In a few weeks, I am going to be playing the part of a Victorian apple woman as part of the entertainment at Hunstanton Dickensian Christmas Market. I think I’m going to be part of the ‘street entertainment’ so I had better practice my street cries, including the one in the title of this post. There will be so much going on during the event, it’s going to be quite a spectacle.

It is in my favour that these women were usually older, bigger and, how can I say it, altogether less decorative than the girls and young women who sold flowers or bunches of watercress.
So, I’m not going to be parading in a fancy gown with a crinoline or bustle skirt. These women would have worn whatever they had, all day every day. They kept the cold out with maybe an old woollen vest, or a man’s jacket cut down to size. I’ve been having fun finding items, and re-purposing some things, that will do the job.

In the meantime, here are a couple of images I have been using for inspiration.