living like im in a jane austen novel🪞🎀🌷romantic spring days

Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence, and had lived nearly 21 years in the world with very little to distress or vex her. If I could live in the world of any character, I think it would be Emma Woodhouse. Long walks in lush gardens, fancy balls in grand castles, lavish picnics on rolling hills, quiet mornings spent sewing and writing letters, and long evenings reading by candlelight, Emma's world is my favorite way to romanticize spring, to enjoy all the indulgent delicacies of life I never make time for. Join me for a Regency Spring Adventure. In the Regency era, a clear complexion was of the utmost importance. I used the recommended cleanser of rose water mixed with milk, and I actually found this quite refreshing. For toner, apple cider vinegar, although I diluted mine with some water. For moisturizer, almond oil to nourish and soften the skin. I was surprised to find how simple it was to find a tonic-free tonic although I did skip the lead-based face powder. Breakfasts were a dainty affair, and almost always included a cup of tea. I of course had to read a Regency romance, this one is truly delightful. A rakish lord and an enchanting heroine was just the thing I needed on this spring morning. I've been waiting for a reason to wear this fancy dress, so I thought why not just because the sun is out and the trees are in bloom? Doing hair is the bane of my existence, so I did the most intricate updo I had the patience for. Normally I spend my mornings scrolling on my phone and feeling drained and uninspired, but the grounds of this beautiful house was a magical start to my day. Touring beautiful houses and their grounds is an Austin staple and one of my favorite activities. It's the closest I can get to time travel, and I really felt like a Regency-era heroine who has a dowry of £30,000 and whose only cares are her elderly father and matchmaking her friends. Much has been said about the lost art of letter writing, and I have been wanting to get into it I absolutely fell in love with this set I found at my local stationery store, and even got a quill and ink pen. I've always wanted to try it. I used to write letters to my friends at camp, and I treasure them now as a time capsule of my teenage summers. Taking the time to handwrite messages felt so different from sending texts. Letters are really a message from the past, a proof of existence, slowing down just a little to really think about what I wanted to say was so peaceful and relaxing. Because I'm romanticizing everything as much as I can, I decided to work on my embroidery at the oldest, most beautiful library I could find. Needlework was a common Regency pastime, and I've decided embroidery will be my spring hobby. I think being able to make things with your hands is true magic. For my Regency cake, I decided to make a Savoy cake. Savoy cakes come from the Savoy region in France, and are a tender, light sponge cake. Although quite a simple recipe, elaborate cake pans were used to turn these into Regency dinner statement pieces. The cake gets its light, airy texture from whipping the egg whites and sugar first into a stiff meringue. The origins of the Savoy cake can be traced to a request from a count in Chambray, France, who asked his court pastry chef to make a cake as light as a feather. Different variations have come up over the years, including Thomas Jefferson's preference for orange rather than lemon zest, and early 19th century recommendations to cover the cake with of having an Emma Woodhouse-style picnic, and I thought that this beautiful arboretum would be the perfect place. It's absolutely magical. For my picnic, I prepared a variety of Regency-era foods. I love exploring old recipes, and I think food is one of the best ways to connect to the past. Picnics were a popular Regency pastime and could include all kinds of dishes, so I selected a few that I've been wanting to try. They're mostly desserts. Since I've never had any of these before, I thought I would do a little taste test and share what they were like. So up first, we have Syllabub. This is a 18th century, I think it's typically a holiday dessert, but it had lemon in it. Sounded pretty spring to me. I've been wanting to try it for so long. We always put it out at the holiday season at the Colonial Museum I work at, and people always ask me what it tastes like, and now I'll find out. That is quite delicious. I actually really like that. Very light, very airy, very lemony. I would recommend. This is Flummery. Moves the way it sounds. Very rubbery. Basically like raspberry jello. Flummery was an early gelatinous dessert. I do not like that. It's very rubbery, and the raspberry is very fake. I'm not a big jello person, and that jello, that is way too rubbery for me. Good strawberries though. These are Root Cakes. Dry little cakes with currants. They're a popular tea snack. I actually really like those. Not as dry as I was expecting, and the currants add a nice little flavor and squishiness. Would recommend. And then I also have some cucumber sandwiches. The only vegetable on the board. Again, a classic tea dessert. These are really yummy. Some nice dill and chives in them. Quite delectable. This is my Savoy Cake. I did a very bad job blending the batter because I was really afraid about making it deflate, so I did a very light fold, and you can see some chunks of unmixed portions in the cake. Oh, and a fly. I'll go from the best bit. Do you think someone got engaged? Very light, very airy, very spongy. That's actually really delicious. I like that as well. Very simple. Hooray. But still very decadent tasting. Would recommend. I wanted to have the most luxurious evening I could think of, so I added rose petals and honey bath salts to my lavender bubble bath. Lavender was especially popular in the Regency era for its calming and cleansing properties. Any kind of bath would have felt like a luxury in this time period, so I tried to appreciate all the little things. The way the candlelight danced off the water. How soothing and peaceful lavender feels. Regency era exfoliants consisted of natural ingredients like almonds and oatmeal, so I used this natural clay and sea salt mud mask. For hair oils, I used a mix I made of almond, sesame seed, rosemary, and castor oil. I've actually found this makes your hair very soft. Evenings always included tea, so I brewed a cup of this Jane Austen blend and ended my day reading by candlelight, feeling refreshed and magical.