Our museum is temporarily closed to support the effort to contain the spread of COVID-19. Read a message from our director, and check our website and social media for updates.
When Watchmen were Klansmen
Note: While history shouldn’t require a spoiler alert, this blog does contain some minor ones regarding the HBO series Watchmen.“You know...
How picturing the Boston Massacre matters
Maybe this painting looks familiar. A long row of red-coated soldiers. A cloud of gun smoke engulfing the street. Falling bodies.Detail of...
The most radical thing about Stonewall wasn’t the uprising
The Stonewall uprising began June 28, 1969, in response to a police raid at The Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York, and has since...

Blog Posts in "Textiles"

Codex costume and staff, as worn by Felicia Day in The Guild
How The Guild beat Hollywood, one webisode at a time
Codex costume and staff, as worn by Felicia Day in "The Guild." Costume designed by Sarah Trost; staff designed by Greg Aronowitz....
From hanging on by a thread, to buying a thread: the rise of the U.S. silk industry
What do the popularity of luxury quilts have to do with the difficulty of feeding bugs? More than you think.Our new exhibition Everyday...
Blue, white, and red banner with an image of Admiral Dewey in center of white stripe, surrounded by laurels.
The mock battle that ended the Spanish-American War
George Dewey was promoted to the rank of rear admiral after the Battle of Manila Bay. Dewey was celebrated in American culture with songs,...
White celluloid collar on black background
A white collar with a message
Men’s celluloid collar, 1900sAt first glance, this collar from the 1800s might not look like much. A closer inspection shows that this...
Lace with U.S. seal
Why do we have a National Lace Collection?
Safely cared for in the collections of the National Museum of American History are about 6,000 examples of hand- and machine-made lace from...
What does Alexander Hamilton have to do with the lace industry in Ipswich, Massachusetts?
If you were rich and powerful, from the late 1500s on into the late 1700s, you would show off your wealth by adorning your fashionable...
A white doily with blue embroidery.
Entrepreneurial embroiderers
Embroidery by the Deerfield Society of Blue and White Needlework is beautiful . . . but that's just the beginning of the story. These...
A white debutante gown with an empire waste and fabric flowers around the neckline.
Sewing for joy: Ann Lowe
"I was 17 years old at the time and the dress made me feel so grown up and beautiful," Pauline "Polly" Carver Duxbury wrote about the dress...
An image of a violet fraternal collar--opulently decorated with golden embroidery and a hand painted eye
Making money and doing good: The story of an African American power couple from the 1800s
Artists have long been major players in American philanthropy. If that surprises you to learn, you might be further surprised to learn that...
Three books showing different dyes, as well as viles of organic matter.
Rich reds, pretty pinks, and velvety violets: Valentin dyes for Valentine's Day
Valentine is a name not just for a saint, but also for a fabric dyer! I gingerly lifted a stiff cardboard case out of its cold, gray...
Photo of white gown in front of black background. It's off-the-shoulder with a cross-body sash in front along with red/maroon tie at waist. Narrow silhouette and slit cascading on one side. Glossy and matte fabric in subtle layers.
The continuing tradition: The Smithsonian receives Mrs. Trump's inaugural gown
Have you heard? We have a new dress on exhibition. It's true. There has been an addition to the First Ladies exhibition. First Lady Melania...
Piece or ribbons showing two pink flowers that may be roses or peonies, with abundant petals. Green leaves surround them. One is lighter pink, the other darker. Both are hazy in appearance.
For your Easter bonnet: Silk ribbons
"Spring is pre-eminently the season for ribbons," proclaimed The American Silk Journal in February 1900. As the official trade...
a black and white photograph of a woman in a cream colored dress with a draped skirt, laid on top of pieces of fabric of varied textures and colors
Post-World War I tales: A silk surplus, armistice fashion, and a philanthropic innovator
Even before the United States entered the First World War in 1917, procurement officers for the armed forces began to look for sources for...
Silk with a pattern of the Grand Canyon. Bright orange, green, white and reds mimick the crags and dimensions of the famous natural canyon. The pattern goes in every direction to suggest rather than depict the Grand Canyon
America's National Parks celebrated on silk
Mallinson's Printed Pussywillow—This excellent quality is ideal for blouses, scarfs, and coat linings, offered in a large selection of...
a green square board with a number of small pes attached by screen to a roller contraption with a handle on which lace is stretched
The Torchon Lace Company: The fine line between entrepreneurship and fraud
Walking down a street in Chicago in 1901, Sylvester G. Lewis saw a large group of women enthralled with a lady making lace in a window...
A full-length photo of the sewing machine. It looks like a box with painted doors featuring images of a man and woman. The top is open to show the sewing needle.
Yes, Mrs. Tom Thumb had a sewing machine
Nineteenth century Americans were voracious news-readers, and in 1863, there was plenty of big news. Abraham Lincoln signed the...
Likeness of Ferdinand Foch in black, white and gray against a gray background surrounded by celebratory and commemorative details
Incredible silk portrait depicts French hero Marshal Ferdinand Foch
Continuing our World War I series, discover an incredible portrait of a war hero.During World War I, several French textile manufacturers...
Photo of a stamp. There is a raised floral design, somewhat stylized. Parts that are not to be stamped are flush and not raised.
What are these curious blocks in our textile collection?
In the museum's textile collection are over 400 of these curious blocks. What were they used for and when did they come to us? During...
Black and white ad with photo of woman in dress with polka dots and umbrella with polka dots. Text: "Silks that express the spirit of sport."
Keeping Khaki-Kool during World War I
Next in our World War I series this month, a look at what we now consider a go-to, neutral fabric for almost any season.In 1915 American...
Photo of panels of quilt, one with American flag in center
Textiles from samplers to baby bonnets reveal participation—and exclusion—in American democracy and culture
This week, we're exploring how participation—people joining together to accomplish shared goals—shapes American life by exploring our...
Photo of fabric. Dark blue background. Images of small children wearing pink, brown, white, and blue outfits. Attached together with string.
The World War I story of Nénette and Rintintin
Some dolls, some dogs, and a charming Parisian story from our textile collections, part of our World War I series this month.In July 1918,...
Patter with wide white strips, thin black stripes, and stylized bird and anti illustrations
The "new vogue for black and white" during World War I dye shortages
On December 18, 1915, Edith Bolling Galt married President Woodrow Wilson in a ceremony at her home in Washington, D.C. This very private...
Square shaped lace example, white on black background
The delicate "war laces" of World War I
"War" and "lace" are not often part of the same sentence. However, laces made in Belgium during World War I are an exception. About 50 of...
Green pocketbook
Discovery in the textile collection
In the colonial era, a certain type of pocketbook was all the rage from 1740 to 1790. Both women and men used them to carry valuables such...
Small folder with red ribbon on black background
The fabric of the frontier: How textiles help us understand the American West
One of the most fascinating objects that came to my attention during my time as a Smithsonian postdoctoral research fellow is a rather...
And the flag will still be there: Conserving the Star-Spangled Banner
A flag that has survived actual "bombs bursting in air" can surely survive anything, right? You’d be surprised. Maintaining the Star-...
The Bayeux Tapestry at the Smithsonian? Yes, but who made it, when, where and why?
This is probably one of the most elaborate table runners you’ll ever see. It is a needle lace runner made entirely by hand with innumerable...
A mystery solved in the textile collection
The Textile Collection at the National Museum of American History contains an embroidered picture of Charity based on a mezzotint engraving...
Lace veil on black background
The finer details of the Hapsburg Imperial Bridal Veil
This spectacular veil was handmade for Princess Stéphanie of Belgium for her wedding to Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince Rudolf in 1881. It...
In pursuit of Jewish sampler makers
Mr. Isadore Warshaw began collecting business ephemera in 1928 that would later come to the National Museum of American History under the...