Colonial Holly Nights At Pennsbury Manor In Morrisville, PA On December 04, 2025

Last night, I visited Pennsbury Manor in Morrisville, PA for the "Holly Nights" event.  The land was once the country estate of William Penn.  The event ran from 06:00 PM to 09:00 PM.  I arrived shortly after 08:00 PM, and the grounds were still packed.  A fine turn-out for Holly Nights.  I debuted the gold buckles that I made mere hours before the event began (The DIY guide for those shoe buckles is at this link: https://michael-the-researcher.blogspot.com/2025/12/diy-1700s-style-gold-buckle-shoes.html).  A little girl asked why I had the feather.  I told her that, back in those days, people would dip the feather into ink and use it to write like a pen or a pencil.

Video: 

The url in case the video does not embed properly: https://youtu.be/yQ_ece00nic

 Photographs ...

Pennsbury Manor's website: https://www.pennsburymanor.org/about-the-manor

#hollynights #colonialcandlelight #morrisvillepa #morrisville #colonialattire #1700s #colonialera #colonialerafashion #1700sevent #colonialamerica #colonialpa #colonialpennsylvania #christmastime #pennsburymanor #williampenn #colonialestate #colonialarchitecture #earlyamerican #earlyamerica #americanarchitecture #earlyamericanhome #colonialhome

DIY 1700s Style Gold Buckle Shoes Colonial Eighteenth Century Fashion Do It Yourself Reenactor

I needed a pair of 1700s style buckle shoes to accompany my outfits.  I decided to create a pair on my own.  This do it yourself tutorial will show you a cheap way to look like an eighteenth century reenactor or a living historian using bargain brand shoes and dollar store hair clips.  The shoes cost $10.00 for the pair, and the hair clips cost $1.25 each.  These buckles will be specifically painted gold.  I will create silver buckles in the future.  I cut gashes into the shoes so I can swap the different colored buckles.

Video: 

The url in case the video does not embed properly: https://youtu.be/ZiKlpBDoVP8

Photographs ...

The necessary elements:

The plan:

Blading away the strap:

I will save the straps ... I might need them some day:

Incisions for the hair clips, and you can see the hair clip missing the latch: 

The missing latch allows the metal pieces to provide deep staying power for this plan:

The metal pieces fit nicely inside of the gashes:

Great fit ... now ready for the gold paint:

The finished product:

#diytutorial #diy #doityourself #homemade #homemadefashion #colonialfashion #earlyamericanfashion #1700sfashion #1700sstyle #1700sshoes #1700sbuckles #shoebuckles #diyfashion #diyreenacting #diyreenactor #reenacting #reenactor #livinghistorian #reenactorclothing #livinghistorianclothing #livinghistoriandress #reenactordress #reenactorshoes #livinghistorianshoes #bargaindiy #budgetdiy #cheapdiy #diycheap #diycheaply #clothingtutorial

Nürnberger Christkind Prologue And Pyramid Lighting At Christmas Village In Philadelphia, PA On November 30, 2025

The Christkind of Nürnberg (Nuremberg) was present at the official opening of Christmas Village within Love Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania yesterday, November 30, 2025.  This has been a fine tradition for a number of years.  I met the Nürnberger Christkind at this event and location back in 2014.  On this cold, late afternoon, Christkind appeared to read the Prologue, listen as "Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht" ("Silent Night, Holy Night") was performed by a choir, light the Pyramid (which is new for the village), cut the ribbon, pose for pictures and hand out candy and postcards.   Rain in German/Deutsch is regen, and, indeed, it was raining.  You can see rain drops coming down and on me in the following video and photographs.

Video: 

The url in case the video does not embed properly: https://youtu.be/iBxI5SgOlA0

Photographs ...

I met Christkind prior to the Prologue.  I wore my Bavarian-style tie for this occasion.

The Pyramid before being lit and after being lit:

Philadelphia City Hall (the once tallest habitable building in the world from 1894 to 1908) to the right:

Christkind handing out candy to children:

Philadelphia Christmas Village website: https://www.philachristmas.com/events.html

Link with further information about the Nürnberger Christkind: https://www.christkindlesmarkt.de/en/christkind

#philachristmas #philadelphiachristmasvillage #christmasvillage #philadelphia #philadelphiapa #nürnbergerchristkind #nürnbergchristkind #nurnbergerchristkind #nurnbergchristkind #nurembergchristkind #christkind #stillenacht #stillenachtheiligenacht #heiligenacht #silentnight #silentnightholynight #holynight #christkindlmarkt #christkindofnürnberg  #christkindofnurnberg #christkindofnuremberg #weihnachtsmarkt #weihnachten #philacityhall #philadelphiacityhall #lovepark #loveparkphila #philadelphialovepark #germanchristmas 

Gabreil Daveis Tavern Holiday Open House In Glendora, NJ On November 30, 2025

Gabreil Daveis Tavern in Glendora, New Jersey held a Holiday Open House earlier today, November 30, 2025.  The Tavern was built in 1756.  It was used as a hospital in the Revolutionary War.  This blog entry will show you the premises outdoors and indoors.  You will note some raindrops in a few of the images.

Video: 

The url in case the video does not embed properly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTBpNnl708s

Photographs ...

I will be returning next year for a Spring or Summer blog entry.

The Tavern's FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gabreil-Daveis-Tavern-House/104121246291519

The Visit South Jersey link: https://visitsouthjersey.com/directory/gabreil-daveies-tavern

Holiday Market At The Orchard Garden In Glassboro, NJ On November 29, 2025

I attended The Orchard Garden's Holiday Market in Glassboro, New Jersey earlier this evening, November 29, 2025.  Vendors were located indoors and outdoors.  The grounds were decorated for the season.  While the event was scheduled for 12:00 PM until 08:00 PM, some outdoor vendors began packing up prior to 06:00 due to the cold.  They had been there since 09:00 AM.  It was cold.  I can attest to that.  I wore my Regency style attire during my time there.