Author Archives: Suzi Love

About Suzi Love

I'm an Australian author of contemporary and historical romances, plus history non-fiction. My books range from sexy to erotic, late 1700s to the mid 1800s, and with a dash of Australia thrown into the mix. My heroes and heroines challenge tradition and my stories often expose the seamier levels of life. I now live in a sunny part of Australia after spending many years in developing countries in the South Pacific. My greatest loves are traveling, anywhere and everywhere, meeting crazy characters, and visiting the Australian outback. I hope my books bring history alive and you have fun adventuring with my roguish heroes and feisty heroines.

19th Century Early Type of Linen Chemise, or Shift, Worn By the Bridgerton Ladies and Jane Austen. #Bridgerton #Underclothing #JaneAusten #RegencyFashion

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19th Century Early Woman’s Plain Weave Linen Chemise, Or Shift, American. Shift with scoop neck with drawstring, three-quarter length sleeves with drawstrings and lighter-weight linen ruffles. Lexington, Massachusetts, United States. Probably worn by Abigail Robbins (1759-1850) and Inherited by Ellen A. Stone; Gift to MFA, 1899. via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, U.S.A. Type worn By the Bridgerton Ladies and Jane Austen.

Chemise Or Shift: Sleeveless, mid-calf length garment of white cotton or muslin was worn next to the skin under stays or corset. Called ‘Shift’ from early Georgian (1700-1750) until Late Georgian (1750-1790) to replace ‘Smock’. By 1800, name replaced by ‘Chemise’.  

19th Century Early Woman's Plain Weave Linen Chemise, Or Shift, American. Shift with scoop neck with drawstring, three-quarter length sleeves with drawstrings and lighter-weight linen ruffles. Lexington, Massachusetts, United States. Probably worn by Abigail Robbins (1759-1850) and Inherited by Ellen A. Stone; Gift to MFA, 1899. via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, U.S.A.
19th Century Early Type of Linen Chemise, or Shift, Worn By the Bridgerton Ladies and Jane Austen. #Bridgerton #Underclothing #JaneAusten #RegencyFashion https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1815-1819
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HN_28_D2D_Fashion Women 1815-1819 https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1815-1819
Fashion Women 1815-1819 History Notes Book 28 https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1815-1819

1800 ca. Heptagonal Bag Of Old Rose Moiré Silk Panels With A Steel Turn-Key Closure. #JaneAusten #France #Reticule

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1800 ca. Heptagonal Bag, French. Old rose moiré silk panels on steel cockade frame. Cut steel rosettes at rivets. Steel turn-key closure. White ribbon on steel rings. White silk lining. Credit: The Elizabeth Day McCormick Collection via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, U.S.A. mfa.org

Reticule Or Bag: As the silhouette of dresses became more form fitting and fabrics lighter and more transparent, pockets could no longer be hidden in the folds of skirts or underwear. Something else was needed to hold a lady’s essentials.  Small purses, like men’s money pouches, were used by women to carry money for gambling, sewing necessities, and women’s daily requirements such as combs. A bag or purse, often with a drawstring to pull closed and usually made of cloth or covered cardboard and often decorated with beading or embroidery was called a reticule, or ridicule. They came in a variety of shapes, sizes, and materials. Jane Austen and her contemporaries would have purchased or hand made reticules, or bags, for each other for gifts and carried them with them whenever they went out.

reticule_1800 ca. Heptagonal Bag, French. Old rose moiré silk panels on steel cockade frame. Cut steel rosettes at rivets. Steel turn-key closure. White ribbon on steel rings. White silk lining. Credit: The Elizabeth Day McCormick Collection via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, U.S.A. mfa.org
1800 ca. Heptagonal Bag, French. Old rose moiré silk panels on steel cockade frame. Cut steel rosettes at rivets. Steel turn-key closure. White ribbon on steel rings. White silk lining. Credit: The Elizabeth Day McCormick Collection via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, U.S.A. mfa.org
1800 ca. Heptagonal Bag Of Old Rose Moiré Silk Panels With A Steel Turn-Key Closure. #JaneAusten #France #Reticule books2read.com/suziloveReticules
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1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva. #Music #Guitar #Portugal #GeorgianEra

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1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva. Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling or bordering, brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.  History Notes Book 6 Music General https://www.suzilove.com/wp-admin/books2read.com/suziloveMusicGeneral \

1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
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1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
1780 ca. English Guitar, Lisbon, Portugal. Made by Jaco Vieira da Silva Pine back, sides and soundboards, with pine and wood purfling (bordering); brass openwork rose, framed with mother-of-pearl. The English guitar was a fashionable instrument from about 1750, considered easy to play and tuned in C major, although the player would use a capo, much like a modern folk-guitarist, in order to change the key. The tuning pegs were often small metallic pins that could be turned with a watch-key, to keep the strings in tune longer. This instrument was made in Portugal, a country with strong trading links with England, and its peg box is decorated with a paper ‘cameo’ in imitation of a jasper ware medallion, a motif made popular by Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795) from about 1770. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, U.K.
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1715-1775 ca. Flat Drawstring Bag, French. Strung glass beads held together by looping stitches. #Reticule #GeorgianFashion #GeorgianEra

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1715-1775 ca. Flat Drawstring Bag, French. Strung glass beads, or sablé, held together by looping stitches. Polychrome Rococo design on white ground, shepherd, shepherdess, four sheep around orange tree center, border with cornucopias and flowers. Ecru silk cord drawstrings with floral bead-covered wood tassels. Blue silk lining. via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

bag_1715-1775 ca. Flat Drawstring Bag, French. Strung glass beads, or sablé, held together by looping stitches. Polychrome Rococo design on white ground, shepherd, shepherdess, four sheep around orange tree center, border with cornucopias and flowers. Ecru silk cord drawstrings with floral bead-covered wood tassels. Blue silk lining. via Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
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1806 Waiting For the St. Cloud Coach, Place de la Concorde, Paris. #RegencyEra #JaneAusten #Paris #Art

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1806 Waiting For the St. Cloud Coach, Place de la Concorde, Paris. Illustrations by Francis Courboin. via Les Modes de Paris. (PD-Art) This couple is depicted waiting for the coach, which was a passenger vehicle drawn by four horses. The woman is wearing a fashionable hat or “capote” that covers her face. Her dress maintains the empire waist and has very long sleeves that also have a ‘mancheron’ or a gathered sleeve at the shoulders. The man is wearing a ‘habit du gagé’ or a coat with tails, buttoned at the waist. His hat is a ‘haut-de-forme’ or what is commonly known in English as a top hat. He wears tight, short pants tucked into large, riding boots, as was the fashion for men. Illustrations by François Courboin from Octave Uzanne‘s Les Modes de Paris. Variations du goût et de l’esthétique de la femme, 1797-1897, L. Henry May, Paris, 1898, or from the English translation of the same work: Fashion in Paris : the various phases of feminine taste and aesthetics from 1797 to 1897, William Heinemann, London, 1898. Modes de Paris VIa Brown University Library .

1806 Waiting for the Saint-Cloud Coach, Place de la Concorde, France. Couple waits for the coach, a passenger vehicle drawn by four horses. Woman wears a fashionable hat, or capote, that covers her face, an Empire style, or high-waisted blue Redingote or Pelisse, with long sleeves with a mancheron, or gathered sleeve, at the shoulders. Man in tailcoat buttoned at the waist, breeches tucked into fashionable riding boots with tan tops and wearing a 'haut-de-forme', or top hat. via Suzi Love ~ suzilove.com & Illustrations by François Courboin, French librarian (1865-1926) From Octave Uzanne's 'Les Modes de Paris, or Fashion in Paris,' the various phases of feminine taste and aesthetics from 1797 to 1897. (PD-Art) via Brown University Library, U.S.A.
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Book Hooks: “Oh, dear. I’ve taken your bed. I’ve forced you to use a mattress on the floor.” #Waterloo #regencyromance #historicalromance #BookHook #MFRW

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Blurb: Love After Waterloo: Lady Melton and her son are forced to join antagonistic Captain Belling and the last group of wounded British soldiers evacuating Waterloo and traveling back to London. https://books2read.com/suziloveLAW

Book Hook: Lady Melton’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, dear. I’ve taken your bed. I’ve forced you to use a mattress on the floor.”

The Captain laughed. “Believe me, that’s far better than propping against a tree and trying to snatch an hour’s sleep before battle. Or squeezing between a sea of horses and men so you stay warm and don’t expire from frostbite.”

“How long have you been with Wellesley?”

He leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees. “Too damn long.” 

“So you’re pleased to be going home?”

“Pleased? No. Resigned, yes. My friends, my fellow officers, were ordered back to Brussels. I feel guilty that I’m not with them.”

“But surely they will return home soon, now that we’ve defeated Napoleon?”

“We’ve thought the war finished several times before, and I fear this time may prove the same. Nobody can predict what the Corsican will do next.”

She squeezed his thigh. “You’re worn out, Gabe. Things will be better when you’re in London once again.” 

“Will they? Too much has changed there as well. I doubt I’ll fit back into society very easily.”

“Won’t your family be pleased to have you home?”

“Perhaps, but the only important one, my uncle, died three months ago. No one cares how many thousand British men have been slaughtered, or that there will be hundreds of injured soldiers in London soon who will have no homes and no employment.” 

“Some people care, Gabe.”

LAW_When Lady Melton and son join antagonistic Captain Belling and last group of wounded British soldiers evacuating Waterloo, she expects clashes with army deserters.What she doesn’t anticipate is how much she and her son will need the belligerent Captain after they reach London. #RegencyRomance #MilitaryRomance https://books2read.com/suziloveLAW
Book Hooks: Book Hooks: “Oh, dear. I’ve taken your bed. I’ve forced you to use a mattress on the floor.” #Waterloo #regencyromance #militaryromance #BookHook #MFRW https://books2read.com/suziloveLAW
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1790-1810 ca. Linen and Metal Corset, American Or European. Front Lacing. #Corset #RegencyEra #GeorgianEra #JaneAusten

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1790-1810 ca. Linen and Metal Corset, American Or European. Front Lacing. #Corset #RegencyEra #GeorgianEra #JaneAusten. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveCorsetBook16

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1808 Two Ladies in Jane Austen style high-waisted dresses, white and blue. #RegencyFashion #JaneAusten #HistoricalFashion

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1808 Two ladies in high-waisted dresses, French. White dress with blue paisley shawl, blue shoes and red and white bonnet, blue dress with elaborate yellow trims, yellow shoes and bonnet to match.Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien.

These are the types of general morning dress worn by Jane Austen and contemporaries in England, as French fashion plates were obsessively copied despite the two countries being at war for many years. English fashion magazines frequently published plates copied from French fashion magazines and both French and English magazines published the same design for both single women’s fashion and for two ladies together.

Ladies clothing in the early 1800’s featured a high waist line called an Empire Line, or Empire style dress, with a waist line just under the natural bust line and much higher than the natural waist. The high-waisted, or short-bodied, Regency styles shifted focus away from the natural waist and so left the natural waist unconstricted, in direct contrast to previous and future styles. Britain took these simple European styles and progressively made them more elaborate by adding complicated embroidery and colorful accessories.

1808 Two ladies in high-waisted dresses, French. White dress with blue paisley shawl, blue shoes and red and white bonnet, blue dress with elaborate yellow trims, yellow shoes and bonnet to match. Fashion Plate via Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien. These are the types of evening dress worn by Jane Austen and contemporaries in England, as French fashion plates were obsessively copied despite the two countries being at war for many years. English fashion magazines frequently published plates copied from French fashion magazines and both French and English magazines published the same design for both single women's fashion and for two ladies together Ladies clothing in the early 1800's featured a high waist line called an Empire Line, or Empire style dress, with a waist line just under the natural bust line and much higher than the natural waist. The high-waisted, or short-bodied, Regency styles shifted focus away from the natural waist and so left the natural waist unconstricted, in direct contrast to previous and future styles. Britain took these simple European styles and progressively made them more elaborate by adding complicated embroidery and colorful accessories.
1808 Two Ladies in Jane Austen style high-waisted dresses, white and blue. #RegencyFashion #JaneAusten #HistoricalFashion https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809
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Fashion Women 1805-1809 History Notes Book 26 What did Jane Austen and friends wear? This book looks at early 1800s fashions, which were elegant and pretty with high waists and fabrics that were almost transparent. These Empire style gowns, named after Napoleon’s first Empress, became popular throughout Europe, and were then copied around the world. Colorful outwear was added to make an ensemble more attractive and warmer. https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionWomen1805-1809

1800s Men’s Top Hat Styles Chart from Bridgerton and Jane Austen years. #Bridgerton #JaneAusten #RegencyFashion #Hats

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Top Hat Styles Chart during the 1800s, from the Regency Era through to the Victorian years. Most popular style was cone shaped and tall in height. Originally made of beaver and very short but later from silk and taller. Tall crown, widens at top, narrow brim turns up slightly at sides.

Top Hat Styles Chart. Most popular style was cone shaped and tall in height. Originally made of beaver and very short but later from silk and taller. Tall crown, widens at top, narrow brim turns up slightly at sides.
1800s Men’s Top Hat Styles Chart from Bridgerton and Jane Austen years. #Bridgerton #JaneAusten #RegencyFashion #Hats https://books2read.com/SuziLoveFashionMen1800-1819
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1809 Blue Redingote Or Walking Coat With Military Trim in Jane Austen style. #RegencyFashion #FashionHistory #JaneAusten

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1809 Blue Redingote, French. Back view of walking coat with military style trim, upstanding collar, white hat, black shoes and a handkerchief. Fashion Plate via  Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien.

Redingotes or Pelisses were needed to cover the flimsy dresses made of lightweight fabrics of the Regency years to provide warmth and some protection from windy conditions when gowns might lift and cause modesty issues. Jane Austen and her contemporaries often walked to places and so would have needed the warmth of a Pelisse or coat in the cold British winters.

In Europe, a Redingote was a coat or robe like garment worn both indoors and out, indoors left open to reveal a dress while the outdoor version was made of heavier materials and of darker colors than the type worn indoors. The name comes from the term ‘riding coat.’

1809 Blue Redingote, French. Back view of walking coat with military style trim, upstanding collar, white hat, black shoes and a handkerchief. Fashion Plate via  Journal des Dames et des Modes, or Costume Parisien.
1809 Blue Redingote, French. Back view of walking coat with military style trim, white hat and holding a handkerchief.
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