What about....

if I recreate three dresses from, say, 1890-1910? Or three somethings?

ONE box.

Not to make anyone jealous.....

But I just looked through ONE box up in the attic and found:

•two black silk parasols, one with a creepy ivory handle depicting two hands and one with a beautifully carved ebony handle

•a child's black dress, of a yet-unidentified black patterned fabric, but distinctly from the 1890s, WITH a piece of the fabric it was made from (!!)

•eight or nine small handworked purses

•a few petticoats

and so many other things I couldn't bear to look at because it was a little toasty up there.

I recently moved from the Upper West Side to Brooklyn, and in the move decided it was best to return the very wintery wool suits back to Mystic, and exchange them for more summery attire.

What I ended up with, from that box, were just two items: a gauzy white dress that must be c.1910 and a decidedly 1890s....housedress? nightgown? maternity something-or-other? In my preliminary perusal I was fascinated to find that there was still an understructure of sorts. I don't think I got to explain much of my examination of the wool bodices to you (perhaps later? I'm a little dizzy with the possibilities, and am still using this blog as a place to think out loud more than present particular research) The cotton linings in the wool bodices attached by hook and eye to themselves first at the center front, forming a light boned understructure for the outer wool layer to conform to. This new blue-striped garment is intentionally shapeless--curiously, and to be explored later, the center front neckline is raw gathering...is it meant to be covered by a detachable collar of some sort?--but still has a rough muslin lining with BONE buttons down the front. Is this to keep the outer lengths of fabric in place? Or perhaps just a comforting, familiar structure? If this garment is for sleeping or generally for times of "undress", is it to "replace" a corset? So many questions! Pictures to come, and hopefully I will let you IN on my research from now on....

All these exciting discoveries only make it HARDER to find a thesis topic, not easier!!

One thought: something along the lines of, "Sleeve Construction, 1890-1910: selections from the Marie Anna Heyl Collection".....?