In most parts of highland Ecuador, people still identify themselves as indigenous and as belonging to a particular ethnic subgroup by the clothes and ornaments they wear. Although formerly the most distinctive costumes tended to occur among the more isolated and independent groups, today their use has more to do with the degree of political or ethnic consciousness felt by each group. Some people are even wearing ethnic dress as a political statement against forced assimilation.Costume and Identity in Highland Ecuador offers particular insight into the role of costume―clothing, jewelry, hairstyles, and bodily adornment―in a society changing from a subsistence economy to one based on wage income. In some highland regions costumes are still relatively conservative; in others, machine-made cloth has replaced handmade cloth or distinctive costumes are disappearing altogether. Here a number of textile experts focus their attention on the creation and use of the clothing itself, including loom styles and fabrics, but in addition they explore the historical forces that have helped shape indigenous costume and observe the mechanisms and motivations of change or stability throughout the ... [Read More]

Religions constrain the bodies of their members through dress. In many cases, dress immediately identifies a member of the community to the outside world and separates them from a society that members believe is threatened by evil forces. Dress identifies the wearer's community to other groups and communities, and may also reflect one's status. Most interestingly, perhaps, dress is a measure of one's level of commitment to the community. While communities vary greatly in terms of what is permissible, strict conformity to internal codes invariably is interpreted as a sign of piety, whereas deviation implies at best self-indulgence and at worst contempt for community values. In order to control sexuality, women's bodies in particular are constrained in religious communities in terms of emotional expression, diet, and especially dress. This book investigates dress in American religious communities as a vital component of the social control of cultures, and also examines how people express themselves despite religious constraints. Gender issues feature prominently since the control of female sexuality within religious communities is a matter of vital concern to its members. Drawing on ... [Read More]

A study of the significance of bathing in Japanese mythology and the historical development of communal bathing.

An extraordinary exploration of footbinding that encompasses Chinese art and mythology, social and political history, and truly exotic eroticism. The author's vast collection of historical and contemporary photographs, plus 40 full-color "portraits" of her most prized slippers, creates a uniquely poignant and evocative panorama.

Entertaining, unexpected, and full of charm, the follow-up to Jessica Kerwin Jenkins’s Encyclopedia of the Exquisite presents a miscellany of engaging stories, detailing the intriguing customs, traditions, and guilty pleasures pursued throughout the ages. All the Time in the World takes its cue from an iconic component of medieval life, the book of hours, which prescribed certain readings and contemplations for certain parts of the day throughout the year. Divided into more than seventy-five entries, All the Time in the World is brimming with witty bons mots, interesting etymologies, and arresting anecdotes encompassing an array of cultures and eras. Subjects covered include the daylong ceremony of laying a royal Elizabethan tablecloth; the radicalization of sartorial chic in 1890s Paris; Nostradamus's belief in the aphrodisiac power of jam; the sensuous practice of sniffing incense in fifteenth-century Japan; the American fascination with flaming desserts; the short-lived artistic discipline of “lumia,” or visual music; the evolution of coffee from a religious ritual to a forbidden delight in the Middle East; Henriette d'Angeville's fearless and wine-fueled ascent of Mont B... [Read More]

The acclaimed photographer of African masks turns her lens to the astounding mask cultures of MexicoSince 1985, photographer Phyllis Galembo has traveled extensively to photograph sites of ritual dress in Africa and the Caribbean. In her latest body of work, collected in this new publication, Galembo turns to Mexico, where she captures cultural performances with a subterranean political edge. Using a direct, unaffected portrait style, Galembo captures her subjects informally posed but often strikingly attired in traditional or ritualistic dress. Masking is a complex tradition in which the participants transcend the physical world and enter the spiritual realm. Masks, costumes and body paint transform the human body and encode a rich range of political, artistic, theatrical, social and religious meanings on the body. In her vibrant color photographs, Galembo highlights the artistry of the performers, how they use materials from their immediate environment to morph into a fantastical representation of themselves and an idealized vision of a mythical figure. In a gorgeous, fascinating photographic survey of Mexico’s masking practices, Galembo captures her subjects suspended between ... [Read More]

"An encyclopedic array of dazzling garments, accessories, and objects.... The book is a work of art in itself."―Surface Design Embellishment with glittering substances is a worldwide and ancient practice. Traces of textiles and other artifacts embroidered and embellished with gold were depicted in Assyrian bas-reliefs, frozen in the tombs of the Scythian nomadic horsemen, unearthed with the treasures of the Pharaohs, and preserved in the burials of Andean cultures' high priests and nobles. Cloth may glitter or shine because of its own lustrous qualities, as is the case with silk, or with the help of special treatments and dyes. Materials such as metals, sequins, beads, or mirrors may be used to embellish fabrics as decoration or to attract or deflect spirits in unseen worlds. Gifts from nature can also be cleverly manipulated into shapes and pieces to simulate more precious materials: for example, the iridescent elytra of beetles reflect brilliant metallic greens and violets as if they were gems. Today these marvelous creations have gained an additional appeal beyond our fascination for lost and traditional civilizations―their visual verve makes them a fertile source of ideas i... [Read More]

A photographic exploration of the modern revival of piercing, tattooing, scarification, and body painting that reveals its origins in tribal culture and practices.  Since earliest times, tribal cultures around the world have used body marks and modifications to indicate membership and rank within the group, identify with spiritual totems, express sacrifice and loss, and enhance physical attraction and sexual enjoyment. Today we are witnessing a renaissance of interest in body adornment that many interpret as a return to our tribal beginnings--a way to identify who we are in an urban world that has lost its sense of community. Return of the Tribal takes a non-judgmental look at a great variety of practices of body adornment and modification--from prehistoric and aboriginal to those of modern urban tribals in cities such as London, New York, Tokyo, and Amsterdam. From the beautiful to the bizarre, the author shows the many beautiful and bizarre ways people choose to alter their appearance. 

Recent interest in 'vintage' and second hand clothes by both fashion consumers and designers is only the latest manifestation of a long and complex cultural history of wearing and trading second hand clothes. With its origins in necessity, the passing of clothes between social and economic groups is now a global business, but with roots that are centuries old. To move from one social and cultural situation to another used clothes must be 'transformed' to become of potential value to a new social group. How, when and why this has happened is the subject of this book. Old Clothes, New Looks presents a three-part focus on the history, the trading culture, and the contemporary refashioning of second hand clothing. Historical perspectives include studies located in Renaissance Florence, early industrial England, colonial Australia, and mid twentieth-century Ireland. The global nature of the second hand trade in clothing is presented through original research from Zambia, India, the Philippines, Hong Kong, and Japan. The reuse of garments as contemporary fashion statements is explored through studies that include neo-mod retro-sixties subculture in Germany, the impact of 'vintage' in the... [Read More]

In 1886, Queen Ranavalona III of the African island nation of Madagascar offered U.S. President Grover Cleveland two striking handwoven silk textiles. The American government later reciprocated with an autographed photographic portrait of the president. Although on the surface a straightforward diplomatic exchange, the objects used--and the ideas behind them--reveal a wealth of information about the culture and history of Madagascar, and its relations with the West.The essays in Objects as Envoys contextualize and explain the broader significance of this exchange, deftly interweaving discussions of cloth production, international diplomacy, and popular representations of Madagascar and the Malagasy people in Europe and the United States. Together they tell a fascinating story of the people and history of this island country.The first two essays provide a comprehensive survey of Madagascar's textiles, past and present. They examine the importance of cloth to the Malagasy, both as creative works of art and as objects imbued with great social and cultural significance. From simple cotton wrappers and raffia work shirts to delicately textured, vibrantly colored silk lama, textiles--the... [Read More]

You don’t need to become a real gangster to look like one. The Chicago Gangster Costume will do the trick and have you looking dapper from head to toe! In this outfit, you will show everyone that you mean business and you are not to be played with. This is the perfect outfit for a costume party, a theatrical play, or just for a night out on the

This is a Women's Velma Kelly Chicago Costume

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