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These photos were originally made for various exhibitions; unfortunately they show only a small part of the collections which is truly wonderful. C

http://fashionmuseum.fitnyc.edu/code/eMuseum.asp?lang=EN These are photos of garments in the FIT Collection. They are organized by accession number. Enjoy! Claire

I think Kent State has the Trigere Archives and they may be online. claire

The City Opera Thrift Shop--222 East 23 St., NY is having a sale of vintage cookbooks and unique tools on 7 May at noon. Food also. Claire

Maggie, there are only 3 different presser foot shanks: short, tall, slanted. There are some odd balls like Bernina. If your machine has a regular presser foot you may be able to find a zipper foot. Take your foot into a dealer and ask for help. C

A word of caution if you're looking at top of the line machines--even used ones. When the machine makes a wide--9mm--zigzag stitch, the feed dogs must be farther apart than for a 5-6mm stitch. Therefore, if you are sewing lightweight silks, the fabric may wiggle under the foot more than you...

Here are some details about raschel knits. Raschel is a type of knitting machine and the knits made on it range from super-stretch fabrics to lacey knits. Super stretch fabrics can stretch both in the width and length. Think swimsuit and leotards. By contrast, lacey knits have no stretch at...

Carrie, note the edit on knit type: it's raschel, not jacquard. C

Anne, the difference in Bernina and Bernette machines is Bernina is made in Switzerland where they are obsessed with quality. Bernette is made in Thailand. The quality is still very good but they are not Swiss made. A couple of years ago I went to Switzerland with a group of educators. The...

Here are some odds and ends thoughts. The fabric appears to be a rachel knit. These are open knits with no stretch. The collar seems to have hand pin-tucking; that doesn't come along everyday. Lastly, after the Russian Revolution, many aristocrats knitted and embroidered to make money and...

What kind of "antique" did you have? Even though older machines have limited functions, some are quite wonderful--that doesn't mean you shouldn't get a "new" machine. My favorite is a Bernina 930--mine is 30 years old. It has a great repair record. I bought a second one--used-- last year for...

The friend who sent it to me just celebrated her 90th birthday. C

If you aren't old enough to enjoy this, save it for the future. It's better when you sing it. "To commemorate her birthday , actress/vocalist, Julie Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan 's Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP. One of the musical numbers she...

Oscars have been given to performers like Bob Hope who never received an oscar for a specific film. C

Mary, I have a fabulous YSL 2-peice dress that came with two couture labels: one YSL and one Givenchy. Claire

I seem to write for magazines that aren't online--sorry. C

Melody, I cease to be amazed at Chanel--very off this subject. Last year I saw a "vest" at Neiman's in Chicago. The fronts were not matched at center front and they didn't match when joined to the side fronts. I wish I had bought it, photographed it, and returned it--it was so awful. I went...

Melody, You're right. That's why a machine-stitched label is probably original. It was sewn to the lining before the lining was sewn into the garment. It would be difficult to add a machine stitched label to a finished garment, but it would be easy to add a handsewn one. C

Do you know the difference between a rip and a tear? A rip is where a seam or hem has come unstitched or where there was stitching before and it's no longer there. Most rips can be restitched and won't show. A tear is a hole on the body of the garment. It is not on a seamline. Tears can...

This should be labelled--Touting my horn, again. The current issue of Vogue Pattern Magazine includes an article I wrote about Chicago Chic. Actually, it's a tiny article with lots of photos. I took the detail photos; the full garment views came from Chicago History Museum. The fagoting...

Chanel rtw labels are usually machine sewn so I would expect the Chanel label to be the same. To sew the labels by machine, you would have to remove the lining at the neck edge to get the lining under the sewing machine foot. This takes effort and some skill. It would be easy to just sew...

When I was in Paris recently I attended this fabulous exhibit at the Galliera. If you are familiar with this museum, you know they have wonderful exhibitions but are closed between exhibits. The Empire of the Crinoline focused on the dresses, accessories, and the fashion industry between...

WOW! Claire

Many years ago I bougth a Mary McFadden dress very cheaply (size 12). It was much too large so I altered it. The dress has a beaded panel on the front. What I discovered was that the dress was almost finished when the panel was sewn on. This might be an idea you can use. Claire

Consider making the beading section into a large applique. You could use the finished edge at the top and turn under the edges on the sides. Then applique this onto the front of a new bodice which you can make long enough and with a back. This would eliminate the matching problem because you...

This is probably a YSL trouser thing. The cross-dressing (masculine-feminine) suits were introduced in 1967. Claire

I looked at the VFG labels again. The early labels do not have an accent on the "e" and the letters have no slant. My label is in this group. Suzanne, please add your web address and I'll come to visit. C

When I was in Paris last week, I bought a pretty little dress (60s) with couture construction and a Louis Feraud label--Paris was on the second line. The dealer said the addition of "Paris" indicated that it was made for the Boutique. Boutique garments (to be sold in Paris) were often made in...

Here are the brief details about the upcoming event in NY. City Opera Thrift Shop 222 East 23 Street Thursday, March 26, 5 - 8pm $10 admission at the door They save their best pieces for the sales but they do have a shop which is open regularly. Claire

I spent the day at the Mus. of the City of NY, looking at the Valentina exhibit and some garments which did not make the exhibition. First the exhibition is absolutely fantastic! Her designs are very focused on the body and many have the most fabulous bodices. I can just imagine the owners...