Mimi Matthews's Blog, page 13
August 14, 2017
The Tottenham Station Railway Disaster of 1860
“Great injury was done after the engine ran up the platform. The brickwork was swept away, and a large portion of a wall was thrown down; in fact, one carriage was thrown completely through the platform wall by the violence with which it was hurled over the line.” The Era, 26 February 1860. On 20 […]
August 4, 2017
The Jersey Pug’s Funeral; and Other Dog Funerals of the Late Victorian Era
“If this sort of thing keeps growing, it won’t be long before we shall hear of dog undertakers, and perhaps marble cutters who devote their time and talent to the construction of monuments to pet dogs. There is no calculating the extent to which infectious folly will go.” The Saint Paul Globe, 25 November 1888. […]
August 2, 2017
The Lost Letter: Book Excerpt and Goodreads Giveaway
As many of you know, my debut Victorian romance, The Lost Letter, will be released on September 19. It’s currently out on review and—I’m pleased to report—the advance reviews have been truly wonderful. Kirkus Reviews calls it a “beautifully told” historical love story with “consistently refined and elegant” prose. And Chicks, Rogues and Scandals calls […]
July 19, 2017
The Etiquette of the Victorian Golf Course: Twelve Tips for a Co-Ed Game
During the Victorian era, golf was a hugely popular sport. Both men and women played for pleasure and for competition. Much of this play was done in the company of those of the same sex. However, by the end of the century, it was becoming more common for men and women—especially husbands and wives—to golf […]
July 14, 2017
A Victorian Wife’s Best Friend: The Role of Cats & Dogs in Cases of Spousal Abuse
The nineteenth century news is filled with reports of hero pets rescuing their masters and mistresses from various catastrophes. Dogs routed burglars and saved children from drowning, while cats meowed the alarm when the house was on fire or when a family member had stopped breathing in their bed. Both cats and dogs were also […]
July 10, 2017
A Few Words on Disappearing Posts…
Some of you may have noticed that my archive of articles on Victorian fashion and beauty has recently become a bit thinner. I know that many of those articles—specifically my Victorian Lady’s Guides and my Visual Guides to Victorian Fashion series—were incredibly popular, so I thought I’d take a brief moment to explain what has […]
June 25, 2017
A Passion for Auburn Hair: Victorian Views On Reddish-Brown Tresses
“Her friends call her hair auburn, but her enemies call it red.” Sylvia’s Book of the Toilet, 1881. Auburn hair has long been admired for it’s beauty. In the sixteenth century, Titian famously painted beautiful women with hair of a reddish hue. While in his epic Regency era poem Don Juan, Lord Byron waxed rhapsodic […]
June 19, 2017
The Scent of Violets: Perfume, Cosmetics, and Crime in the Late Victorian Era
“The fondness for violets increases with time, and many women of fashion will tolerate no other fragrance.” American Soap Journal and Manufacturing Chemist, 1895. In 1893, a woman by the name of Margaret Gainer was arrested, charged, and ultimately sentenced to thirty days imprisonment for stealing a bottle of violet perfume from a hairdresser’s shop. […]
June 8, 2017
MimiMatthews.com is Moving to a New Website Provider. Don’t Get Left Behind!
MimiMatthews.com is presently undergoing a complete website redesign. My new website will launch in the next week or two. My web address will be the same, but my entire website is going to look very different. Don’t be alarmed! It’s still me. All the same content will be available to you—including my archive of articles […]
June 5, 2017
The Pug Who Bit Napoleon: Cover Reveal!
At long last, I can reveal the beautiful cover of my upcoming book, The Pug Who Bit Napoleon: Animal Tales of the 18th and 19th Centuries. It was designed by Dominic Allen at Pen and Sword Books (UK) and features one of my favourite historical pug paintings. I hope you love it as much as […]
