Video Tour of URI’s Current Dress Exhibit

Like many other graduate programs, the Dept. of Textiles, Merchandising and Design at URI, where I am studying for my masters, has started publishing videos about the department's work. I wasn't in either the of the classes involved in curating or conserving/mounting the the objects so I probably can't answer most questions about it. I…

Professional Organizations for Fashion/Dress Historians

So you've been thinking you want to take your interest in fashion history a little further? Joining a professional organization may be just the ticket! "Professional" is a little bit of a misnomer, as in the world of fashion and dress studies these groups often also welcome enthusiasts as well, and they certainly love to…

2021 Historical Sewing Plans

I haven't posted sewing plans here before, so why not start now? I am adjusting to the idea that school leaves me very little time to sew, but I can still hope to get some done. Also there is obviously little in the way of historical costume events right now, outside of whatever my local…

Historic Reproduction and Conservation Stitch Samples

As usual, I have taken on too much this semester and have been unable to do any posts and non-school sewing. However, I have to make stitch samples for my conservation portfolio, so I thought at the very least I could post about that. I was surprised to find out that a number of students…

Independent Study: 5 Regency Dresses

If you've been on my instagram lately, you might have seen the sneak peeks I've been giving of my independent study this semester. Well, here is the reveal! The Historical Society of Old Yarmouth is allowing me to study 5 late 18th century and early 19th century dresses which they recently acquired. Here are my…

A Regency Picnic

Happily, not all the costume events were canceled this year. Caitlin, The Victorian Archivist, hosted a socially-distanced regency picnic this Labor Day weekend at Saratoga Spa State Park through the Empire State Costumers group on Facebook. In all, six of us attended so it was quite perfect. It was so lovely to meet new people…

The Regency Redingote Project: Research – Fabrics and Colors

*Please note that the original title of this project was “The Regency Spencer Project”, and that post titles have been updated with the name “The Regency Redingote Project” to reflect the evolution of the project* This post was originally written about a year and a half ago, so my updates about the project regarding the…

Sewing Historic Clothing Research: A Beginner’s Guide Part I

Photo by Author A few months ago, Ayana (aka The Vintage Guidebook), and I connected on Instagram, and we began messaging. She asked me for information on how to go about researching re-creating historical clothing, and so I asked if we could co-author a blog post on it. This is not a new subject in…

Wet Cleaning an Infant Shirt for Conservation Part 2: IDing and Dating the Object

23 SEP-22 OCT 2019Supervisor: Professor Rebecca Kelly for TMD 538, University of Rhode Island I had some hunches about what periods this shirt might be from based on the pieces being cut from geometric shapes. It resembled my 1810s chemise I made, as well as patterns I have seen for reproducing 18th century Western European…

Bonfit Patterner System from 1995

In the Vintage Sewing Pattern Nerds Facebook group, there is a unit on antique pattern drafting systems. As I saw the content being uploaded, I mentioned that it seemed similar to the much younger Bonfit Patterner. Since not everyone is familiar with Bonfit, I am sharing my small collection of Bonfit materials. I have not…