{"id":779,"date":"2018-02-02T17:14:54","date_gmt":"2018-02-02T22:14:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/?p=779"},"modified":"2025-02-11T07:47:47","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T12:47:47","slug":"friday-reads-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/friday-reads-11\/","title":{"rendered":"Friday Reads: Corsets & Codpieces"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Wow, it’s February! Welcome to another Friday Reads. I originally intended to post this a few days ago, but I’ve been so busy preparing for my release party<\/a>, that I’ve been neglecting my blog. So this month, my Friday Reads is also a review.<\/p>\n

\"CoverA short time ago, I finished reading\u00a0Corsets and Codpieces: A History of Outrageous Fashion, from Roman Times to the Modern Era<\/i><\/a> by Karen Bowman. When I picked it up, I expected it to be dry and more than a little dull, but the subject matter interested me, so I figured I’d plod my way through it.<\/p>\n

When I started reading it however, I was pleasantly surprised by a conversational tone and fantastically interesting nuggets of information woven into the engaging narrative.<\/p>\n

For example, did you know that the phrase “street walker” derives from medieval prostitutes who wore sandals that spelled out ‘follow me’ in the sand? Or that sewing needles were “extremely valuable, varying in worth from a yearling calf for a common needle to an ounce of silver for an embroidery needle”.<\/p>\n

I found it immensely interesting that blue was once considered feminine because it “was associated with the Virgin Mary and conveyed gentleness” while “pink came from red and red was the embodiment of power, passion, wealth and blood” and was therefore a masculine color.<\/p>\n

And how much do you know about crinolines<\/a>? I had no idea that “accidents as a direct result of wearing a crinoline were more frequent than with any other garment in history”. In fact, “in 1864 a Dr Lancaster reported there had been 2,500 deaths in London alone from fire on account of the monstrous skirt.” Crinolines also, apparently, increased crime. A\u00a0woman was caught smuggling “5 pounds of cigars, 9 pounds of tobacco, a quantity of tea and a bottle of gin, all concealed beneath her crinoline”.<\/p>\n

Then later, during the second world war when strict clothes rationing was introduced in England in 1941, people were issued 66 coupons to last a year, which “would have been spent in the first quarter of any year” by pre-war standards.<\/p>\n

My only real ‘complaint’ for lack of a better word to call it, is that I wish more of the “Modern Era” was covered. You only get a couple pages to get you from the 50s to the 70s, and nothing at all further forward. There are certainly some outrageous fashions in modern clothing as well.<\/p>\n

Ms. Bowman does offer an extra little bit of information right at the end of the book, explaining why most bras have “a small bow stitched to the front between the cups”. But I won’t spoil the surprise in case you pick it up yourself.<\/p>\n

Perhaps now you understand why I found this book so interesting. Or perhaps you think I’m an absolute nutter. *shrug*\u00a0Ultimately, if you have any interest whatsoever in the history of some of humanity’s weirder garments, I heartily suggest you get Corsets & Codpieces<\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wow, it’s February! Welcome to another Friday Reads. I originally intended to post this a few days ago, but I’ve been so busy preparing for…<\/p>\n

Keep ReadingFriday Reads: Corsets & Codpieces<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[71,39,442,184,422,102],"class_list":["post-779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-blogger","tag-book-review","tag-books","tag-fashion-history","tag-friday-reads","tag-history","tag-non-fiction","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Z77k-cz","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10839,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/clothes-v-body\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":0},"title":"Perfect Your Wardrobe, Not Your Body","author":"Rachel","date":"November 14, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"When did we decide that our bodies should be altered instead of our clothing? Allow me a reasoned rant with some great sources.","rel":"","context":"In "Miscellaneous Information"","block_context":{"text":"Miscellaneous Information","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/misc-info\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Portrait of plus-sized Queen","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Queen-Isabella-II.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Queen-Isabella-II.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Queen-Isabella-II.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12713,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/book-rant\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":1},"title":"Sometimes You Need a Rant","author":"Rachel","date":"March 26, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"While I'm generally easy going when it comes to book problems, there are some things that are unforgivable, and this one deserves a rant.","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blogger"","block_context":{"text":"Book Blogger","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/book-blogger\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rant_featured.png?fit=288%2C288&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":590,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/friday-reads-8\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":2},"title":"Friday Reads: The Other Boleyn Girl","author":"Rachel","date":"November 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Wow, it\u2019s November already! Where has the year gone? You know what the first Friday of the month means: Friday Reads! If you missed it, take a look at last month's Friday Reads on Crossroads in the Dark III: Monsters Under Your Bed. I\u2019m going back to Tudor England this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blogger"","block_context":{"text":"Book Blogger","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/book-blogger\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cover of The Other Boleyn Girl","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/other_boleyn_girl.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":687,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/friday-reads-9\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":3},"title":"Friday Reads: Memnoch the Devil","author":"Rachel","date":"December 1, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Here we are, at the end of the year. Happy December, everyone! It's the first Friday of the month, and that means Friday Reads! In case you missed it, you can take a look at last month's Friday Reads on The Other Boleyn Girl. Unlike most of my other Friday\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blogger"","block_context":{"text":"Book Blogger","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/book-blogger\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":137,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/friday-reads-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":4},"title":"Friday Reads #3: The Creation of Anne Boleyn","author":"Rachel","date":"August 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"It\u2019s Friday, which means it\u2019s time for another installment of my Friday Reads series; setting you up for a great weekend of reading. This week\u2019s book is The Creation of Anne Boleyn by Susan Bordo. I\u2019ve been interested in Tudor England since I discovered The Royal Diaries series as a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blogger"","block_context":{"text":"Book Blogger","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/book-blogger\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cover of The Creation of Anne Boleyn","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/15814396._UY475_SS475_.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":747,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/friday-reads-10\/","url_meta":{"origin":779,"position":5},"title":"Friday Reads: A Hunger Like No Other","author":"Rachel","date":"January 5, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"2017 has ended, 2018 is here! Happy January, everyone! I hope you had a fabulous holiday season. Let's hope 2018 is a great year. It's the first Friday of the month, and that means Friday Reads! In case you missed it, you can take a look at last month's Friday\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blogger"","block_context":{"text":"Book Blogger","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/book-blogger\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cover of A Hunger Like No Other","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/14384.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=779"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/779\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4517,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/779\/revisions\/4517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}