Patriots Day, 1864

On Monday, Andy and I attended a small Patriot's Day event in Massachusetts. We went in Civil War garb and it was a beautiful, warm day.

 Here we are in our outfits!

These elegant ladies were showing quilting while stitching a potholder quilt and also selling chances on the lovely quilt hanging in the back.

Andy liked seeing, petting, and feeding the animals the best. There were a horse, sheep, and chickens!

I think these chickens are Rhode Island Reds- they are darker than our golden Shelly.

My favorite thing to see was the lady cooking over an open fire. She had some meat in there and was adding some cut up vegetables. It looked quite delicious. I hope that I will be able to learn old fashioned cookery techniques in the future.

A group of male CW reenactors were drilling. We both jumped when they shot their guns.

There was a lady demonstrating vintage toys. Andy and I enjoyed the "whimmydiddle" which is a stick with grooves and a little wooden spinner on the end. You rub a smaller stick on the grooves and the spinner twirls. By changing the placement of your fingers, you can make it spin in the opposite direction!

The event was fun, but Andy did not last more than 1 1/2 hours, so we will try to find more kid-friendly events later this season.

I haven't given the details of his outfit, because I just finished it before we left!

The pants are brown linen, with buttons at the waist. They ended up being long, so I will probably hem them shorter. I did not button them on to the shirt as the pattern called for, but I think it would have helped him stay better "put-together". The shirt is a reproduction fabric. I love the coral color with the brown. It was very easy to make, except it was super short. I added about 4" at the bottom with a flat-felled seam so it wasn't noticeable.

These shoes were the best I could find at a low cost. I got them on ebay for $8. I know they are more 1940s, but they are all leather with no synthetic materials and they lace up. They are so cute and were unworn. I need to find black leather "boots" for both of us.
I am still hoping to find some really great events to attend as we learn more about this hobby!!