Planning for some fall wardrobe makes, Rae finds that she is thinking about pockets. As is often her habit, the stream-of-consciousness pocket reflections reminded her of two books needing a review. You may remember that my husband often gifts me books on fabric and clothing topics. Under the Christmas tree in 2024 was the book Pockets, An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close. It was an easy book to pick up and put down all winter into spring. When I was finishing that book, he ordered me the new biography Claire McCardell, The Designer Who Set Women Free which I read in France this summer.
We will first consider the Claire McCardell biography by Elizabeth Evitts Dickenson. It is a very engaging look at a fashion pioneer of the 20th century. She has always piqued my interest because her archives are at the Maryland Center for History and Culture, and some of her work is featured in a small exhibit there. Other books by and about McCardell were mentioned in the 2023 post, New Reads for the Fabric Lover’s Bookshelf.
Born in 1905 to a comfortable banking family living the the new suburbs of Frederick MD, McCardell grew up creating paper dolls and watching the family dressmaker create her wardrobe. By the time she was 7 she was sewing her first dress. She was also athletic and dreamed about better bathing costumes and sporting clothes. After 2 dismal years studying Home Economics at Hood College, Frederick’s new women’s college, she was allowed to apply to Parsons School of Design. This began her storied fashion life. Her studies at Parsons were more satisfying, the aura in 1920’s New York City more stimulating, and she was able to spend time studying in Paris.
At the beginning of her career, she worked for the men who controlled the fashion industry in NYC copying Parisian fashion. The story of her fashion career is so interesting! As Europe shut down during WWII, women in the US began to find some success in the fashion business. It was McCardell who began moving American fashion toward sportswear and functional, fun fashions with prominent pockets.
You will find her story and her spunky approach to life an easy and appealing read.
Pockets, by Hannah Carlson is a nonfiction book about who gets pockets – mostly men and boys – and what they keep in them. The book points out that if women had as many available pockets as men do, they would not need to carry a purse. She presents a good case, though I am not sure it seems prudent to me. She does mention Claire McCardell as one of the innovators of pockets in women’s clothing. She closes the book discussing futuristic personal devices, soon to be embedded in clothing and accessories that will also make it unnecessary to carry a handbag.
This was an interesting history but it did not scratch this reader’s itch for a look at interesting pockets and a conversation about how pockets must be carefully planned and supported in women’s wear. This was one of McCardell’s struggles with the ready to wear establishment, which did not want to spend the time or money necessary to include pockets in daytime or evening wear. We know, as stitchers, that pockets add time to the construction process and require extra fabric, like those pictured below from previous blog posts.
If you are interested in the history of clothing, there is plenty of excellent information in this book, so have a look.
If you are inspired by this post and want to see how pockets can be placed successfully in women’s garments, check out Fit for Art’s Pinterest page, Inspo-Pockets. Then begin your own Pocket journey.
I love pockets! I’d really like to see the Claire McCardell exhibit in Baltimore. Maybe the next time I’m at a Sewing Retreat? I became aware of Claire McCardell just last month with an article in The Atlantic Magazine. It was written by Julia Turner and titled “It Has Pockets”. She was a real innovator in women’s fashion. I’ve been meaning to get the book, to read more about her. Thanks for the reminder
Linda