Vintage Miscellany – December 8, 2019

I collect photographs for several reasons. I love how you can glimpse into the past to see how people actually dressed, and sometimes a photo helps me assemble an ensemble of clothing and accessories. I also look for photos that help date and document items in my collection.

Between looking for old photos, I managed to read some interesting news.

•  Items from the estate of Doris Day, including clothing and costumes, will be sold at auction in April, 2020.
•  Feel free to copy this idea of an anonymous knitter in Asheville.
•  And in related news, knitting and crafting help in times of crisis.
•  Terry de Havilland, “Rock and Roll Cobbler” has died.
•   My posting about the button industry in Muscatine, Iowa, led to Liza forwarding this article to me.
•   Clothing collector Sandy Schreier’s exhibition has opened at the Costume Institute.
•   Will the exhibition of  Sandy Schreier’s collection of fashion lead to more demand (and higher prices) in the vintage fashion trade?
•   A model for clothing line Nelly Don turned out to be quite the collector.
•   What can we learn from sewing clothing from the past?
•   And here’s an article sent to me by Nann. You will love seeing this historical embroidery.

Vintage Miscellany – November 17, 2019

Could the photo above be giving us a glimpse inside an early 1920s sporting event, perhaps at a school for girls? What else could explain the presence of the two women, who could possibly be mothers of some of the girls? There’s no way to know because there’s nothing at all written on the back of the photo to give us a hint. All I can do is speculate.

And here is a bit of news…

•   Momentum is building in the movement to build a museum devoted to women’s baseball.
•    Here’s a taste of what we might expect from Ingrid Mida’s new book, Reading Fashion in Art.
•    Well, along with the corruption of the words vintage and curate, you can now add provenance to the list.
•    Another Nazi-tainted work of art will be restored to the heirs of the rightful owners.
•    In an upcoming movie, Lady  Gaga will play Patrizia Reggiani, the ex-wife of Maurizio Gucci who was convicted of plotting his murder in 1996.
•    Here’s a nice article about textile designer Tammis Keefe.
•   Bride Lyndsey Raby chose her flower girls wisely, and they even had matching dresses that looked good on them all.
•    Jane Fonda is giving up clothes shopping, sort of.
•   “Where there is wool, there is a woman who weaves, if only to pass the time.” Thankfully, that is what many women of the Bauhaus did.
•   Clothing collector Sandy Schreier is really having her moment.
•   One of the forces behind Columbia Sportswear, Gert Boyle, has died.

 

Vintage Miscellany – October 27, 2019

Gladys is wearing her new knickers in a way that I see so often in photos from the mid 1920s and earlier. It’s a clear lesson on choosing accessories that match the feel of one’s clothing. The casual knickers and middy look more than a little weird with her white stockings and dressy shoes. I’d love to call her up with the advice to invest in a pair of oxfords and darker hosiery.

And yes, there is some news…

• Both Macy’s and Bloomingdales have committed to going [nearly] fur-free by spring 2021.
•  Louis Vuitton has expanded their manufacturing in Texas (yes, you read that correctly) and the grand opening of the factory was a bit weird.
•   I’m not much of a royal watcher, but this article about William and Kate’s attire on their trip to Pakistan is interesting.
•   I loved this research blog post by FIDM intern Kirstin Purtich about Koret of California.
•   Not fashion-related, but this report about illustrated Islamic books being cut apart is disturbing.
•    Here’s a look inside the textiles lab at Colonial Williamsburg.
•    Embroidered clothing is having a fashion moment.
•   Never heard of Jennie Wilde? Here you go. Thanks Liza.

Vintage Miscellany – October 7, 2019

The news has been so stressful that I’ve had a hard time concentrating on fashion history. But in times like these, is it somehow wrong or shallow to think about frocks and pajamas and pretty shoes? Truth is, and I probably don’t have to tell you this, fashion is more than just what we wear.

Politically, my teen and early adult years were also stressful. From the time I was ten years old in 1965, I was aware of the war in Vietnam, and as soon as that ended, Watergate and the threat of impeachment of Nixon became the chief source of anxiety. No wonder fashion in the late Sixties and into the Seventies looked to the past. Even as a preteen in 1967 I was aware that fashion was flirting with looks from the wartime Forties. That’s because my mother pointed out to me how the gathered sleeved blouses and dresses, and the above the knee dirndl skirts we saw in stores reminded her of the clothing she was wearing when she was my age in 1943.

I have a theory that one of the big appeals of nostalgia in the Sixties and Seventies was that so many Boomers saw the stark contrast between our parent’s wartime experiences and that of our own. My mom described feel-good stories of community sacrifice in order to help defeat Germany and Japan. My wartime memories involve protest and the horror of Kent State. Who wouldn’t give that up for a country seemingly united in a common cause? At least we could wear the clothes.

And now for some news…

• The middle-class collector is being priced out of the art market. I can see this in the vintage market as well, but on a smaller scale. There are, at least, bargains still to be had.
• Esther Williams: The Swimming Queen of the Silver Screen will be on view in the Catalina Island Museum through March 8, 2020.
•   Idiocy is alive and well in the fashion industry.
•   The Eastern Band of  Cherokee Tribal Council’ approved the Native Arts and Crafts Bill, which outlaws the sale of fake Cherokee-made crafts.
•   I loved this short video about the men characters and their shirt collars in The Maltese Falcon.
•    Remember that church altar cloth that turned out to probably be a fragment of a dress belonging to Elizabeth I? It will be on display at Hampton Court Palace starting October 12, through February 23, 2020.
•    Moths and old clothes just don’t mix.
•  Fans of Jane Austen will be interested in a new book, Dress in the Age of Jane Austen: Regency Fashion.
•   The US has Madeleine Albright, and the UK has Lady Hale.
•    Illustrator Mac Conner has died. I saw an exhibition of his work last year at the Upstate History Museum in Greenville, SC.
•    Time to burn your Vans.

Vintage Miscellany – September 15, 2019

For work or for leisure, the denim or cotton twill overall was a standard in the early 1940s. It was sort of the jeans and tee shirt of the day.

•  Amber Butchart explains the enduring popularity of seaside style.
•   Designer Isabel Toledo has died.
•   Second hand September urges us to go a month without shopping for new stuff. I can do that.
•    There’s a new book featuring the photographs of Bill Cunningham.
•    Many historic sites are finally beginning to acknowledge the work of the enslaved. Not surprisingly, some ninnies are complaining.
•   Pendleton Woolen Mills is celebrating 70 years of making clothing for women.
•    Project Runway favorite Chris March has died.
•    Companies know that there are many labor issues that need to be fixed, but little is being accomplished in the way of improvement. I’ve been posting stories like this one for fifteen years.
•    The same can be said for racism and the fashion industry.
•    Here’s a great story about how a housekeeper saved a treasure trove of historic clothing.
•   And finally, a story from The New York Times about the Jantzen diving girl. Thanks to the many readers who emailed this link to me.

Vintage Miscellany – August 25, 2019

1932. It’s almost chilly here in the Western North Carolina mountains so maybe fall really is on the way. Here’s my dream hiking ensemble: snappy pullover sweater, rolled cuff trousers, high laced boots, and a hat that’s part tam, part beret with hair neatly tucked away inside. Was she posing, or simply caught in a pensive moment?

And now for some news…

•   There are Bonnie Cashin dresses, and then there is this dress.
•    Designer Arthur McGee who started his career with Charles James and went on to lead the design team at sportswear giant Bobbie Brooks has died.  McGee was mentor to many other Black American designers.
•    Next month the Iris and Carl Apfel Gallery at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA will open.
•    Also coming up in September, Hindman Auctions will be selling Olivia de Havilland’s collection of Dior couture.
•    Yes, children, there was lots of tie-dye and fringe at Woodstock.
•    Mary Jo’s Cloth Shop established in 1951 and my own personal Nirvana, is closing.
•    Prince Albert’s dressing gown is returning to the royal collection.
•    President Obama wants the hat Aretha wore at his first inauguration.
•   Adding meaning to travel through historical dress.
•   A good defense of photo-taking in museums.

When I first started writing this blog around fifteen years ago, most museums I visited did not allow visitors to take photos, so I carried a sketchbook to record the highlights of fashion exhibitions. Today, most museums do allow photos, due mainly, I’d think, to social media. When people started documenting every small detail of their lives on Facebook and Twitter (and later Instagram) museums very quickly realized that every post on these sites was free advertising.

There are still plenty of people who object to the practice, saying that the photo has become more important than the experience. To some degree I agree with that thought. We’ve all seen people rushing through a museum or historic site, camera in hand, ready to get that perfect Instagram shot.

I try to use a strategy when visiting an exhibition that I want to photograph for this blog. Ideally, I view the entire exhibition, reading the show notes and absorbing the message the curator is trying to put out there. Only after looking and thinking and studying, I go back and take photos of what best tells the story.

This strategy works best where an exhibition is located all in one area of the site or museum. Often, in house museums like the Biltmore Estate, it’s just not reasonable to take the photos separately from the first viewing. Things are just too scattered about. But I do find I learn more and see more when I have the opportunity to look at an object twice.

 

Vintage Miscellany – July 28, 2019

It was 1935, and despite this peaceful scene overlooking Florence, there was something rotten in Italy.  But that does not seem to have affected Wally’s (second from right) “happy and educational” visit.

And now for some more current events…

•   Can it be true? The 2020 spring exhibition of the Met’s Costume Institute is to be based on the Met’s own collection. I’m imagining a sort of greatest hits show featuring much of what has already been seen in recent years, but one can hope for some rarely seen treasures.
•   And there will be an exhibition this fall showing off the collection of Sandy Schreier, which has been donated to the Met.
•    Of all the sports women have participated in over the years, tennis seems to be the most fashion forward.
•    This article about Red Wing boots shows just how hard it is to re-shore manufacturing.
•    Playtex, maker of spacesuits
•    A new book highlights the story of the destruction of the largely Jewish fashion industry of Berlin in the 1930s.
•    How can a a pair of 1972 Nike shoes be worth $437,500?
•    And will Babe Ruth’s uniform top them in price?
•    Fashion historian Kate Strasdin has written a great post about the usefulness of social media in historical research.
•    Museum workers are unionizing to help secure better pay.  Just because a person works for a non-profit does not mean that they should be asked to work for sub-standard pay.
• 
  Here’s Wally again, this time in Pisa with her Italian hostesses, the “cultured & aristocratic Guisti girls”. I love how all the hats are tilted at the same angle.