The Lost Art of Dress: The Women Who Once Made America Stylish

Both a history and a defense of home economics, this book follows the Dress Doctors, a group of female teachers and writers whose mission, starting in the mid-19th century, was to help women assemble budget-conscious wardrobes with a sense of art and occasion, utilizing rules about color, decoration, and appropriateness. Przybyszewski, a University of Notre Dame historian and prize-winning dressmaker, leaves little doubt as to her opinion of fashion after home economics departments and classes were dismantled in the 1960s: “If the Dress Doctors looked around at womankind today, they would wonder why so many of us are determined to appear ready to seduce at all hours of the day.” The author unabashedly addresses the irony of miniskirts (especially in the workplace) as an infantalization of women during the feminist revolution. Finally, she argues for a return to the teaching of sewing: “the American Association of University Women [recommend teaching] girls to work with their hands in grade school and junior high… why not sewing?” The author can be critical of the Dress Doctors, who, for example, virtually ignored African-Americans and other minorities, but she effectively argues that women might do well with a more traditional concept of fashion. 31 b&w images and two color inserts. Agent: Geri Thoma, Writers House. (Apr.)