December 10, 2023

61: A Textile Historian's Survival Guide

1 hour 13 minutes

How do you survive in a world that is no longer optimized for making

your own clothing when you suddenly find that modern conveniences no

longer accommodate you? As a textile historian, Morgan has been

ruminating for years about women’s contributions to the domestic

economy, the massive time investment of producing clothing for a

family, and the comparative properties of different textile

fibers. These research interests were informed by a lifetime of sewing

and other fiber crafts. None of this experience, however, properly

prepared her to face the reality of needing to rely on her own hands

to provide large portions of her own wardrobe.

Guest co-host Juliana Sims sits down with Morgan to talk about how,

in the wake of a recently developed allergy to synthetic fabrics, she

now finds herself putting that knowledge of historical textile

production to use to produce clothing that she can wear.

Links and other notes:

Morgan presented this as a (much shorter) talk at the Dress Conference 2023
Slides from the presentation
Morgan's Dissertation, which we also covered
RSI Glove Pattern

The quote that Morgan somewhat misremembered about a woman preparing

wool before the winter:

"A thrifty countrywoman had a small croft, she and her sturdy spouse. He tilled his own land, whether the work called for the plough, or the curved sickle, or the hoe. She would now sweep the cottage, supported on props; now she would set the eggs to be hatched under the plumage of the brooding hen; or she gathered green mallows or white mushrooms, or warmed the low hearth with welcome fire. And yet she diligently employed her hands at the loom, and armed herself against the threats of winter." -- Ovid, Fasti 4.687-714

...more