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At the end of each year, our team reports on the Museum’s activities from the past twelve months – including what objects have been added to the Permanent Collection. As we compiled our list of 2015 acquisitions, there were a few unforgettable pieces that... Read Article ››
Ranch Dressing, Part 1
The American West has been a powerful influence on fashion since the 1920s, when Hollywood films romanticized the cowboy myth and city slickers from the East Coast traveled west to experience ranch living as "dudes": tourists who dressed... Read Article ››
From the Archives: Greetings from Lucien Lelong
Today's post (originally published in 2010) unwraps a collection of Christmas cards from couturier Lucien Lelong in the FIDM Museum's Annette Green Fragrance Archive. ********** Greeting card sent... Read Article ››
Butterflies By Night
While butterflies often symbolize springtime, lightness, and new beginnings, these pieces in the FIDM Museum collection refashion them as creatures of the night, equally at home in the darkness of winter. Evening SuitElsa Schiaparelli, ParisFall/Winter... Read Article ››
Skyscraper Style
In the 1920s, America's booming economy sent real estate prices–and buildings–soaring sky-high in crowded cities like New York and Chicago, where land was scarce and there was nowhere to go but up. Towering new edifices of glass and steel rose... Read Article ››
Flower Girls
Spring is in the air! Flowers have long symbolized the simplicity and transience of youth, making them perfect ornaments for these three girl's ensembles in the FIDM Museum's collection. United Statesc 18972007.897.3Gift of Steven... Read Article ››
From the Archives: Blanche and Simone velvet hat
The FIDM Museum blog will be on hiatus through early January 2015. In the meantime, enjoy weekly posts from the archives. To keep up with our current projects, find us on Facebook and Twitter, which will be updated regularly during... Read Article ››
From the Archives: Chanel day dress, c. 1937
Happy birthday to Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel! Born 130 years ago on August 19, 1883, Chanel was an innovator and savvy self-promoter. Her eponymous brand is still going strong with designer Karl Lagerfeld at the helm. In tribute to Chanel,... Read Article ››
Celebrate Spring
Spring has officially arrived! March 20 was the first day of the spring in the Northern Hemisphere. From here on out, the weather gradually gets warmer and days are longer. Warm days encourage colorful spring flowers to bloom: cherry blossoms, tulips,... Read Article ››
Fred Astaire’s shoes on exhibit in Elegance in an Age of Crisis at MFIT
We are delighted that objects from the FIDM Museum collection are featured in Elegance in an Age of Crisis: Fashions of the 1930s at the Museum at FIT in New York City. Our contribution to this exhibition consists of eight pairs of shoes worn by Fred... Read Article ››
Embroidered evening wedge shoes, late 1930s
The modern wedge shoe was developed by Italian shoe maker Salvatore Ferragamo (1898-1960) during the 1930s. Starting in the 1920s, Ferragamo designed stylish, trend-setting shoes for Greta Garbo, Paulette Goddard, Claudette Colbert, Clare Boothe Luce,... Read Article ››
Fashion Birthday: Elsa Schiaparelli
Happy birthday to Elsa Schiaparelli! Born in Rome on September 10, 1890, Schiaparelli would be 123 years old today. One of the twentieth-century’s most revered fashion designs, her work is admired for its wit and creativity. Schiaparelli’s career in... Read Article ››