Missy Clark has been a Fort Frederick Trade Fair regular for longer than I have known her. She was back again this year with a new trade tent and plenty of clothing for the commoners of the realm.
I got to the fair Wednesday afternoon and was able to help Missy, Chantal & Matt get everything unloaded & setup. (Chantal & Matt regularly help Missy at events). Mighty Mouse work is my specialty.
Missy carries both men’s and women’s attire. The “legs” in the center of the photo are wearing country shoes. These are a light weight soft soled leather shoe worn by women at their own home.
Missy is wearing what a woman of modest means who earned her living as a traveling trader in the farm and frontier areas of the English colonies would wear. Her wooden shoes are for the wet and muddy site conditions. Klompen weren’t just used by the Dutch, they were common all over Europe. If wet and muddy ground was common, so were wooden shoes.
Chantal made Missy her new trader sign. This was the sign’s 1st public appearance.
Women’s short jackets, bed jackets (for lack of a better term), men’s work caps, breeches, slops and various socks for both sexes plus some notions were readily available.
Women’s gowns, bodices, sleeved bodices, shifts and petticoats.
The men’s rack had shirts, hunting frocks, weskits, sleeved weskits and several styles of coats. She carries socks for the lads too but no soled shoes for either men or women.
The weather for this year’s trade fair wasn’t the best so most traders were limited goods outside their tents to a few easily moved items or things that wetting wouldn’t affect.
This isn’t one of Missy’s trade goods, its a hand organ she built from a kit. I just thought it was cool.
(Missy has a new web site under development. Watch for it.)
No comments:
Post a Comment