Better Late Than Never: 2015 Symposium Post 1

Yes, I am finally posting about the Civilian Symposium (previously known as the Ladies and Gentlemen of the 1860s Conference)  held March  5-6, 2015. I apologize for the delay in posting my AAR; however, I came home with the flu and am just now getting over it.

I drove over to Camp Hill on Wednesday night. I had arranged to room with Lisa Jackson from England. She arrived later into Harrisburg on Wednesday night so I picked her up at the airport. While we were waiting for her luggage we ran into Heide Presse who was also attending the Symposium. We had a car full on the way back to Camp Hill.

The weather was expected to be nasty on Thursday and we were not disappointed. Several inches of snow fell all day Thursday.

This kind of wrecked havoc with the off site tours scheduled for that day as travel was a bit hazardous. I only had one workshop planned for Thursday so had a very nice leisurely morning sleeping in and ordering room service. 

My first workshop was a fichu workshop with Carolann Schmitt. She shared many of her originals as well as presented information about the development of the accessory. Carolann had "kits" available that included lace and trimmings and she provided the pattern for a simple fichu.

 

I don't have progress pictures as I started out putting the lace on the wrong side so had to take it all off and start over. But I did finish it recently. At the marketplace I found some cotton velvet trimming at the Needle and Thread booth to accent the trim from Carolann. I really enjoyed making this. It is simple handwork that can be picked up and put down and picked up again. It was relatively simple, although there are some obvious corrections on my part needed next time. If you have a chance consider attending this workshop; Carolann is having another in November in Gettysburg. Visit her website for the exact information. More pictures from the fichu workshop can be found here.

Thursday night is traditionally the wrapper and smoking jacket party. There were several wonderful pieces this year. I didn't even start my new one and forgot my old one so I was only an observer this year.

The evening would not be complete without entertainment; this year we watched Carol Burnet's Gone With the Wind parody and Things Museum People Say; you should be able to find both of these on YouTube if you are interested in them. Additional pictures from the party can be found here.