FIDM Museum Blog

From the Archives: Quilted petticoat, c. 1840-45

This quilted petticoat is a fascinating garment. Though worn as an undergarment, it features detailed quilting and a cheerful textile. We first published this post in late 2009, but with winter weather on the horizon, it seemed a good time to revisit this warm and visually striking petticoat.

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Before the introduction of the cage crinoline in 1856, women typically wore multiple layers of petticoats. The petticoat layers (sometimes as many as 6!) not only shaped the skirt into a fashionable bell-shape, but also provided warmth. Between about 1825-1850, petticoats with elaborate quilting were fashionable. Called "quilted coats," "wearing quilts" or "quilts," these petticoats were simply large quilts meant to be worn on the body. They were often created in the same manner as bed quilts, with women working together to complete the patterned stitching. After stitching up the single, vertical back-seam and gathering the drawstring waist, the quilted petticoat was ready for wearing.

Quilted petticoat
c. 1840-45
Gift of Anna Bing Arnold
2003.795.12

Crochet can hat, 1968-1970

We try to approach every object in the FIDM Museum collection with a critical, evaluative eye. But how do you maintain the necessary scholarly distance when confronted with a hat made from beer cans? It's hard not to smile, or at least raise an eyebrow when you see this creative hat.

Novelty hat
1968-1970
Aluminum cans, acrylic yarn
Museum purchase
2003.5.42

Crochet

Despite the fact that knitting and crochet employ similar tools (hands, yarn and a long, pointed implement) crochet is often labeled the "other yarn craft." This remains true even within the context of the early 21st century, which has given rise to a tremendous revival of interest in all do-it-yourself hand-crafts. Their differing levels of popularity might be due to the inherent nature of these two yarn crafts. Crochet lends itself more towards open, lace-like finished projects, while knitting usually produces a dense, sturdy product prized for its warmth. Within the context of garment creation, crochet is more frequently used to create elegant garment accents or embellishments, such as cuffs, collar or shawl, rather than an entire garment. In contrast, knitting is used to create garments which become the focal point themselves.

Though no scholar has been able to pinpoint the exact origins of crochet, within the European context it probably developed from tambour needlework, a type of needlework originating in modern-day India, Pakistan and/or Turkey but practiced by European women. In tambour, a hooked needle is pushed through fabric stretched on a frame, pulling a thread through the fabric to create a chainstitch. At some point, the fabric was discarded and the thread or yarn worked on its own with the hooked needle. This evolution probably occurred sometime around 1800, as pre-1800 examples of European crochet have not been located by scholars.

Crochet took on particular importance in Ireland, where it was introduced by Irish nuns in the early 19th century. Irish nuns used crochet to approximate motifs found in Venetian lace and taught this skill to girls and women throughout Ireland. The resulting lace-like product was marketed as an affordable alternative to expensive but highly desirable bobbin or needle lace and was sold throughout Europe and North America. Used often as garment trim, Irish lace was also incorporated into decorative items for the home and personal accessories.

This small purse of Irish crochet dates from about 1905-10 and was probably created from a pattern featured in a fashion periodical. Patterns for small crocheted purses, often decorated with beads, were common in the first decade of the 20th century. Due to the relative speed with which they could be produced, purses were often suggested as the ideal hand-crafted gift.

Purse
1905-1910
Gift of Tina Brown
S2008.925.6

Sewing patterns from the FIDM Museum

Within the FIDM Museum collection are a number of smaller mini-collections. Some, like the Rudi Gernreich Archive, consist of large groupings of objects that document the work of a specific designer. Others, like our photograph collection, are less focused groupings of objects collected to help us interpret fashion history. One of my favorite mini-collections is our collection of paper sewing patterns. In addition to their entertaining envelope illustrations, sewing patterns are a valuable source of fashion information because they help us understand how high fashion or runway garments are interpreted for the mass market. This is particularly true for patterns associated with known designers. They can also point to the social context of specific garments or styles. Because many patterns are copyrighted, they can be very useful in dating extant garments. Sewing patterns also allow us the opportunity to engage with fashion on a very personal level. With a bit of practice and patience, any sewer can create a custom-designed garment demonstrating either a highly individual sense of style or one perfectly attuned to the latest runway fashions.

  Misses' and Women's Slack Suit and Coverall pattern
Simplicity
1942-45
2003.46.10
Gift of Andrea Tice In Memory of Carmelita Johnson

Egyptomania

In late 1922, the British archaeologist Howard Carter unearthed and opened the sealed tomb of King Tutankhamun in Luxor, Egypt. Though Egyptian art and ornament had served as a source of artistic inspiration for many centuries, the discovery of King Tutankhamun's tomb created an immediate renewal of interest in Egypt throughout Europe and North America. Reporters present at the opening of the tomb sent frequent articles and images to their home newspapers, resulting in widespread knowledge of the archaeological find. By early 1923, Egypt (or fanciful perceptions of Egypt) had inspired a wave of Egyptian-influenced garments, accessories and decorative embellishments.

Textile
c. 1923
Gift of Robert Fortunoff
99.274.114

Hairpin lace

When this hairpin lace dress was donated to the FIDM Museum in 2007, we had to give ourselves a crash course, because we weren't familiar with this form of handwork. Worked on a small, hand-held "fork" or loom with a crochet hook, hairpin lace is a relatively quick form of handwork. The adjustable fork produces long strips of hairpin lace which can then be crocheted together into a variety of garments and accessories. Contemporary patterns suggest using hairpin lace to make shawls, baby blankets and small accessories such as earrings, while sources from the early 20th century suggest using hairpin lace as a garment trimming. The dress seen below was made by the donor during the 1950s out of synthetic straw. She also made a baby blue version of the same dress!
Hairpin lace dress
1954-55
Gift of Betty Mayer
2007.914.1A

Tina Leser

Tina Leser (1910-1986) is among the generation of American designers credited with creating and popularizing the "American Look" during and immediately after World War II. Along with designers such as Carolyn Schnurer, Louella Ballerino and Claire McCardell, Leser designed casual ready-to-wear clothing inspired by non-Western garments and textiles. Based in New York, Leser's extensive world travels informed her designs and she often spoke on the subject of interpreting non-Western artistic traditions into contemporary fashions. Though she is less well-known today, when Leser was actively designing she was "noted for her casual clothes defined with an air of elegance"¹ and for the overall wearability of her creations.

The Tina Leser skirt seen in these photos is labeled a "Tina Leser Original." During the 1950s, if a designer's name was paired with "original" on the garment label, it designated a ready-to-wear garment produced in extremely limited quantities and available only at select stores. Bridging the gap between custom made haute couture and widely available ready-to-wear, the buyer of an "original" garment was unlikely to encounter another women wearing the same model. This labeling technique was used by numerous American designers, including Adrian.

A brief 1955 New York Times article on this exact skirt stated that the tape lace embellishment at the hips was hand-made by nuns in a Flanders convent. Leser designed a pattern for the lace, which then took 10 days for 3 nuns to complete. The article comments on the exclusivity of the skirt, noting that it had limited availability and would be a suitable "gift to be handed down from mother to daughter."² The retail price was $195, probably a bargain for the amount of handwork involved!

Skirt
Tina Leser Original
c. 1955
Gift of Mrs. Carita Kadison
2003.792.5

Detail of 2003.792.5

1 "Designer's Pattern" Los Angeles Times 8 Oct. 1950.: C9.

2 "From a Belgian Convent" New York Times 17 Dec. 1955.: 20.

Louella Ballerino

Louella Ballerino? Who's that?

Though you may not recognize her name, her design sensibility was crucial to the creation and popularization of the California look--casual, functional, colorful clothing designed to complement the relaxed California lifestyle. Her career began in 1929, when economic necessity led Ballerino to begin work as a free-lance fashion illustrator in Los Angeles. She also held a full-time position in a custom dress shop and taught evening fashion design courses at a technical college. She worked behind the scenes until 1938, when a manufacturer, who had asked for something "different," rejected her sketch for a peasant-style dress. Ballerino believed that her design had merit, so she hired a manufacturer to make the dress and placed a few in a dress-shop in Hollywood. In her words, "I thought it would be comfortable and fun to wear."¹ The women of Los Angeles clearly agreed, as the dress sold out almost immediately. The FIDM Museum is fortunate to have one of Ballerino's career-making dresses in our collection.

Day dress
Louella Ballerino
1938
78.834.1AB
Gift of the Louella Ballerino Family