In this episode we interview Michael Koropisz, an amazingly skilled portrait painter with a love of Victorian fashion. We wanted to get to know Michael a little better after he appeared in several online articles, so we had a nice long chat about art, aesthetics, his history, his love of Victorian clothing, costume vs. clothes, art for art's sake, and more. We hope you enjoy this casual chat. You can find Michael here: Website - https://www.michaelkoropisz.com/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/mr.koropisz/ Instagram - @michael_koropisz_artist Also, don't forget to check out another fabulously-dressed gentleman, Dandy Wellington, who provides the music for our podcast - https://www.dandywellington.com/ ---------------------- Get social with us! Instagram: www.instagram.com/americanduchess Facebook: www.facebook.com/AmericanDuchess Blog: blog.americanduchess Patreon - www.patreon.com/americanduchess Youtube - www.youtube.com/c/americanduchess1 Shop our Website: www.americanduchess.com Don't forget to subscribe! ❤

Designing historically-inspired footwear is trickier than you might think! Join Nicole Rudolph and Lauren Stowell as we have a behind the scenes chat about the process of designing and making American Duchess historical shoes. From spec sheets and measurements to choosing leather and trying on samples, we go in depth with some of the process, challenges, and development of our old-fashioned footwear line.

Victorian women wore bustles to enlarge their hips, bum, and to give them the fashionable shape, but did you know that there was more than just one type of bustle? In fact, there were loads of different types! In this episode, we sat down with Christina DeAngelo (our beloved Operations Manager and all-around cool chick) to discuss her research into several different types of bustles that she's recreated over the years - from the Phantom Bustle to the Lotta, and everything in between (just not a tapioca bustle, Abby...🤣) So, if you're interested in exploring the 1870s or 1880s bustle-era fashions, but are intimidated by the "Lobster Tail" Tonure bustle, you're going to love this episode! LACMA Bustles: https://collections.lacma.org/node/214157 & https://collections.lacma.org/node/206419 ------------------------------- Get social with us! Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/americanduchess Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AmericanDuchess Blog: http://blog.americanduchess Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/americanduchess Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/americanduchess1 Shop our Website: http://www.americanduchess.com Don't forget to subscribe! ❤

It's been almost 2 months since Covid-19 turned our world upside down. As small businesses, we've been struggling with what to do, how to move forward, pivoting, and trying to out-think a pandemic. Featuring Cynthia of Redthreaded, this is a business-related episode, focused entirely on what we and Redthreaded have been doing to keep everything afloat while we isolate in our homes, and our costume-related events get canceled for 2020. Quick thinking, acting fast, and pivoting are normal when you operate a small business, but none of us ever thought this would happen. After all, both American Duchess and Redthreaded were founded during the Recession. However, Lauren and Cynthia have been working tirelessly to keep everyone employed and their businesses operational during this time of crisis. Throughout this episode, we discuss the PPP loans, Paypal, other sources of funding, how we've changed our business operations, focusing on Youtube, the growth of Patreon (THANK YOU), and more. A little bit serious, a little bit lighthearted, if you want to know how some of your favorite small businesses are doing during the lock-down, sit back and have a listen. Check out Redthreaded : http://www.redthreaded.com https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoVgyEruqAMbaUixPGyI5HA http://www.patreon.com/redthreaded Get to know Dandy Wellington: https://www.youtube.com/user/indiglonyc & http://www.patreon.com/DandyWellington ------------------------------- Get social with us! Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/americanduchess Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AmericanDuchess Blog: http://blog.americanduchess Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/americanduchess Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/americanduchess1 Shop our Website: http://www.americanduchess.com Don't forget to subscribe! ❤