Behind a keyed elevator, a succession of swipe-entry doors and monitored by surveillance cameras from every angle, the contents of FIT Library Special Collections & College Archives rest safely snuggled in our collections rooms thanks —only in part—due to security measures. Perhaps more important to […]
Category: Textiles
Fashion Plates: 150 Years of Style
Just released this week, Fashion Plates: 150 Years of Style, which features 200 fashion plates from our collection. Many of these beautiful images, which date between 1778-1928, have not been reproduced since their original date of publication. Thank you to Yale University Press for their […]
The Daring Mr. Daren
One of the greatest joys of working in a Special Collections unit is some of the discoveries you make when opening a box, that has been long tucked, safely away on a shelf, the contents of which have been seen by few—if any—in recent years. […]
Showgirls, starlets and ingenues in training: Costume Patterns of the 1930s
In the spirit of Halloween, we’ve been sharing some of our favorite costume designs from the collection on our new Instagram feed all week (@fitspecialcollections). We found one of these costume holdings especially fun and wanted to share a little more […]
Embroidery for Me!
A curious little catalog came to our attention recently after it was determined that it was in need of some minor conservation. Titled in French, published in Switzerland, written in English and priced in English £s, Broderies Universelles, is a mail […]
The Color of Couture
During the 1950s, L’Officiel de la Couleur des Industries de la Mode and its associated publication, Cahiers Bleu, served as trend forecasting publications for the fashion industry. As their titles imply, color forecasting was the foremost mission of both publications, L’Officiel de la Couleur being […]
Fashion Designers A-Z: The Collection of The Museum at FIT
The much anticipated publication featuring highlights from The Museum at FIT’s costume collection is finally here! Published by Taschen, with a forward by Suzy Menkes, and text by The Museum at FIT’s Director Valerie Steele, the initial copies of the title are gorgeous limited-editions housed […]
Devastating Deco
One of the hidden gems of the Department of Special Collections and FIT Archives (SPARC) is the large collection of what we like to call ‘books of design and ornament.’ These types of books, which feature patterns and designs suitable for reproduction, date back at […]