Film star Helen Twelvetrees, ca. 1936-7 / photograph by Sam Hood

If you love photographs from days gone by, then you are going to be in heaven when you check out this link. I know I will be going back there often to see a bit of history. -- Alice

http://www.flickr.com/photos/statelibraryofnsw/

Helen Twelvetrees during filming of "Thoroughbred", Sydney, 1936 / Sam Hood

Film star Helen Twelvetrees, ca. 1936-7 / photograph by Sam Hood, originally uploaded by State Library of New South Wales collection.

w/WonderlandShoppe

Format: Silver gelatin photograph

Notes: One of the first American women to star in an Australian film

From the collections of the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales

Jane Austen Doll Figure

I think this is absolutely for me! I feel a birthday present coming on. This is a Jane Austen Doll figure and I have just found some listed on Amazon.com at a very reasonable price.

More and more I find I am into Jane Austen and her novels. I just recently won the auction her whole set of hard back books with dust jackets from 1996 Book-of-the-Month Club while shopping on shopgoodwill.com.

Today, also I was exploring my new residing town of Great Falls, MT and got totally excited when looking at their online site for the Chamber of Commerce at the calendar of events. I found this May 9th listing for a Mother's Day Tea & Victorian Fashion Show. A wonderful website appeared, but I was having trouble finding an address for the event.

Upon more exploring, I am not very happy to report that it is over 198 miles to travel to this event. -- There goes my special fun outing with my daughter, Savannah Rose (who also has a birthday on May 5th). We will have to continue to look for something more local.

Who knows it may be a snow blizzard at that time as well -- because it has been snowing all last night, today, and currently at 1:28 a.m. -- Spring time in the Rockies!!!

Jane Austen in Rio, originally uploaded by Adriana Zardini.

Midsummer in Sweden - Maypole

Midsummer in Sweden, originally uploaded by Silva_D.

In Sweden the Maypole is usually called a midsommarstång, as it appears at the Midsummer celebrations, but it is also called majstång, as the word maja means to decorate with greens and that is exactly how most Swedes decorate them. They appear in many varieties, the most common being a cross with two rings hanging from the "arms" and the pole is popularly identified with the male sex and the rings with the female.[citation needed] Garlands of leaves and flowers are usually wrapped around the pole.
Sometimes a crown of flowers is placed on top of the maypole, supported by the ribbons, so that it gradually descends the pole as the ribbons are woven together, finally falling to the ground.



Today maypole dances are often done without dividing the participants by gender, simply having them in pairs facing one another so half go one way and half go the other.


In Sweden similar traditions were once observed but today the pole is the centre of traditional ring dances, the songs being more or less the same as during the dances around the Christmas tree. Arrangements are usually made by local traditional groups. Swedish speaking parts of Finland often celebrate Midsummer with a midsommarstång as well.

May Day Celebration History

My birthday is May 1st or better known as MAY DAY -- but what exactly is MAY DAY and what is a Maypole?



Wikipedia says: May Day occurs on May 1 and refers to any of several public holidays.[1] In many countries, May Day is synonymous with International Workers' Day, or Labour Day, which celebrates the social and economic achievements of the labour movement. As a day of celebration the holiday has ancient origins, and it can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times.


Many of these customs are due to May Day being a cross-quarter day, meaning that (in the Northern Hemisphere where it is almost exclusively celebrated) it falls approximately halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice.




Historians generally agree that May Day celebrations probably originated in the spring fertility rites of ancient Rome, which occurred at about the same time of year marking celebrations honoring the goddess of spring, Flora. ((I had an Aunt Flora!!!)).

By the Middle Ages, the day was being celebrated with a procession led by a "Queen of the May" chosen from a population of pretty teen girls, followed by the townspeople dancing around a maypole decorated with streamers and colorful spring flowers.



Pilgrims later brought May Day to America, but Puritans were quick to condemn the tradition as "that Stinking Idol reviving feasts of ye Roman goddess Flora or ye beastly practices of ye mad Bacchanalians".

By the late 19th century, May Day was taken up in America as a socialist movement celebrating workers' rights, a tradition that remains strong in Europe.

All told, modern May Day celebrations today have evolved into a hodgepodge of traditions including parties, sing-alongs, Old World maypole dancing, parades and workers' demonstrations, along with general protests against Big Business on the streets of major capitals worldwide.

And just for a little contrast, in Hawaii it's ... Lei Day.




Location: Canungra, Australia

Date: ca. 1934




Tiled mural rescued from a children's ward in Middlesex Hospital showing a maypole dance.

Designed in 1929 by Haydn Jensen.

Now in the Tile Museum, Jackfield, near Ironbridge, Shropshire.

Bird Fairies!

Bird Fairies!, originally uploaded by Lisa Kettell.

Here is a photograph Lisa Kettrell calls: The Bird Fairies!
I believe these fantasy gals are Ziegfeld Follies Performers from the 1920's.

I love the symmetry in the photography and the costume styling -- like the birdies in the background!!