Saturday will be all about Nell Donnelly

At least, for me it will.  I'll perform short snippets of Nell's stories three times on Saturday.

11:45 am
1:30 pm
3:15 pm

And I'll be wearing her wardrobe all day and displaying the few Nelly Don dresses I have collected.  I recently acquired a Handy Dandy apron and it will also be on display.

Kansas Sampler Festival, May 2 & 3, Wamego, Kansas.

DIY Cleaning and Reshaping Vintage Hats

Making that long list of things that need to be done before I perform....one of those is steaming and reshaping my hats.  How do they get so catty-wompus?  I try so hard to handle them carefully.  Oh, well, it just takes a clean countertop (the biggest challenge for me) and a few minutes with my teapot.

The white tubes are index cards rolled up to fit inside the ribbon bow.  I leave the paper rolls in the hat even for storage.  The brush in my hand is what I use to clean my hats.  It's just a soft bristle little brush like you might use for hand washing or potato washing at the sink.  When the hat is steamy, the dry brush is perfect for cleaning off dust and grime.

This hat is wonderful but the shape is all wonky.  See the puckering across the front brim?  There is a matching pucker in the center back.  I've tried to wear this one a few times because it's so unique.  Today, I decided it was never going to fix itself.  I steamed it quite a few minutes hoping that it might soften up and pull itself back into the original shape?  I am not sure what that shape should be.  Maybe it knows.  We'll see what happens.  

 Ah, it did!  It's adorable!

These are my make-do diy forms.  Stuff that's readily available in my cabinets.  Something approximately the same shape and size as my head plus something to keep the hat up so the brim can hang naturally while everything dries and resets itself.

Let them set all day or even overnight.  They need time to rest and dry out without being handled.  Remember, you steamed them to make them pliable.  So, don't rush in and handle them while they're still in the pliable state.  Wait.  

Reminding myself not to CRAM both hats into the same hat box.  If you value your hat - it gets it's own hat box that is big enough so the hat doesn't touch the box in any direction.  I use a wad of newspaper inside a plastic bag as my filler (head shape) before I place my best hats in their boxes.   As you can see with the black hat, it would be best if the hat didn't rest on the brim.  Maybe I'll try storing this one upside down this time.   Wonder how the lady who first bought it stored it?

I'll try transporting both hat boxes with me to the event and using them!  One extra trip back and forth to the car will probably make a huge difference in keeping these antique hats in perfect shape for performances. Now to locate a few plume feathers......don't ya think?

The Performance Schedule for Sunday, May 3, 2015 in Wamego, Kansas

Sunday, May 3

10:30  Buffalo Hunter Billy Dixon--Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

10:45  "Entrepreneurship on the Santa Fe Trail,” Kitty Frank as Kittie Hays  NEW

11:00   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist --Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry  

11:15  "Amelia Earhart, Live!”—Ann Birney, Ride into History

11:30   Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

11:45   Deborah Samson, Revolutionary War Soldier--Anna Smith

12:00   German Immigrant Farmer—Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

12:15  Buffalo Hunter Billy Dixon - Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

12:30   "Entrepreneurship on the Santa Fe Trail,” Kitty Frank as Kittie Hays

12:45   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist --Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry  

1:00   Calamity Jane—Joyce Thierer, Ride into History

1:15   SME: Portals of Time

1:30   Deborah Samson, Revolutionary War Soldier--Anna Smith

1:45   Dust Bowl Farmer —Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

2:00   Buffalo Hunter Billy Dixon - Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

2:15   "Entrepreneurship on the Santa Fe Trail,” Kitty Frank as Kittie Hays

2:30   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist--Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry    

2:45   Amelia Earhart, Live!”—Ann Birney, Ride into History

3:00   "Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

3:15   Deborah Samson, Revolutionary War Soldier--Anna Smith

3:30   Have your picture taken with your favorite historic figures!

The Performance Schedule for Saturday, May 2, 2015 in Wamego, Kansas

Saturday, May 2

10:30   Calamity Jane - Joyce Thierer, Ride into History

10:45   Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

11:00   Deborah Samson, Revolutionary War Soldier--Anna Smith

11:15   German immigrant farmer—Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

11:30   Doc Holliday--Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

11:45   "The Kansas City Fashion Revolution of Nell Donnelly Reed”--Kitty Frank  NEW

12:00   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist --Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry  NEW

12:15   "Amelia Earhart, Live!”—Ann Birney, Ride into History

12:30   Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

12:45  "Deborah Samson, Revolutionary War Soldier”--Anna Smith

1:00   Dust Bowl Farmer —Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

1:15   Doc Holliday --Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

1:30   "The Kansas City Fashion Revolution of Nell Donnelly Reed”--Kitty Frank

1:45   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist --Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry  

2:00   Calamity Jane - Joyce Thierer, Ride into History

2:15   Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

2:30   "Deborah Samson, Revolutionary Soldier”--Anna Smith

2:45   Dust Bowl Farmer —Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

3:00   Doc Holliday - Marc Ferguson, Crooked Creek Regulators

3:15   "The Kansas City Fashion Revolution of Nell Donnelly Reed”--Kitty Frank

3:30   Mary Ritchie, Abolitionist --Diane Bernheimer, Lvnghstry  

3:45   "Amelia Earhart, Live!”—Ann Birney, Ride into History  

4:00   Wagon Train School Teacher—Belinda Adams, SME: Portals of Time

4:15   "Deborah Samson, Revolutionary Soldier”--Anna Smith

4:30   Dust Bowl Farmer —Nolan Sump, Sod-Busting Kansas History

4:45   Have your picture taken with your favorite historic figures!

Stop by and Chat at the Kansas Sampler Festival Next Weekend!

2015 Kansas Sampler Festival is Coming Soon!

Experience Historical Performance for yourself at the Kansas Sampler Festival! 

May 2nd & 3rd
Wamego, Kansas

Click this link to view the schedule of performers!  




We'd love to see you there!

Many of the professional performers of our alliance use the Kansas Sampler Festival as a way to share their character and connect with organizations and communities who are considering adding a historical storyteller to future events.  

Our characters are set to be in rotation throughout the two days of the festival - performing snippets to give the audience a taste of what historical performance is all about.  

All events of the Sampler Festival are included in the one ticket you buy at the entry gates. There is no additional cost to attend any or all of the historical performances on our schedule. Just show up and take a seat!  
  
Best of all, the performers are available throughout the day to answer your questions!  It's a great time to have a one-on-one discussion with an experienced performer about your organization's needs.  First person storytellers bring history alive. 

Kittie Hays Houghton at the Admire Fall Festival, October 2014

Kittie Hays was the adopted daughter of Seth Hays; great grandson of Daniel Boone and prosperous trader on the Santa Fe Trail at Council Grove, Kansas.

Kittie shares stories of her childhood underfoot at the busy trading post, as well as her education at Westport, Missouri.  By the time of her eighteenth birthday, she learned her vast inheritance of the Hays estate had been spent and she found herself, again, a penniless orphan.

Kittie Hays Houghton is performed by Kitty Frank of Allen, Kansas.

The Kansas City Fashion Revolution of Nell Donnelly-Reed performs for Womens History Month

Nell Donnelly-Reed arrived at Emporia Public Library, Emporia, Kansas on the evening of March 26, 2015 to tell stories about her company and it's upcoming expansion.  Nell presented from the year 1947.  After the performance, it was discovered that one of the attendee's mother was a nurse for Nell in her later years.

Now that's history coming alive!

  The Emporia Gazette