Fabulous Fifties Day at National Museum of Costume

A day to remember

By Richard Sim, Visitor Services Assistant

The National Museum of Costume hosted a crowd-pulling event on Sunday 22 July when it opened its doors to the Fabulous Fifties Day. On a dry but very windy morning the Museum was pleased so many people turned out to visit and take part in the attractions. This year’s special Off the Peg exhibition of Horrockses dresses from the 1940s and ’50s was the main pull, drawing many admiring comments. Staff joined in the fun by dressing up in colourful period clothes, many of them home-made. Perhaps even more gratifying were the arrival of many visitors decked out in 1950s styles, some of them even sporting original Horrockses dresses. Music of the epoch echoed the period theme in the Tea Room where special biscuits, meticulously designed by staff, were on sale.

This visitor wore an original Horrockses frock.

Older visitors were invited to write down their reminiscences of the period on blue cards and attach them to the main staircase banisters, which in no time were a fluttering sea of blue as the idea proved a hit. So popular was the idea that visitors were still adding their comments a week later. Among the many comments made visitors recalled: “How slim people were”, “All the jiving”, “Having to wear a piece of cloth tied around my neck, soaked in camphorated oil to help my cold”, “Wearing a full skirt with petticoat made stiff with sugar water”, “Frost on the inside of windows”, “Going to the ‘steamie’ to do washing”, “Making skirts on Saturday afternoons for the Saturday night dance.”

Lucy Adlington of The History Wardrobe was at her entrancing best: in her ‘costume in context’ performance she depicted ’50s woman as a “Domestic Drudge transformed into Domestic Goddess” with characteristic humour. The Bill Fleming Quartet entertained the crowds with a medley of jazz compositions. Steve Brown and Linda Mallet of Lauriston Hall provided jiving sessions, enticing many to give it a try against their initial expectations.

Lucy Adlington transforms from Domestic Drudge to Domestic Goddess.

Dress Up and Smile offered opportunities for individuals and groups to be photographed wearing 1950s style clothes! Miss Dixiebelle and her assistants provided an interesting array of ’50s style hair make-overs and tips. Lisa Rothwell ran her ever popular children’s drop-in puppet-making craft workshop.

A young visitor enjoys a makeover in Miss Dixiebelle’s salon.

Children had a puzzle in each room on the theme of How much is that Doggie in the window? (a popular ’50s song) and older adults were invited to search their memories for answers to questions about famous programmes and personalities of the fifties – all devised by National Museum of Costume staff.

Why should the children have all the Fun?

By Janet Slade, Visitor Services Assistant

There are always fun things for children to do when they visit National Museum of Costume, but our recent Fabulous Fifties Day provided a chance to offer a fun activity to a different age group. Those visitors who remembered the 1950s were invited to tackle our 1950s Trivia Quiz and also to record their own reminiscences of that era.

Fabulous outfits for Fabulous Fifties Day!

We set the activity up so that visitors would see it on their arrival, and it was interesting to see how they approached it.  When a family group arrived, the children, assuming the quiz was for them (naturally), would pick it up and then – realising that they could not do it – hand it over to parents – usually also unable to do it – and finally to grandparents – success!

The older generation was clearly pleased to have their cherished memories valued, while the curiosity of the younger generations was aroused, with great family discussions taking place. Altogether it made for a truly family event and gave us an approach which we might be able to develop in the future.

I might add that several staff members were qualified to make their contributions too – and had a great deal of fun doing so!

 

The other side to Shambellie House

By Richard Sim, Visitor Services Assistant, National Museum of Costume

Staff at the National Museum of Costume are every now and then surprised to find such a high proportion of visitors as interested in the House as they are in the collection.

Its name, Shambellie House, is derived from the Gaelic sean baile, meaning old dwelling. Built in 1856 for William Stewart, Shambellie House was one of the earliest designs of David Bryce, the pre-eminent Scottish architect of the time. Bryce’s finest work was Fettes College but he is also renowned for many private houses and public buildings including the Bank of Scotland on the Mound, the Royal Infirmary and Clydesdale Bank in Edinburgh. Shambellie House was his smallest construction but retains all the atmosphere of Bryce’s distinctive Scottish Gothic grandeur.

Outside Shambellie House.

When Charles Stewart, a noted illustrator and grandson of William, donated his unique dress collection in 1977 to the National Museum of Scotland he also consented to allowing Shambellie House to be used as the venue for the costume museum. So it has remained. Yet the House itself has continued to exert a fascination of its own, often reinforcing the visitors’ engagement with the collection by enabling costumes to be seen in the appropriate room and period setting, creating a memorable tableau for the visitor to take away with them.

Though a large house, everything is nonetheless on a very human scale. Nursery, dining room, bathroom and library all draw favourable remarks with their human tales, as do the panoramic views across the Solway Firth and towards the hills.

Suggestive of their historical epoch though these rooms are, of equal interest perhaps are visitors’ comments on less obvious aspects of the House. A heating engineer drew this Visitor Assistant’s attention to the unusual design of the Victorian radiators (though most are from the 1920s); several are fascinated by the system of bells used to summon the servants; the spiral staircase and rounded doors never fail to draw approving comment.

Internally too, the National Museum of Costume is still redolent of its Victorian past.  This is in no small measure due to the museum’s deliberate renewal of its Victorian atmosphere during the sumptuous refurbishment of Shambellie House in the 1990s. Thus, the dining room’s red wall paper and carpeting typify the Victorian ambition to project warmth and the hearth.

The dining room at Shambellie House.

The drawing room too enjoys archetypal Victorian features being designed to be light and airy, with large bay windows to let in the maximum amount of light. Pale wall colourings emphasise the femininity of a room designed more for women’s use. Conversely, the library was more of a male preserve where after dinner men might retire to smoke, drink port and discuss the affairs of the day in comfortable chairs. The use of dark green was thought to be more masculine and relaxing.

The drawing room at Shambellie House.

The upstairs rooms at Shambellie, like other Victorian homes, were not “public” rooms and so were more simply decorated, being bereft of the more elaborate cornices which are a feature downstairs.

The basement housed the kitchens, associated storerooms, the laundry and the servants’ hall, where the servants took their meals. The Housekeeper and other female servants had the use of rooms in the attics. The servants only entered the “public” rooms when required, and normally used the spiral stairs, not the main staircase. The house was carefully designed to allow all the floors to be accessible from the spiral stairs, so that the servants and children did not disturb the family. The imposing main staircase from the Hall itself only accessed the first floor.

All in all, the museum reminds staff that they facilitate visitors to enjoy not only an important costume collection but also an architectural gem.

 

Dazzling decade: The fabulous Fifties come to life

Guest post by Lucy Adlington of the History Wardrobe

Lucy is appearing at Fabulous Fifties at the National Museum of Costume on Sunday 22 July. Her costume-in-context presentation transforms a domestic drudge into a domestic goddess.

Harold Macmillan may have been telling her, “You’ve never had it so good!”, but the reality of life for the 1950s housewife could be far from glamorous. The position of women in society was changing rapidly in the 1950s. In contrast to wartime, women were giving up paid work outside the home to concentrate instead on their roles as homemakers. Fashion reflected that shift.

The Fabulous Fifties event is particularly apt in this Diamond Jubilee year, with its dazzling coronation images of a glamorous young Elizabeth II. Television programmes such as the BBC newsroom drama The Hour, and the US series Mad Menabout Madison Avenue advertising executives have helped fuel our fascination with the decade that dazzled.

Costumes and props from Lucy’s costume-in-context show.

This fascination is also a dialogue with austerity Britain. In the 1950s the country was emerging from the shadow of the Second World War. Ration books were not finally torn up until 1954. With its yards of fabric, Dior’s New Look, revealed in 1947, was in direct opposition to post-war textile rationing.

Fast-forward to 2012 and perhaps we are all in need of a dose of 1950s glamour and optimism. The Cinderella transformation for our Fabulous Fifties event is achieved with the help of bullet bras, sugared petticoats and sterling advice from the ‘Experts’. That advice includes how to stiffen your petticoat using a solution of sugar dissolved in warm water – whilst distracting your mother, as sugar rationing only ended in 1953 after all. The next challenge was how to dry the petticoat. One contributor to our popular online memory bank, My Life in Clothes, recalls setting it over the bath to drip dry, but forgetting to remove it before her father found himself submerged in a bathtub of syrupy suds.

Dresses from Lucy’s costume-in-context show.

Clothes can evoke the past and hold many memories. Whilst our talks are based on a wealth of academic and textile research, it’s the stories associated with clothes that really bring the history to life. People send us items of clothing, with a note sharing their memories their mother getting dressed for an evening out, recalling the scent of Evening in Paris perfume. When I bring out the liberty bodice, just about every woman of a certain age in the audience has something to say – I can’t get a word in edgeways! This is the real joy of these events.

Lucy also appeared at this year’s Classic Cars day at National Museum of Rural Life.

 

Lots to celebrate at the National Museum of Costume

By Laura McQueen, Visitor Services Assistant

To celebrate the Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival and Spring Fling, the National Museum of Costume was packed inside and out with activities for all the family. Dressed as Jean Armour (wife of Robert Burns), Jackie Lee captivated visitors with her display and tales of what people ate back in the time of Robert Burns. Throughout the house visitors were enchanted by the beautiful fiddle music by Laura Grime, who came as part of the Live Music Now network.

One of the highlights of the day, for both children and adults alike, was the Birds of Prey display by Hoots Owls in the marquee. Many of the visitors got the chance to hold some of these magnificent birds and get a picture taken as a memento of their visit. In the workshop children made badges with Chris Waddell and were transformed with fantastic face painting by facilitator Elspeth Durkin; this filled the house and grounds with an assortment of exotic animals.

Beautiful barn owl.

But the day did not end there….

…In the evening the tea room was filled with avid wine tasting guests. Greg Reid, of wine merchants Corney and Barrow, hosted a wine tasting evening which proved very popular. Guests enjoyed tasting various bottles of white, red and sparkling wine. At the end there was an opportunity to place an order for their favourites and I believe the order book was fairly full.

Wine tasting at National Museum of Costume.

Following the wine tasting there was a performance in the marquee of The Gairdener’s Son. This premiere performance, about the life of renowned seafarer and local boy John Paul Jones, was written by former Battlefield Band member Alan Reid. The play consisted of readings and music and from where I was standing outside of the marquee the music sounded great! As they left at the end many people commented that the play was really good – even though it had turned slightly chilly and the midges had also come to watch!

 

Step back in time at National Museum of Costume

By Tracey Scott, Visitor Services Assistant

What a fantastic start to the new season here at the National Museum of Costume. Our special exhibition, Off the Peg: Fashion from the 40s and 50s is proving very popular. Displays include evening gowns, day dresses, beach wear and housecoats by Horrockses Fashions. These bold, innovative designs are very eye-catching. Visitors of all ages can dress in an array of 1950s style costume including beautiful petticoat skirts which reflect this iconic period in fashion history.

Horrockses dresses in the Off the Peg exhibition at National Museum of Costume.

Horrockses dresses in the Off the Peg exhibition at National Museum of Costume.

Horrockses dresses in the Off the Peg exhibition at National Museum of Costume.

The vintage look is extremely popular and our exhibition reflects this passion for fashion.  Many visitors have commented that they could wear these dresses today. In July we have our Fabulous Fifties Day where everyone can take part in some 1950s glamour, so come along, dress up and rock ‘n’ roll.

Visitors get into the 50s spirit at National Museum of Costume.

 

Going for silver!

By Laura McQueen, Visitor Services Assistant

At the National Museum of Costume we are always proud to receive awards. Two years ago we received the Bronze award through the Green Tourism Business Scheme. Recently we have been aiming to achieve the Silver award.

On Friday 13 April we had our annual visit from Wendy, a Green Tourism grading officer. It was her job to inspect the work we had carried out since the previous visit to see if we could progress from Bronze level to Silver.

Over the winter I’ve been busy gathering evidence together to show the inspector. This included what kind of paper we use, for example, our writing paper is 100% recycled whereas our toilet paper and hand towels are 50% recycled. Other evidence ranges from the efficiency of our fridges and freezers in the tea room to our wildlife habitats outside. All this helps to achieve an overall score towards the Silver award. Some of the evidence proved a little harder to gather than other, but in the end I managed to gather everything I needed just in time!

The tea room at National Museum of Costume.

Overall Wendy was very impressed with all the effort the National Museum of Costume had made and we were successful in our bid for the Silver award!

 

Animal visitors at National Museum of Costume

By Laura McQueen, Visitor Services Assistant

While the National Museum of Costume may be closed to the public for the winter months, we still have our regular feathery and furry visitors – outside the Museum at least!

This year we have put up feeding stations for the birds to help them survive over the winter and to encourage them to keep coming to the grounds at Shambellie. At the minute we have put out four peanut feeders. These are designed to be squirrel proof, although our Manager Margaret has witnessed the clever creatures stealing the nuts! So much for being squirrel proof…

Red squirrel.

We have been revisited by our wild boar in the grounds at the end of last year but fortunately they have not created any severe damage to the lawn. The boar live in the Shambellie Estate woods and occasionally wander down for some fresh ground to dig out. We have also had the deer back this year and they have munched their way through the pansies in the plant pots at the back door, only leaving the stalks!

Meanwhile Margaret and I are busy getting things sorted for the start of the season – we can’t believe we are into January already!

 

From Nice to Dumfries: a tale of a costume

By Marion Macarthur née Bernardo, from Nice, a recent visitor to the National Museum of Costume

A few weeks ago, I came to visit the National Museum of Costume at Shambellie House and its fantastic collection of dresses and outfits. I found it fascinating that the passion of one man led to the creation of such an interesting place, which became a reference for history and future dressmaking inspiration

While there, I started to talk to a lady who was working there about my own wedding, which had taken place only a few weeks before, and how both my husband and I both wore the traditional outfits of the places we were born in. She invited me to share my story here.

My husband is Scottish from the Clan Macarthur, therefore he wore the Macarthur tartan kilt. However, he wore a vegetarian sporran that I made myself, since he is vegetarian and refuses to wear the traditional sealskin sporran or any other leather – his shoes are vegetarian too.

I was born in Nice, in the south of France, and my mum and I designed and made my dress from documents we searched and gathered. There is a Museum of the Traditional Outfit in Nice, just like the National Museum of Costume, but it wasn’t our only source of information.

At first, we didn’t find much beyond the “popular, famous” outfit from Nice, the one represented on postcards and at folk festivals. But any good Nissart (that’s someone from Nice) knows, this one is only for tourists! It consists of a red and white stripy skirt, a white shirt, a black corset and black short apron and a shawl on the shoulders. The Capelina (the traditional straw hat) is worn hanging down the back.

Now for the truth! We found that the Capelina was often worn on the head to protect from the sun and the rain. It was usually embroidered with floral details and held with a black ribbon. If not worn on the head, it was sometimes worn on the hips or the back, but was more likely to be put on the side or away.

The dress itself, I found, changed a lot from village to village (for not so long ago “Nice” was actually a County) and from area to area within the town itself. It has also changed a lot through time.

I was born in the town, a few streets away from the seashore, where the traditional stripy white and red skirt was used for a very long time. However, it was in fact the petticoat, worn under the skirt.

Nice was a fishing village, and every day the fishermen’s wives would wait for their men to return from the sea. When they did, the ladies would come down to the beach and help bring the boats back to shore and unload the catch.

But before doing so, they would take their skirts off so as to not damage them and then run to their men in their red and white petticoats to help – and that is what made them so famous! The double ribbon running around the petticoat means “Fishers”, as opposed to one ribbon for the “Flower gatherers” and none for the “Land people”.

So, I wore the fishermen’s wives petticoat and on top of it a skirt made from one of the beautiful typical fabrics from Provence.

Marion and her husband at their wedding, wearing their traditional outfits.

On top I did wear a white shirt, but I was lucky enough to own one which my grandmother had given me years ago and which was hand-embroidered around the sleeves and neck (although this is not very clear on the pictures).

I had a black velvet corset with the traditional straps crossed at the back and I wore the traditional cross around my neck (called St Rita’s Cross) on a black velvet ribbon (a rare event since I am not Catholic, but the County of Nice has been Catholic since longer than one can remember). Following old drawings, I did my hair up with a piece of fabric the way it was done in Nice.

Last (but not least) is the jacket I wore on top of the shirt, the jewel of my mum’s creativity. It is an absolute replica of the mountain jacket of a nearby tiny village (still in the County) called La Brigue. Of course in Nice, it is never cold enough to wear a jacket, a woollen shawl will do. But I needed something nicer than a woollen shawl and I got married in Scotland, and although it was May, it was incredibly wet and cold, so the jacket came in really handy!

 

A Halloween Happening at National Museum of Costume

By Janet Slade, Visitor Services, National Museum of Costume

Saturday 22 October saw the National Museum of Costume once more providing the perfect Halloween setting for those visitors brave enough to join the spooky evening tours of Shambellie House.

The visit began in a gloomy dungeon, where the tale of the Clumsy Maid and the Butler was told. Then, with the sound of the servants’ bells ringing in their ears, the visitors made their way up a twisted staircase. In a dark, pumpkin-filled room, they were greeted by shadowy figures, one of whom taught them secret words to help ward off evil.

Strange tales then followed, recounted by dark-clad storytellers in each room that they visited: the tale of the China Doll in the Nursery; the Clockmaker and the Shoemaker in the Shambellie Room; and the Lady in the Portrait, in the 1950s room.

The ghostly staff gather for a Halloween Happening.

Several times their tour was interrupted by the appearance of shadowy figures from the past: the weeping Maid and the angry Butler. In fact, the visitors had to be extremely brave to descend a creaky staircase as the weeping Maid sat there and they had to pass very close!

In the Hall they encountered the Dark Lady telling the true story of William Stewart and how very few of his 22 children survived. A sad tale indeed.

The hosts for the evening, the ghosts of Shambellie House.

A story about a faithful horse who met an untimely end, and whose spirit lives on in a rocking horse , was told in the Library. In the Drawing Room visitors learnt not to linger too long or they could turn to wax before moving on into the Dining Room, the setting for the dreadful tale of the Dressmaker’s Revenge.

The visitors were glad to escape the horror of the Dining Room to emerge into bright light in the Hall – but then were initially dismayed to find that the Angry Butler was awaiting them! He had a more pleasant task, however, as he had brought special Survivors’ Certificates to be presented by the Dark Lady to our intrepid visitors.

But all was not over. Before they left, our visitors were warned to be on the lookout for the Grey Lady of Shambellie as they went hurriedly down the gloomy drive to the comfort of their waiting cars.

 

Doors open day at National Museum of Costume

By Laura McQueen, Visitor Services Assistant

On Sunday 25 September the National Museum of Costume held its annual Doors Open Day event. Overall the day went very well, with many activities for everyone. By the end of the day, around 700 people had visited the house, with210 stopping for refreshments in the tearoom.

As usual we had an “around the house quiz”. This year, with a Second World War theme to tie in with our Land Girls and Lumber Jills exhibition, we decided to give the children a “suitcase” to pack as if they were getting ready to be evacuated. This involved them drawing or writing down in the “suitcase” the various items to be found around the house. These items included: a jumper, plimsolls, toothbrush, underwear, gas mask etc. After they had finished they handed it back to get checked then they were given an evacuee label as a prize – now the children were ready to be evacuated to other country houses for safety!

Lumber Jills enjoying a tea break.

Outside the weather held up until the very end of the day so our “mini farm” managed to stay dry. On our farm we had chickens courtesy of Carse Farm; Floralyn, an Ayrshire cow from Halmyre Farm; and a Clydesdale horse, Skye, from Barfil Farm in full harness regalia. These animals could be found on the kinds of farms that Land Girls were sent to during the Second World War.

Skye the Clydesdale horse on the mini farm.

Floralyn the Ayrshire cow on the mini farm.

Crowds gathered around the marquee for two performances of It’s a Land Girls Life – a new work devised by local musician and songwriter Ali Burns. This was created especially for the National Museum of Costume to complement our current exhibition Land Girls and Lumber Jills. The Feral Choir performed a set of readings and songs dresses as Land Girls, farmers and farmer’s wives. Liz Kettle and David Foreman read from official wartime documents illustrating the official government perspective and Anne Armitage read experts’ oral histories collected by Elaine Edwards, Curator of the exhibition, and Ali Burns. The songs were a mixture of contemporary wartime melodies and new works by Ali, with piano accompaniment by Darcy DeSilva. The whole performance took the audience on a rousing and moving journey which ended with a précis of Gordon Brown’s speech to Land Girls at Downing Street in 2008, when they were awarded their medals. At both performances we were joined by several Land Girls, who sang to many of the songs. The choir felt it a real privilege to be singing to real Land Girls and that they had each made such an effort to attend.

The Feral Choir come in singing,

From left to right: Ali Burns, composer and choir leader, Liz Kettle and Anne Armitage, readers, May Crosbie and Margaret Pringle, former Land Girls.

Liz Kettle.

Ann Armitage.

Ali said:

“This was a totally new experience for me – to research history and be able to talk to some of the Land Girls themselves and hear their stories in their own words – totally unforgettable. I was deeply moved that some of the women I interviewed came to see the performance and came up to me afterwards to say how much they enjoyed it.”

We also had our usual craft activities, which included making paper planes and churning cream to make butter! These both proved a hit with the visitors, and the workroom was full of little pots of butter by the end of the day!

Thanks go to all contributors to our wonderful day. Staff are now recovering from the hectic day and are already in preparation for our Halloween event later in October.