Now THAT'S old fashioned romance! Meet the couple who shunned cell phones, internet, appliances, and transport to live the Victorian life... and insist it's BETTER
- Sarah and Gabriel Chrisman, of Seattle, made the leap five years ago
- Both were passionate about Victorian era so started dressing that way
- Then bought an 1888-built house, replaced all the modern appliances
- Sarah, 35, insists their 'academic research' has given them a better life
- She wears a corset every day and even goes hiking in it - which is 'easy'
Published:
09:02 EST, 12 September 2015
|
Updated:
11:53 EST, 12 September 2015
It's truly old fashioned romance.
Sarah and Gabriel Chrisman were drawn to each other out of a shared fascination with the Victorian era.
And over time, their passion has bloomed in a very unconventional fashion.
For
the last five years, the Seattle-based couple who married in 2002 have
dressed, traveled, cooked, eaten, and entertained themselves as if they
lived in the 19th century.
Though
a life free of cell phones, internet, modern transport and sneakers
smacks of horror to most people today, the Chrismans insist they are the
lucky ones.
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Unconventional: Sarah and Gabriel Chrisman live a completely Victorian life at their home (pictured) in Seattle
Dedicated: It started gradually but they became fully immersed five years ago after moving into their home
The couple spend every day and night in authentic Victorian clothing - and Sarah even goes hiking in a corset
'Even
before I met Gabriel, we both saw value in older ways of looking at the
world,' academic and massage therapist Sarah, 35, writes in a personal
essay for Vox.
'He
had been homeschooled as a child, and he never espoused the strict
segregation that now seems to exist between life and learning.
'As adults, we both wanted to learn more about a time that fascinated each of us.
'But
it took mutual support to challenge society's dogmas of how we should
live, how we should learn. We came into it gradually — and together.'
Watch
Video:
They married in 2002 (left) and over time gifted each other Victorian items, such as these clothes (right)
For entertainment, Sarah reads 1890s editions of Cosmopolitan, or they go cycling on their pennyfarthings
They both see the pursuit as academic
research - far more intense than any sociological study they have
encountered on the subject. But it is also a lifestyle. Gabriel modeled
his workout gear on Victorian cyclists
After one year of wearing a corset every day, Mrs Chrisman said her waist went from 32 inches to 22 inches
'It's a life that keeps us far more in touch with the natural seasons,' Sarah writes for Vox.
'Much
of modern technology has become a collection of magic black boxes: Push
a button and light happens, push another button and heat happens, and
so on.
'The
systems that dominate people's lives have become so opaque that few
Americans have even the foggiest notion what makes most of the items
they touch every day work — and trying to repair them would nullify the
warranty.'
Speaking to Daily Mail Online two years ago, after publishing her book Victorian Secrets: What a Corset Taught me About the Past, the Present, and Myself, Sarah insisted she and Gabriel still meet up with friends to discuss academia, or go hiking - in their Victorian clothes.
'I
manage hiking quite well,' she told Daily Mail Online. 'I modeled my
outfit off a photo of Fay Fuller, the first woman known to reach the
summit of Mount Rainier in 1890. She was dressed in an "immodest"
climbing outfit of her own devising.'
After
one year of wearing a corset every day, Mrs Chrisman said her waist
went from 32 inches to 22 inches, she experienced fewer migraines and
her posture improved. 'And honestly, the corset lets me know when I'm
full! I don't have to worry about eating too much.'
Sarah insists they are the lucky ones as they do not take modern phenomena for granted
They spend time with the friends they have always had. They have been subjected to abuse from others
Friends
are also supportive. 'They are intrigued,' explained Mrs Chrisman. 'The
wonderful thing is, our friends are friends - our interests are still
the same.
But her desire to delve further into the Victorian lifestyle, and wear a corset every day, seems to have the public divided.
'People
have mixed reactions,' she admitted. 'Some are enthusiastic and
positive. The other day an old man ran out of a restaurant to tell me I
made his day, he said: "You look beautiful."
'But
there are perfect strangers who find what I wear such a point of
contention. Some women scream oppression -- that I choose to wear a
corset. But I focus on the positives. I don't find it restricting at
all, in fact I'd venture to say that it's liberating to live how I want
to!'
Writing for Vox, Sarah reveals some of the more aggressive reactions leveled at them:
'We
live in a world that can be terribly hostile to difference of any sort.
Societies are rife with bullies who attack nonconformists of any stripe
(...) We have been called "freaks," "bizarre," and an endless slew of
far worse insults.
'We've
received hate mail telling us to get out of town and repeating the word
"kill ... kill ... kill." Every time I leave home I have to constantly
be on guard against people who try to paw at and grope me.
'Dealing
with all these things and not being ground down by them, not letting
other people's hostile ignorance rob us of the joy we find in this life —
that is the hard part. By comparison, wearing a Victorian corset is the
easiest thing in the world.'
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1 comment:
THE CHRISTMANS NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT IF THEY WANT TO ACT LIKE FRUITCAKES EXPECT HOW PEOPLE WILL RESPOND...... I MYSELF ALSO HAVE INTEREST IN THE FLI NTSTONE ERA..... WHAT WOULD THEY SAY IF I CAME TO THEIR DOOR AS A FULLER BRUSH MAN DRESSED IN A CAVE MAN OUT FIT CARRING A CLUB DRIVING AND BARNEY RUBBLES FLINTMOBILE??? I USED TO LIVE IN SEATTLE AND I CAN SAY IT HAS TO BE THE RAIN RUSTING THEIR BRAINS.... I AM INTRIGUED IN THE CORSET AND WOULD LIKE TO GET MY 3X BODY DOWN 3 SIZES....I WONDER WHERE ALL THE BELLY WILL GO ??
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