The lady's maid would assist her mistress with dressing and undressing. She would lay out the clothing and accessories required during the day for all activities taking place. Activities could include riding, walking, hunting, driving, social outings, and any evening events.
A lady's maid's specific duties included helping her mistress with her appearance, including make-up, hairdressing, clothing, jewellery, and shoes. A lady's maid would also remove stains from clothing; sew, mend, and alter garments as needed; bring her mistress breakfast in her room; and draw her mistress's bath.
A lady's maids' specific duties included helping her mistress with her appearance, such as make-up, hairdressing, clothing, jewelry and shoes. A lady's maids' job description was vast and required a knowledge that may now be lost in time.
She rose early before the family of the house and cleaned and lit the fires, prepared breakfast and began the housework that would keep her busy all day. Added to these daily chores would be specific days such as wash day and scouring day. These are just a few of the jobs expected to be carried out daily.
Under-servant Bedrooms: Male and female domestics had separate servant bedrooms for sleeping. Female domestics were usually provided with bedrooms either in the attic, uppermost story, or over servant offices, which were accessible by a back stairway.
This pause in the day's toil provided some free time, but servants were rarely allowed to leave the house. A bell could ring at any time, calling them to provide a service or to perform routine tasks. In effect, there was no end to their working day, and one day off a month was the most they could hope for.
Morning Duties
You must rise at six o'clock and wash and dress, with your hair tied neatly back beneath your cap. Your bed must be made and you must be downstairs at work within half an hour of waking. You first task of the day is to stoke the Kitchen range to a good heat, to boil water for early morning tea.
Morning Duties
You must rise at six o'clock and wash and dress. Your bed must be made and you must make your way over to the house and be ready to work within half an hour of waking. Your first task of the day is to clean the boots of the Upper Servants and Family members.
Hygiene Etiquette
The complete bathing of the body once each day is of the utmost importance. Not more than a quart of water is necessary, preferably rainwater.” Hair: “The head should be washed occasionally with soap and water.
The lady's maid would assist her mistress with dressing and undressing. She would lay out the clothing and accessories required during the day for all activities taking place. Activities could include riding, walking, hunting, driving, social outings, and any evening events.
Today this role is still sought after and Marshall Harber have placed many successful lady's maids. The role can encompass so much more, for example a lady's maid can take care of the male and female wardrobes of the house.
A lady might call her lady's maid Lastname if they had a formal relationship, especially if the maid was French or good enough to be called a “dresser” or “lady's” maid, rather than simply a maid or an abigail, although some people used those terms interchangeably.
The duties of ladies-in-waiting varied from court to court, but functions historically discharged by ladies-in-waiting included proficiency in the etiquette, languages, dances, horse riding, music making, and painting prevalent at court; keeping her mistress abreast of activities and personages at court; care of the ...
Domestic service dropped by more than half between 1940 and 1950. After the war, wages remained high. In a bid to sidestep labor laws, employers paid nannies and cleaners under the table instead of hiring servants full-time. Slowly, women began to take over housework themselves.
At what point did a young, single woman become an old maid? There was a definitive line: In the 17th century, it was a woman in her mid-20s.
The housemaid was responsible for keeping the house clean and in order. She was meant to do much of this out of view of the family and so had to rise very early in the morning to complete her work. It was also necessary to keep to a very strict routine to ensure that all the work was done.
Before the advent of toilet paper, Victorians used a variety of materials for personal hygiene, depending on their socio-economic status and cultural traditions. The most common options were water, leaves, corncobs, moss, hay, wool, rags, newspapers, and even seashells.
She rarely washed her hair, as the process was involved and not terribly pleasant. Women were advised to dilute pure ammonia in warm water and then massage it through the scalp and hair, like modern shampoo.
Before the disposable pad was invented, most women used rags, cotton, or sheep's wool in their underwear to stem the flow of menstrual blood. Knitted pads, rabbit fur, even grass were all used by women to handle their periods.
Living accommodation was spartan and in Victorian times, highly segregated. Maids were traditionally housed in the attic, with the housekeeper's own quarters at the end of their passage, while male staff were lodged in the basement.
Life as a Victorian servant was incredibly hard. They worked long hours with very few breaks. It was normal for servants to be given only one day off a month! Only wealthy Victorians could afford to have servants.
To answer part of your question, I do know that the factory workers of the day were woken up by a "knocker-upper" who walked the streets and banged on bedroom windows with a large pole.
The family would probably have employed between eight and twelve servants who were given their food and accommodation as part of their wages. Some would live in the attic bedrooms and some above the stables, but if these rooms were full, servants might have to sleep in the servants' hall and kitchen.
From the first pages of the book, it is clear that the servants of Victorian houses lived in conditions close to slavery. They barely had a few free hours a week, they could be fired on a whim and they slept in terrible conditions.
In the absence of a boot boy, he also cleaned the boots not just of the family members but also those of the butler and those of the visitors. The hall boy also waited on more senior servants when they took their meals in the servants hall. He slept on a fold-down bed in the hallway connecting the servants' quarters.