Dressed: The History of Fashion

Fashion curator and organizer Amber-Dawn Bear Robe is back to tell us all about the first ever Native Fashion Week Santa Fe 2025, one of the largest Indigenous Fashion Weeks in America, "where legacy meets the avant-garde." Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instagram Our bookshelf with over 150 of our favorite fashion history titles Dressed is a part of the Ai...

The work of internationally renowned fashion designer and traditional Haida artist Dorothy Grant embodies "10,000 years of living Haida culture." She joins us to discuss her groundbreaking, four decade long career in celebration of the first monograph of her life and work Dorothy Grant: An Endless Thread. Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instagram Our bookshe...

In this week's two-part episode, we recap our recent fashion history day tours of NYC and hear from a few of the past Dressed guests who joined us along the way. In Part II, we chat about our “behind the seams” morning tours of two of the oldest, family owned and operated businesses in New York’s legendary Garment District and our fashion history-packed afternoon at the New York Historical Society...

In this week's two-part episode, we recap our recent fashion history day tours of NYC and hear from a few of the past Dressed guests who joined us along the way. In Part I, we chat about our immersive day-long tours of the Fashion Institute of Technology and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Episodes with our featured guests: Dress Like an Egyptian, an interview with Dr. Colleen Darnell Making Lace:...

In Part II of this week's episode, Dr. Colleen Hill joins us to speak about some of the incredible objects in her exhibition Fashioning Wonder: A Cabinet of Curiosities which is on view at The Museum at FIT through April 20. 2025. From the rare Victorian era sterling silver posey to the insatiable mind of Alexander McQueen, Fashioning Wonder is reminds us of the awe-inspiring power of fashion. Lea...

All this week we endeavor to spark your sartorial curiosity as Dr. Colleen Hill joins us to speak about her exhibition Fashioning Wonder: A Cabinet of Curiosities which is on view at The Museum at FIT through April 20, 2025. In Part I, we delve into the history of the wunderkammer, or cabinet of curiosity, during the 16th-early 18th centuries and learn about some of the types of fashion objects fo...

Welcome to the first Fashion History Now of Season 8, where we bring you the latest news fashion history happening today. To Follow: Cheeky fashion satire @refashionedhippie Hair history @thehairhistorian, Five Medieval Hair Recipes To Read:  A Brief History of Anrealage The Many Lives of Gigi Hadid Marion Morehouse, The World's First Supermodel Rosita Missoni's Life in Pictures To Watch:  Anreala...

For our debut of Season 8 of Dressed, we bring you the first of our new ongoing series: Fashion Scandals. Today we whisk you into the scandal swirling around surrounding one of the most famous paintings in all of art history, John Singer Sargent's Madame X. We will meet the subject, the American-born Parisian It-Girl Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, and learn just how her appearance in Sargent's p...

The final episode of our Barbie fashion history series explores Barbie's flowering into a fully fledged fashion icon in the 21st century and what that means in terms of diversity and representation for Barbie, in front of and behind the seams. Recommended Reading:  Carol Spencer's Dressing Barbie  Dan Savage's Ken Comes Out (1993) Barbie's Time Magazine Article (2016) Barbie's Style Instagram 1985...

Barbie gets the full haute couture treatment in part two of our Barbie fashion history series from 2023 which takes us into the 1980s, a period that lays the foundation for her ascension into full fashion icon status. Recommended Reading: Ruth Handler's Dream Doll  Carol Spencer's Dressing Barbie  Robin Gerber's Barbie and Ruth  Black Barbie documentary Independent article about the Black Barbie d...

Barbie is so much more than a child's toy. Since making her debut in 1959, the Barbie doll has become a full-fledged global phenomenon--and fashion icon. In this three part series from 2023, we explore the fashion history and cultural significance of the world's most famous doll and meet the fascinating figures behind her creation.  Recommended Reading: Ruth Handler's Dream Doll  Carol Spencer's D...

A quick hello from the Dressed Universe! While we are still on our winter hiatus, we wanted to check in to invite you to get Dressed with us in Paris, New York and online... We have amazing fashion history tours open for registration now: 3 days in New York City April 9th-11th (and because Day 1 sold out, we added an extra date April 16th) and a once-in-a-lifetime 7 day tour of Paris June 29-July...

Fashion luminary and trailblazing model, agent and activist Bethann Hardison joins us to discuss her life and legacy as explored in the new documentary Invisible Beauty.  More on the documentary Invisible Beauty  Bethann's website Our Battle of Versailles interview with Robin Givan Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website Our Instagram Our bookshelf with over 100 of our favorite fas...

During our annual winter hiatus, we bring you some of our favorite episodes from Dressed's back catalog of more than 500 episodes. Today we revisit one of our past episodes with Elizabeth Way who joined us, on this occasion, to speak about the work of fashion designer Scott Barrie who is only but one of the creators detailed in her edited volume Black Designers in American Fashion. Want more Dress...

During our annual winter hiatus, we bring you some of our favorite episodes from Dressed's back catalog. Today we revisit one of our past episodes with Elizabeth Way who joined us, on this occasion, to speak about her 2023 exhibition Ann Lowe: American Couturier, which was on view at the Winterthur Museum in Delaware. Custom couturier to brides, debutantes and American socialites, including Jacque...

We continue our look at the life, legend, and legacy of 1960s supermodel Donyale Luna. Further Reading / Watching: Donyale in Que Etes-Vous Polly Magoo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dS_aJN7c8ps; Daughter Dream Cazzaniga's article https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/donyale-luna-model-vogue Don Strachan's blog https://donyaleluna.wordpress.com TIME magazine's "The Luna Year" http://content.time.com/...

In 1966, Donyale Luna became the first model of color to appear on the cover of any edition of Vogue magazine--but she was so much more than a pretty face. In this week's two part series, we look at the life, legend, and legacy of the enigmatic woman who took the fashion world by storm in the 1960s. Further reading: Daughter Dream Cazzaniga's Vogue article Don Strachan's Blog TIME magazine's "The...

In what has now become an annual tradition, April and Cassidy do some fantasy fashion history shopping for their holiday party ensembles and gift exchange.  Cassidy's $33 million ensemble: necklace, Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers, Charles James dress  April’s ensemble: Vionnet coat, bejeweled snake stockings, Cartier Panthère collection, Margiela’s glass slippers Some of Cassidy and April's gifts: 18...

In what has now become an annual tradition, April and Cassidy do some fantasy fashion history shopping for their holiday party ensembles and gift exchange.  Cassidy's $33 million ensemble: necklace, Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers, Charles James dress  April’s ensemble: Vionnet coat, bejeweled snake stockings, Cartier Panthère collection, Margiela’s glass slippers Some of Cassidy and April's gifts: 18...

For our penultimate episode of season 7, we hear from YOU! Today's listener mail episode investigates the history of the French couture house Manguin, gets some updates on the militarization of glitter during WWII and makes an instagram rec to follow @moonhoney.jewelry for super interesting content on the history of jewelry. Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our I...

This week we investigate the variety of ways parents have historically dressed their toddlers to prevent injuries when they take that inevitable tumble. From puddings to go-wains and wicker walkers to ribbons of childhood, we look at the art historical record to explore childrenswear from the 16th-19th centuries. Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instagram Our...

We are joined by Camille Lawrence, founder of the Black Beauty Archive, a groundbreaking archive dedicated to documenting, preserving and archiving Black beauty culture, past and present.  Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instagram Our bookshelf with over 100 of our favorite fashion history titles Listen ad free here! Support this podcast at — https://redcirc...

The work of award-winning costume designer Paul Tazewell spans four decades and is a masterclass in the art of visual storytelling. In this episode, he takes us behind the seams and into the magical world of his most recent project Wicked.  Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instagram Our bookshelf with over 100 of our favorite fashion history titles Listen ad...

From incredible innovations in sustainable 3D printing to using you library card to 'check out' a wedding gown, this week we bring you the latest in Fashion History Now, which might just include a discussion of 14th century chainmail booty shorts. Coperni x Rapid Liquid Printing Love at Your LIbrary The Affair of the Necklace @alisonkingart Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website a...

Outlandish, wry and fun, this week we explore the advice on how to live a fashionable lifestyle vis à vis fashion editor Diana Vreeland's column 'Why Don't You?' which debuted in Harper's Bazar in 1936. From fashion tips to interior design, 'Why Don't You?' remains a source of humorous delight more than 75+ years later. Want more Dressed: The History of Fashion?  Our website and classes Our Instag...