Why We Dress Up : Reflecting on Hanukkah, Historical dress, and Jewish heritage

Historical dress and Hanukkah go together in more ways than one might expect! I'm closing out 2022 with a reflecting on why historical costume matters, how it connects us to the past, the role fashion history can play in exploring Jewish identity,and a very exciting project I have coming up in 2023 . . .

Chanukah is a holiday about holding onto identity and connections with history, which is also at the core of why historical dress matters to so many of us. Dress history lets us rebuild relationships with the past when they've been broken, whether that's through marginalization, family struggles, or simply time. It's through historical costuming that I was able to build a sense of Jewish identity that was positive and on my terms. Historical costume making gives us a creative, tangible way to connect with history, which has been missing for so many.

But it's not alone : when combined with genealogy research, historical costuming gives us a fascinating way to embody our direct past. In the New Year, I'll be using genealogy, historical dress sewing and analysis, and so much more to tell the story of Jewish immigration history in the Lower East Side! My great-great-grandmother was one of many Jewish immigrants to NYC in the late 19th century, and thanks to modern technology and historical sewing together, I can literally walk in her shoes as I put together the pieces of her life story. When we talk about immigrants coming to the US with the clothes on their backs, those were my ancestors, and I can't wait to show what their clothes and lives were really like.

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