Tessa BoaseJun 1, 20214 minLessons from eco pioneer Etta LemonEtta Lemon is the formidable woman who built the RSPB. Known by one and all as Mrs Lemon, her surname suited her. She was bitter in her...
boasetessaMay 25, 20214 minThe fashionable cult of the ‘osprey’In March 1888, a record-breaking plumage sale was held at the London Commercial Salesrooms. Among the many thousand birds-of paradise,...
Tessa BoaseJan 2, 20214 minThe skeleton in the RSPB closetWhen I started researching Margaretta Lemon, the woman who built the all-female RSPB, I assumed that she would be in favour of women's...
Tessa BoaseDec 9, 20204 minWhy we need more statues of womenStatues of women are troubling. Just look at the reaction to the 2020 Mary Wollstonecraft statue by Maggi Hambling. ‘Catastrophically...
Tessa BoaseAug 13, 20204 minLooking for Emily Williamson, RSPB founderVictorian campaigner Emily Williamson was so incensed by the millinery trade’s use of plumage that she invited her friends to tea — and...
Tessa BoaseDec 29, 20185 minThe strange ritual of the Servants’ Christmas BallWas the Servants’ Ball really so marvellous? It is invoked as an example of the cosy, protective relationship within the English country...
Tessa BoaseOct 20, 20184 minHeather Firbank’s feathered hatsI stumbled across Heather Firbank, Edwardian fashion victim, when I made an appointment to view a dozen feathered hats at the Victoria...
Tessa BoaseOct 19, 20186 minThe Seduction of Heather Firbank, Edwardian It GirlA dozen feathered hats, hidden within the fashion archives of the Victorian and Albert Museum, London, were my first introduction to...