Dressing Up...Packing Up

Dear Diary,

A lovely exhibit at the Maine Historical Society focused on the clothing styles of the early 20th century.  My cousins and I went to enjoy the lavish detail of the dresses and we laughed as we imagine which of the Downton Abbey ladies would wear each dress.  I was most fascinated by the incredible skill it took to make each piece.

Coming from a long line of needle artists, and I don't include myself in that lineage although I've always done some form of needlework, I could marvel at the intricate stitching and skillful embroidery of the dresses.  My favorite piece was the all-white afternoon dress and jacket.  The white on white embellishment lent a lovely texture to the costume.

Mostly, we laughed at how tiny and skinny some of the women must have been to wear those dresses.  The 18" waist certainly isn't the norm today!  Along with the costume display there was a fascinating exhibit entitled "Mainers".  It focused on immigration in Maine over the centuries.  A timely theme we thought.  One part of the exhibit asked, if you were moving to a new country and could only take one suitcase, what would you bring?  Imagine putting your whole life into one small suitcase!  An interesting exercise.

Afterwards we had a lovely lunch at my favorite local seafood restaurant to finish off the excursion.  Time spent with friends is always good and if you learn a bit along the way, all the better.