Tansy goes to Ottawa 2
Colleagues and Friends
Tansy went on a working trip to Ottawa, and while there she met a new friend…
Caterina Florio and small Colleague
They have been working at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau Quebec, installing an exhibit about the 1860’s Gold Rush in British Columbia.
The Dress
This dress is one of the pieces that traveled from the Royal BC Museum to Ottawa. Months of textile conservation work went into making the dress displayable.
Tansy suggests you click on This Link if you want to see a bit of the conservation process the dress had to undergo (the Quimper Hitty Human will not win any awards, but does have a supporting role in the video!)
We were all very glad to see the dress survived the move intact and was installed in Ottawa without any issues!
Viking Weaving
Elsewhere, in the Great Hall of the Museum there was a display of Viking crafts with people explaining their equipment and techniques. This display augmented a traveling exhibit concerning Vikings…
Displayed
…Tansy wondered about the hard lives of Vikings who homesteaded in L’Anse aux Meadows. Click here to read about the Vikings who settled in this part of what is now Canada.
Enthroned
Tansy felt very regal seated upon the Viking Throne, but thought the sofas were more comfortable in the lobby of the Chateau Laurier!
Quimper Hittys 
Once again I fall in love with all these beautiful and creative people, with you too my dear blogger friend, how amazing, how beautiful you are. Thank you, you make my day always. I shared with my readers too now, Blessing and Happiness, Love, nia
We are so glad, and lucky to work in a museum environment where we are surrounded by creative people! I am glad you enjoy our adventures!
Loved the video about the dress! Thanks for the interesting insight into fabric conservation. Janet
That was a very complicated treatment, we are not usually so involved, but this dress was special. I helped mostly on the underpinnings, and my colleague worked on the bodice and skirt. We were glad with the result!
What a wonderful area you live in…so rich in so many things…but, you are also one of those who take advantage of what is offered and kindly share it with us. Thank you! It’s always a fascinating time with the QHs.
Tansy was lucky to go on this trip without me! I have been to Ottawa, but it has been a while. I was glad to see her adventures too!
O.K. This is a common occurrence. I open up your new story/episode and see something that makes me laugh out loud…it can reoccur when I least expect it. I might be shopping at the food store and for some reason get a mental picture of the block twins bathing little crockette and find myself laughing in the store and then looking around to see if someone is looking at that looney lady who is laughing to herself…. there are sooooooo many hilarious frames that keep me cracking up all week long. Viewing Tansy in the middle of the table with that macho man posing with her will keep me and my sister laughing for a long long time. I would have loved to hear the conversation that preceded that photo.
I liked that picture too – Tansy so demure, and Mr. Viking all puffed up…I am glad you are amused, even in the grocery store, laughter is good medicine!
Fascinating! Did the original crinoline and corset come with the dress or did you have to extrapolate from the dress?
No, there were no underpinnings, the dress had been worn and remade at least once since its original use. The manikin was carved to emulate the shape of a corseted and bum-rolled lady, I made the chemise, petticoat and crinoline, and we had a pair of engageantes in the collection that was perfect for the period.
That was fascinating seeing you at work on that crinoline and seeing the conservation in progress. And of course seeing the fearless Tansy in the middle of everything is always a joy!
Tansy has a great time wherever she goes! That was a nice project to work on, I was glad to help out!
oops forgot to mention that I really smiled seeing MIss Florio and her little Mini Me colleague. Pretty cute.
The doll was made by one of Ms Florio’s students – isn’t she amazing! I know from experience that having a small companion at work makes the day better!
love seeing the inner/under workings of dress reconstruction, it looks marvelous. tansy looks a bit lost on the Viking throne. do you mind if I include a link to the dress video on my blog? very interesting.
No I don’t mind at all (why didn’t I see this months ago?)