Some Old Friends

About a year and a half ago I decided to sell the little Victorian cottage where I kept my collection. It was a hard call to make, but as we age we realize that our possessions can simply be too much. In selling the house and reducing my storage space, I knew I had to tighten the focus of my collection, and then to remove items that were redundant or outside this focus.

My solution was to donate most of the removed items to the Fashion History Museum in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. I have been friends with the museum’s founders, Jonathan Walford and Kenn Norman for years, and had already written the museum into my will. Curator Jonathan got first pick of the items, and the rest went to my friends at the Fashion Conservatory to be sold.

This is not the first time I have donated items to museums. I especially like to find and buy items manufactured in the many textile mills and clothing factories that once spread across the South. Small local museums are usually thrilled to add items made locally to their collections.

I recently got an email from Jonathan showing two of my donated garments that are in the FHM’s current exhibition, 300 Years of Fashion. What a treat it is to see my former things in an exhibition where hundreds of people will see and enjoy them!

Above is a mid-1960s Mary Quant Ginger Group dress. Perfect for doing the twist or the frug.

Also in the exhibition is this superb early 1920s dress. I found it years ago at the old Metrolina Flea Market in Charlotte. I remember haggling with the seller, who told me I was ruthless. It’s so nice knowing my skill as a haggler led to this dress being preserved in a museum.

If you find yourself in southern Ontario, pay the museum a visit. It’s only about an hour and a half from Niagara Falls.