Sharing my acknowledgements bc I so loved reading other people's whilst I was writing up - it just would not have been possible to do this project without the love and support of friends, family and colleagues - most especially my brilliant and generous supervisor Sian Pooley

📢 An update - now the dust has settled I'm really thrilled to share that I finally submitted my thesis on the cultural history of the female neck in modern Britain earlier this year and passed my viva just over a week ago!! 🗃️🎉🥳

On my moodboard today is Rossetti’s sumptuous ‘Lady Lilith’. Just look at that neck! The abundance of flowers in this painting always makes me think of spring - not to mention the sudden urge to grow my hair! 🌷🪞✨🗃️

This piece grew out of some work I did on the smash hit melodrama 'The Wicked Lady' (1945) and I really enjoyed writing it - do take a look if you fancy a distraction from the ~horrors~

With this lovely influx of new followers I guess its a good time to share my first ever article on gender, sexual violence and popular culture in modern Britain! doi.org/10.1080/1478...

Spending some time looking at jewellery today and once again in raptures over this pearl and diamond Van Cleef & Arpels necklace given to Grace Kelly as a wedding gift by her husband in 1956. 🗃️

Hi historians! Wondering if anyone has any top tips for writing a thesis introduction for a very tired and daunted PhD student… all advice gratefully received! 🗃️

Doing some thinking about Disney's 'Cinderella' (1950) today. A powerful influence in the post-war period and a formative text for the young Elena in the 1990s! Sending Monday motivation to everyone going into battle with their drafts today. The dream that you wish will come true! 🗃️

Completely obsessed with this insanely glamorous picture of The Hon. Mrs. Baillie-Hamilton by Cecil Beaton. The turban!! That curl!! Her eyebrows!! 🤩 Published in The Tatler 26 Nov 1930 © Illustrated London News Group 🗃️

Today the terror of a new chapter draft... Starting to realise it might actually not get easier as I go... Solidarity with everyone going into battle today! I'm thinking about women's magazines and enjoying some gorgeous adverts and illustrations. 🗃️

📢 Is anyone here currently working on whiteness and self-fashioning/beauty/cosmetics&skin-lighteners? I'm putting a panel submission together for the SHS 2024 conference and seeking a third paper! Let me know if you are interested & we can chat!! 🗃️

Spending some time today thinking about popular cinema in the 1940s so on the moodboard is this gorgeous 1948 photo of Margaret Lockwood, star of Gainsborough's box office smash 'The Wicked Lady' © estate of Kenneth Hughes/NPG, London 🗃️

On today's moodboard is this gorgeous Winterhalter painting of Princess Alexandra (1864). Oh to be so serenely elegant! Her hair is arranged to hide a small scar on her neck which she usually concealed with large jewelled choker-style necklaces or black ribbons © His Majesty King Charles III 2023 🗃️

Today's inspo for finishing off my chapter edits is this beautiful Cecil Beaton photo from 1948. I just love the drama of the lighting and composition and the sheen of the extravagant icy pastel gowns. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, © Condé Nast 🗃️