Ladies' re-enacting has taken a turn for the worse.  When I started writing 'The 1860's Lady', there were few ladies with what I call Hollywood fiction dresses.  Over the course of the last year and a half, these ladies have multiplied.  Few Hollywood movies depict the correct 1860's dress.  The reason for this is;  in an epic movie, fancy makes for better viewing and advertising. 
  I have seen ladies this past season with ball gowns on during the day.  This is totally inappropriate.  What's worse is the showing of cleavage.  Ladies of the 1860's did NOT show cleavage;   even in ball gowns.  The exception to this were actresses and ladies in the oldest profession. 
  I have also witnessed an unusual number of ladies with ringlets cascading down the back.  This hairstyle is for the evening and for little girls.  If you desire to wear ringlets during the day, you can part your hair down the middle and have all over ringlets.  Another popular style with ringlets is to part down the middle and pull hair to sides in bunches and have the ringlets over the ears framing the face.
  Using Hollywood movies for the basis of your 1860's impression is incorrect.  We are not being fair to ourselves or the spectators by incorrectly portraying our 1860's counterparts.  It pains me to see how we as re-enactors have drifted so far from historical reality.  The lovely ladies of the 1860's deserve their memories to be given the same consideration our men give our beloved soldiers.
  Being historically incorrect also confuses our newcomers to re-enacting.  They see others dressing in Hollywood style and soon it becomes the norm.  I admit that Hollywood style is prettier and more fun to wear but we have a duty to uphold the time period we are portraying.  It is not all that hard to make sure your fashions or the fashions you are purchasing are 1860's correct.  I understand some of the difficulties of finding correct dresses.  They are out there, some of the sutlers sell nice 1860's dresses.  There are also many pattern catalogs out there.  They are advertised a lot in the Camp Chase Gazette and the Citizen's Companion.  Modern pattern companies are also coming out with Historical patterns for many era's in history.
  Whether looking for a dress or making one, you have an obligation to over-ride the desire to look like Scarlet O'Hara.  There are several informational aides to help with your impression: local libraries, the internet has several sites and my first few articles.
  We need to make re-enacting what it should and needs to be.  A looking glass back into time.

  Fredricka Zimmerman