Martha McCain - Guest Blogger The Road to Extreme Research #3

Museums and Some Things I Have Learned Therein

Hi.  Martha McCain again.  As I mentioned the last time I visited Andrea’s blog, seeing clothing artfully mounted in a museum setting is wonderful.  What’s not to love? Probably only Extreme Researchers want to turn that beautiful garment inside out to find out how it was made.

When I designed a Civil War ball dress for Simplicity, I had a lot of questions about how these fluffy confections were really put together. Luckily, the Costume Institute and The Museum of the City of New York let me peep inside theirs.

For example, I wanted to know all about the collar piece called a “bertha.”

I looked at lots and lots of berthas and, of course, there was variation.  The typical bertha was made by hand. It was mounted on a stiff net base with a center front and/or shoulder seam. All the edges were finished. It was sewn to the outside of the neckline of the bodice with a rather long running stitch. It opened in the center back and this was closed with hooks and loops. The tucker was totally separate and sewn to the inside of the bodice neck.

I designed a sheer day dress for Simplicity.  My main question about this style was - What are we seeing underneath  Is that a corset cover showing through the bodice or is it lined somehow?  Again, the Costume Institute came to my rescue.

Looking inside this lovely dress, I discovered there was a built-in underbodice with little cap sleeves and delicate lace trim.

I could go on forever about the details I’ve discovered by looking at original garments. However, next time I visit Andrea’s blog, I’ll talk about Extreme Research at the library.