Yay! New history research project!

ca. 1840 silk dress in the Metropolitan
Museum of Art.

O.k., I've been volunteering in the Collections Center at the history museum where I'm on staff (in a different department) off an on for the past few years (mostly during the summers), but steadily once a week for the past 6 months.  I'm assisting the Registrar in various tasks having to do with restoring, labeling, identifying, photographing, storing, and making records for various artifacts in the collection.  All very cool because I, as a part-time volunteer, get to work directly with the artifacts with very little supervision (the perks of working with a small museum that is underfunded and understaffed, and yet has a huge collection to maintain).  The Registrar knows of my interest in and experience with historic textiles and fashion history, so he's assigned me to work primarily with the textile items that need processing and care.  It's been really fun and interesting!

A ball at Chawton, Jane Austen's home!

image from AntiqueClipArt.com

The founder of Cisco Systems, Sandy Lerner, is a Jane Austen fan, and she bought Chawton Cottage -- a rather large and beautiful country home, I think -- which was Jane Austen's home. Lerner has restored the home and filled the library with a collection of 18th and 19th century books written by women. On Saturday, July 18, the anniversary of Jane Austen's death, Lerner gave a Regency ball at Chawton. Here is the BBC video report of the event:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/world_news_america/8152793.stm

Makes me wish I was in England!