Inspo Blog

Built In 1909 / 7 br / 3.5 ba

$4,350,000

Brookline, MA

[househunting on substack]

Built In 1892 / 4 br / 2 ba

$665,900

Great Falls, MT

“Known historically as the Egloff/Fairfield House, the residence was first home to Bertha and Paul Egloff, owners of one of Great Falls' earliest jewelry stores, before becoming the home of Dr. John Henry Fairfield, the city's first permanent physician and second mayor.

The home was later owned by nationally recognized artist, painter, printmaker, sculptor, craftsman, educator, and Montana Institute of the Arts founding member Branson Stevenson. Stevenson maintained his studio on the property, and visitors can still experience his artistic legacy today.

Original Branson Stevenson artworks remain on display within the residence, while the basement studio preserves the ink fingerprints and marks left behind by generations of local artists who worked and gathered there.”

[househunting on substack]

$4,750,000/3 br/3 ba/3,927 sq ft

Solana Beach, CA

because i sure do.

thank god for polyamory mods am i right folks

tbh “the Victorians did not go to the trouble of inventing aniline dyes so that we could wear neutrals” mostly covers it?

let’s not forget the tacky patterns, too

oh yeah

oh fuck yeah

also

PUMPKIN WORTH

I have seen mid-century dresses in electric blue.  Barbie pink

Black with photo-realistic brocade oranges.  Royal purple with GIANT POLKA DOTS.

Hey hey did you know lime green and lavender was a favorite color combo in 1895?

This one is not so much tacky as…vibrant

Okay at ~1903 it’s not really Victorian but I love the melting ice cream explosion look of it

This dress has faded but it would have originally been a quite eye-catching shade of violet.

Not that past eras were any less fond of colors even if they weren’t artificial dyes.  I’ve seen canary yellow Regency dresses and an 18th century man’s coat in turquoise velvet printed with leopard spots.  Steampunk isn’t really Victorian so much as it is ‘drapery store vomited on a sexy colorblind school marm’

Et le piece de resistance…

Pair a brightass fushia dress with a top hat and gears you cowards

MORE PUMPKIN ORANGE AND FRINGE YOU COWARDS

The Pragmatic Costumer calls this “The Hot Mess Dress.” It dates from around 1878. They say: “This dress has more trims than my entire collection of detash combined (detash or destash means all the little bits, pieces, and leftovers from crafting something)! On the outside alone I spot: black lace, bi-colored sandy-brown/cornflower-blue ruffles, tawny velvet, cream silk, beaded netting, cream lace, ribbon bows, ribbon rosettes, cornflower-blue buttons, and that fluffy lace collar.  For even more trim-tastic fun and draping pandemonium, here’s a shot of the back:”

The Pragmatic Costumer: “Trims were all the rage in the mid 1870s and 1880s, and this dress is raging harder, faster, and more extravagantly than most.”

And here’s a Worth tea gown from 1895. This really needs to be worn by a mad scientist. Especially one interested in fish.

Carn Brea Castle, Cornwall

The castle was originally built as a chapel, in 1379, thought to be dedicated to St Michael. Antiquarian William Worcester recorded that there were 32 castles on the Cornish peninsula, including Carn Brea which was described as a tower.

The castle was extensively rebuilt in later periods, primarily in the 18th century by the Basset family as a hunting lodge. It is considered a folly, due to the huge uncut boulders that make up part of its foundations, giving the impression of the building melting into the land.

Hey

Eartha Kitt performing at El Rancho Vegas in 1955.