oh, and we didn’t  really burn our bras, we just threw them (and any girdles we may have had) into the trash can.   It was a symbolic gesture, meant as a serious critique of the whole beauty culture and  valuing women for their looks instead of their whole Self…obviously, most people didn’t get it.

Lately I’ve had to face the fact that I’m much thicker in the middle than I used to be and this shift has necessitated a general revamp of my wardrobe as I accept that no amount of wt. loss or sit-ups is going to make me look good in those old hip-huggers…   While I’ve  had to change my Style (and size) some to cover the flaws, I haven’t even considered girdling my girth into a bodice…

But that’s only the tip of the research obsession…Because I am free to google it (u r 2), I have immersed myself in the sights, sounds, and songs, as well:

I’ll be keeping you in touch with my progress on this endeavor…

I’ve got Christmas 2014 planned and it is filled with Rockettes…NYC Radio City Music Hall 12/13 with the Jose’ fam, Nashville TN Opry House touring show 12/20 with the Jrs.  We’re having a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner to celebrate Casey’s 60th birthday, and I was hoping the weather would be good for a little travel that weekend, as well.

In the meantime, it’s all about the book, setting the scene, building the characters, and putting myself into the girdles of my grandmothers…

my great-grandmother , around 1898