Tea at Trianon: Onionskin Paper

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Sunday, March 5, 2017

Onionskin Paper

From Victoria:

Nancy Sharon Collins has forged a path as a stationer. She has been a proponent of proper letterhead since the early 1970s, when she purchased a large quantity of onionskin on a whim. Today, she sells this same collection in her online store, along with artisanal notepads and bespoke stationery. “I didn’t know that the simple purchase I made then would create such a wonderful business opportunity for me,” Nancy says.

Onionskin, being lighter than most paper, was once widely used for its portability. However, because it is not compatible with printers, it fell out of fashion. Its recent resurgence could be attributed to the fact that it takes ink wonderfully, encouraging the writing of beautiful longhand. The experience of writing on it might be called ethereal. (Read more.)

Stephanie A. Mann said...: I used to love writing on onionskin paper; it made me feel like I was Jane Austen or some other great English author of the 18th century!; March 5, 2017 at 2:00:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: I used to use it, too! But I hardly ever write letters anymore. That must change......; March 5, 2017 at 2:05:00 PM EST