HANKIES

By Mary Davis

Squares of fabric tucked into a pocket to be at the ready for a variety of uses. Originally known as HANDKERCHIEFS but affectionately known as HANKIES. The first known use of “handkerchief” was 1530, but people had been using these nifty pieces of cloth for millennia. I wonder what they were called before handkerchief. The term hankie didn’t come into use as an abbreviation until late in the 19th century.

Handkerchiefs have a myriad of uses, from drying tears to mopping a brow to cleaning a child’s face to keeping dust out of ones mouth and nose to commemorating special events to getting a man’s attention and gifts of affection. Its utility is vast. The most common one is to blow or wipe one’s nose.

Obviously, people had need of these small squares of fabric before 1530. Depictions of handkerchiefs in art dates back to 1000 BC. Handkerchiefs also appeared in Shakespeare plays as well as elsewhere through history.

For a long time, handkerchiefs were something only the wealthy could afford because linen and silk were expensive. Because handkerchiefs were valued, they would be listed in dowries and bequeathed in wills. The wealthy would have bigger and bigger handkerchiefs and more elaborately adorned to display their wealth. 

In 1785, Louis XVI didn’t want anyone to have a handkerchief bigger than his, so he mandated a size and shape. He decided on the square shape as well. Before then, handkerchiefs could be square, round, rectangle, or even a triangle. Louis decided that square was the most pleasing. All handkerchiefs from then on made in France had to be of that size and shape.

Queen Elizabeth I had handkerchiefs embroidered with gold and silver thread. She created a whole silent language with handkerchief gestures to communicate with her servants in court.

Savvy moms of the 1800s devised the “Show and Blow” campaign. To promote hygiene and reduce the spread of illnesses, school children were required to bring a clean handkerchief to school everyday. Moms wanted their children to appear spic and span, so they sent two hankies to school with their children, a clean white one for inspections and utilitarian one for actual use. These were usually made from a calico or other leftover fabric.

Well into the 1920s, handkerchiefs for the average man were white. If a lady wanted something different, she could embroider colorful flowers and designs on her hankies.

During the depression of the 30s, women didn’t have the means to buy new clothes and often could only afford a new hankie as a fashion accessory. A lady would “change” her outfit by sporting a different hankie. In the 40s and with WWII, women collected a whole “wardrobe” of hankies; draped over belts, tied on wrists, peeking out of pockets, or tucked through a buttonhole.

During WWI and WWII, pilots were given kerchiefs with a map of area they were bombing printed on it in case they got shot down. They literally had an escape route in the palm of their hand. Hundreds of others were printed as mementos during the wars.

Handkerchiefs boasted a strong popularity in the late-1940s and 1950s with designers utilizing them in their fashions

The cloth handkerchief fell out of favor when Kleenex created the paper facial tissue. They were created in the 1920s as a face towel for removing face cream. In the 1930s, Kleenex had the slogan “Don’t carry a cold in your pocket.” But is was Little Lulu and Golden Books who tipped the scales in paper facial tissues’ direction in the mid-50s. The children’s book line featured Lulu making things like bunnies, doing magic tricks, and more with facial tissues. The first printing was an astronomical 2.25 million copies.

I remember ironing my dad’s handkerchiefs. My sisters called foul when I ironed all the handkerchiefs and pillowcases, leaving the more difficult dress shirts and pants to iron to them. I figured since they were older, it would be easier for them to iron the difficult things. Or maybe I just wanted it easy. I did start ironing shirts and pants too and left a hankie or two for them.

I have recently been more conscientious about single use items like facial tissues, plastic grocery bags, and paper towels. I’m making efforts with reducing my trash footprint by reducing my use of paper towels and plastic bags. I haven’t thought much about how to reduce my use of facial tissues. I have some nearly-antique hankies that were my grandma’s, but I don’t want to use those heirlooms. Strange to think of something one blows one’s nose on as an heirloom. I think I’d like to start using cloth hankies for light-duty use, but for seasonal allergies when my nose is a nonstop waterworks for weeks or when I have a nasty head cold, I think the disposable one might be called for.

If you have some vintage hankies you’ve been wondering what to do with, here is a link to many things you can make and do with them.

What about you? Do you use cloth hankies? Sometimes? All the time? Never?

THIMBLES AND THREADS: 4 Love Stories Are Quilted Into Broken Lives
When four women put needle and thread to fabric, will their talents lead to love?

Click HERE to order.

“Bygones” Texas, 1884
Drawn to the new orphan boy in town, Tilly Rockford soon became the unfortunate victim of a lot of Orion Dunbar’s mischievous deeds in school. Can Tilly figure out how to truly forgive the one who made her childhood unbearable? Can this deviant orphan-train boy turned man make up for the misdeeds of his youth and win Tilly’s heart before another man steals her away?

MARY DAVIS s a bestselling, award-winning novelist of over two dozen

titles in both historical and contemporary themes. Her 2018 titles include; "Holly and Ivy" in A Bouquet of Brides Collection (January), Courting Her Amish Heart (March), The Widow’s Plight (July), Courting Her Secret Heart (September), “Zola’s Cross-Country Adventure” in The MISSAdventure Brides Collection (December), and Courting Her Prodigal Heart (January 2019). Coming in 2019, The Daughter's Predicament (May) and "Bygones" in Thimbles and Threads (July). She is a member of ACFW and active in critique groups. Mary lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of over thirty-four years and two cats. She has three adult children and two incredibly adorable grandchildren. Find her online at:

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Masked Balls in 18th Century France

By J. M. Hochstetler

18th Century Masquerade by Lacroix

In researching the French setting for Refiner’s Fire, Book 6 of my American Patriot Series, I came across descriptions of the masked balls Queen Marie Antoinette held at Versailles. Masked balls developed in Italy from the ridotto, infamous private gambling salons in Venice, where visitors wore masks to conceal their identities. They rapidly spread throughout Europe and England and were already popular at Versailles in the mid 1770s when Queen Marie Antoinette regularly held masked balls in the Hall of Mirrors. Other royals and nobles hosted them as well at their own establishments in Paris.

Extravagant costumes were de rigueur at these affairs, with popular themes being heroes and goddesses of classical antiquity; figures from the Italian commedia dell’arte; allegories representing traits such as Truth or Virtue; traditional costumes of other nations; figures from folk songs and ballads; and even animals. Part of the fun was to try guessing the identities of other masked participants, and it was traditional for everyone to unmask at the ball’s end.

Black silk domino cloak with gold mask c.1765
Museum of London

Instead of wearing a costume, some guests simply wore a domino in black or white silk over their regular formal wear, with a face mask serving as the sole disguise. But in any case everyone, both men and women, wore dominoes. The word refers to both a mask and a cloak and derives from the name of the hoods worn by French priests in the Middle Ages. The mask covers only the upper half of the face and is rounded at the corners. The cloak, which originated in Venice, was voluminous, with wide sleeves and usually a removable hood referred to as a bahoo. Mask and cloak were most often black but could be any color, with silk being the preferred fabric. Not only did the cloak give the wearer a dramatic appearance, but it could also accommodate the most lavish costumes. By concealing the wearer’s identity, dominos allowed one to move freely and socialize with whomever one pleased.

Marie Antoinette wore the domino to attend masquerades without being easily recognized. It didn’t always work, however. Since Louis XVI rarely attended balls, one woman who happened to recognize the queen began chastising her for not acting like a proper wife and staying at home with her husband. She apparently also donned the domino for some court balls when the public was allowed to enter the gardens, which increased the number of gawkers.

Domino Mask

Masquerade balls were popular throughout the eighteenth century despite the disapproval of those who considered them immoral, corrupting, and even unpatriotic. These events suspended the formal conventions and norms of polite society, such as social rankings and gender roles, for a few hours. With the right costume and a mask to conceal your true identity, it was possible to step into another world in which anything became possible. The rich, famous, and even infamous danced, flirted, intrigued, and arranged assignations until dawn. And at times members of the higher ranks of the bourgeoisie were also invited as a way of introducing diversity. These wealthy commoners could otherwise never mingle with royalty and nobility, but a disguise opened up opportunities for liaisons and consequently social advancement. Critics feared that the entire social structure would be undermined if status and respect were gained or lost simply by the clothing one put on.

Changes in morality at the beginning of the early 19th century led to a decline in the masquerade’s popularity. Although fancy dress balls remained fashionable in the 1800s, they became much more respectable than the dramatic, risqué masquerade balls of the 1700s.

If you were to attend a masked ball, who or what would you dress as?

~~~

J. M. Hochstetler is the daughter of Mennonite farmers and a lifelong student of history. She is also an author, editor, and publisher. Her American Patriot Series is the only comprehensive historical fiction series on the American Revolution. Book 6, Refiner’s Fire, releases in April 2019. Northkill, Book 1 of the Northkill Amish Series coauthored with Bob Hostetler, won Foreword Magazine’s 2014 Indie Book of the Year Bronze Award for historical fiction. Book 2, The Return, received the 2017 Interviews and Reviews Silver Award for Historical Fiction and was named one of Shelf Unbound’s 2018 Notable Indie Books. One Holy Night, a contemporary retelling of the Christmas story, was the Christian Small Publishers 2009 Book of the Year and a finalist in the Carol Award.

Guarding the Kings of France

by J. M. Hochstetler

For my current work-in-progress, Refiner’s Fire, Book 6 of my American Patriot Series, I’ve had to recreate the French court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. I’m finding a lot of interesting—and scandalous—details of daily life in a palace, but today, I’m going to focus on a relatively mundane concern they shared with our modern-day leaders: security. You can be sure that between the Royal Bodyguard and the famed Swiss Guards, the French monarchs had the situation well in hand, at least until the French Revolution broke out.

Royal Bodyguards

Garde du corps, era of Louis XVI

In 1418 Charles VII of France founded an elite Scottish military unit called the Garde Écossaise to serve as his personal bodyguards. They later formed the first company of what became the Royal Bodyguard (Garde du Corps du Roi), which continued as the senior Scottish Company until the Bourbon monarchy ended with the French Revolution.

The Royal Bodyguard consisted of four companies, and a detachment accompanied the French king wherever he went. They guarded where he slept and even escorted his food from the kitchen to his table. A special detachment of 24 “Guards of the Sleeve” (Gardes de la Manche) stood so close to the king during court ceremonies that his sleeves actually brushed them. They wore embroidered white and gold cassocks over their blue, red, and silver uniforms. From the 16th century onward, Frenchmen primarily made up this unit, but it kept the name and certain Scottish commands.

Swiss Guards

Soldier and officer of Gardes Suisses in French

 service in 1757: Marbot, Alfred de, 1854

Beginning in the late 15th century units of Swiss soldiers called Swiss Guards served at various European courts. The earliest permanent unit was the Hundred Swiss (Cent Suisses), created in 1480 when France’s Louis XI retained a Swiss company for his personal guard. They served at the French court until 1817 as bodyguards and ceremonial troops, sharing guard duties inside the palace with the king’s Royal Bodyguard. The Swiss Guards (Gardes Suisses), guarded the palace’s entrances and outer perimeter as well as serving in the field as a fighting regiment in wartime.

The Guards and their officers were all recruited from Switzerland. They maintained a high reputation for discipline, which followed the Swiss codes of conduct, which were significantly harsher than those of the regular French Army. Accordingly they received considerably higher pay than did French soldiers. Their uniform consisted of red coats with dark blue lapels and cuffs edged in white embroidery, with the grenadier company wearing bearskins, while the rests of the companies wore the same three-cornered hats as those of the French infantry. The Hundred Swiss were armed with halberds with the royal arms in gold on the blade and gold-hilted swords.

Swiss Guards During July Revolution,
Jean Louis Bezard, c. 1832

The most famous, and tragic, episode in the history of the Swiss Guards was their defense of the Tuileries Palace in central Paris on August 10, 1792, during the French Revolution. Of the 900 Swiss Guards stationed there, about six hundred were killed during the fighting or were massacred after they surrendered. Sixty taken as prisoners to the Paris City Hall were killed there by the crowd. An estimated 160 more died of their wounds while in prison or were killed during the September Massacres that followed. Apart from fewere than 100 Swiss who escaped from the Tuileries, some of whom were hidden by sympathetic Parisians, the regiment’s only survivors were a detachment of 300 that had been sent to Normandy a few days earlier.

The Hundred Swiss had been disbanded when Louis XVI was taken from Versailles to the Tuileries in October 1789. Reformed in 1814, they accompanied Louis XVIII into exile in Belgium the following year. After the Battle of Waterloo they returned with him to Paris, where they resumed their traditional role of palace guards at the Tuileries until a new French guard company replaced them in 1817.

~~~

Book 6, American Patriot
Series

J. M. Hochstetler is the daughter of Mennonite farmers and a lifelong student of history. She is also an author, editor, and publisher. Her American Patriot Series is the only comprehensive historical fiction series on the American Revolution. Book 6, Refiner’s Fire, releases in April 2019. Northkill, Book 1 of the Northkill Amish Series coauthored with Bob Hostetler, won Foreword Magazine’s 2014 Indie Book of the Year Bronze Award for historical fiction. Book 2, The Return, received the 2017 Interviews and Reviews Silver Award for Historical Fiction and was named one of Shelf Unbound’s 2018 Notable Indie Books. One Holy Night, a contemporary retelling of the Christmas story, was the Christian Small Publishers 2009 Book of the Year and a finalist in the Carol Award.