Museum Blog

As a preview to the opening of Making Mainbocher: The First American Couturier, volunteer Kristin Bernstein explains the process behind building props and determining accessories for the mannequins featured in the exhibition. In Making Mainbocher, mannequins are dressed from head to toe and no detail is lost. A gifted sketch artist who defined luxury in More

Marnie Fogg. The Dress: 100 Ideas that Changed Fashion Forever. London: Goodman (2015). 100 dresses, 100 ideas. The author identifies each innovative idea and follows the reverberations. The dresses date from the nineteenth century to the present. The photographs come from a variety of sources and are, themselves, a tour de force in the exacting More

Costume collection manager Jessica Pushor puts one of our Bes-Ben hats in the spotlight. With the autumn chill in the air, stores are enticing shoppers with warm clothes for the fall. Hats were once a major part of a woman’s wardrobe, and here at the Chicago History Museum, we have found the perfect one for More

Costume collection manager Jessica Pushor provides tips on how to create the perfect look for 1933. As the Chicago History Museum gears up for another amazing The Last Speakeasy on the Eve of Repeal event, please remember that toy guns of any kind are not permitted in the Museum nor are feathers. No feather fans, More

Former CHM costume collection intern Michelle McVicker writes about a fascinating discovery she recently came across in the Museum’s archives. She is currently a MA candidate in Fashion Studies at Parsons School of Design. Pauline Trigère (1912–2002) was a French-born American designer. It would seem as though her future in fashion design was predetermined, as More