Department: Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors ![[clear]](close-x.png "Remove this limiter")
12 matches in the database.
These are records: 1 - 12.
1.
Bland, Kasey Dawn.
The Life and Career of Fashion Designer, George Stavropoulos.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2008, University of Akron
► George Stavropoulos, a New York fashion designer, built a multi-million dollar business…
(more)
▼ George Stavropoulos, a New York fashion designer, built a multi-million dollar business on his signature, floating chiffon dresses. His self-titled label produced eveningwear and daytime styles for the wholesale, ready-to-wear market, from 1961 to1991. While he was known for his use of chiffon, Stavropoulos also created notable designs in lace, lamé, suede, and taffeta. Stavropoulos, born in Greece, believed in classic design and found inspiration in the simplicity of ancient Greek sculpture. Renowned for his innovative draping techniques, Stavropoulos created every piece in his collection and produced the entire line in his 57th Street atelier. For each spring and fall runway presentation, Stavropoulos created about one hundred designs and held his shows at the luxurious Regency Hotel, in Manhattan. Buyers from the most important stores in New York attended each show, as well as socialites and celebrities. Stavropoulos initially became know for dressing Lady Bird Johnson during her White House years and created looks for other popular figures throughout his career. Fiercely independent, Stavropoulos did not participate in the licensing agreements popular with other designers of his time nor did he join the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA). Stavropoulos believed in his own fashion philosophy and refused to adhere to the ephemeral nature of fashion, creating sophisticated designs that were innovative rather than shocking or avant-garde.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Subjects: Art History; Design; Fine Arts; Home economics; Marketing; Museums; Textile research
Keywords: George Stavropoulos; fashion designer; chiffon; fashion; Greece; Greek; New York; Nikis 13; couture; ready-to-wear; dresses; women's wear; high-end; Upper East Side; Regency Hotel; Manhattan; Lady Bird Johnson; Sophia Loren; society; chic; 1960s; 1970s
More Like This
2.
DeLong, Ellen Elizabeth.
Advertising Domesticity: A Content Analysis of Traditional Messages in Seventeen Magazine, 1946-1948.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2008, University of Akron
► Americans saw many social changes in the years immediately following World War…
(more)
▼ Americans saw many social changes in the years immediately following World War II. Young women in post-war America looked to magazines for guidance and support, Seventeen magazine in particular. This study takes a closer look at the advertisements in Seventeen magazine for the years 1946, 1947, and 1948. A content analysis was performed using only full-page advertisements for the months of February, April, August, and November. The advertisements were analyzed according to their target audience, product category, and traditional message sent through the advertisement. Both quantitative and qualitative elements of the advertisements were analyzed. Through research, both teenage girls (ages 12-16) and coming-of-age young women (ages 17-24) emerged as the target audiences for the advertisements. The groups were close in age, but differed in social, school, fashion, and romantic needs. Traditional messages of ‘looking good’ or ‘finding a man’ were discovered to be predominate in most advertisements. Through close examination, the products advertised were then placed into the six product categories of dress defined for this study: clothing, shoes, lingerie, accessories, cosmetics, or grooming aids. The product category with the highest percentage of full-page advertisements overall was clothing, followed by lingerie, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, and grooming aids. Overall, the messages focused on beauty and romance, leaving career almost entirely out of the picture. The traditional roles of the new American dream of security, marriage, and home life (even if not for a few years) ran throughout the advertisements. Whether or not the quintessential housewife of the 1950s depicted in women’s magazines was the true result of the grooming of young women in Seventeen in the late 1940s is debatable. If these young women did fulfill the traditional messages sent to them, it is quite possible that the advertisements in Seventeen aided in their decisions to take on such roles.
Advisors/Committee Members: Buckland, Sandra Stansbery.
Subjects: American history; American studies; Design; History; Home economics; Literature; Marketing; Mass media; Textile research; Womens studies
Keywords: Seventeen; tradional roles; content analysis; feminism; World War II; advertisements; teenage girl; college; fashion; clothing
More Like This
3.
Ferone, Jennifer.
Women and China Painting at the Turn of the Twentieth Century: An Analysis of the Influence of The Art Amateur and The Art Interchange.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2006, University of Akron
► The Aesthetic Movement had a profound effect on America at the end…
(more)
▼ The Aesthetic Movement had a profound effect on America at the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century. There was a renewed interest in the decorative arts and all things handmade to adorn the home. Some of the handmade objects that began to receive greater status in the art world were those that had traditionally been utilitarian and created by women, such as painted china. Painted china, and those that participated in this form of art, began receiving positive attention and greater status. Key publications of the time period, particularly The Art Amateur and The Art Interchange, sought to elevate and legitimize china painting as equal with fine art mediums. As the popularity of china painting grew, some towns had clubs or studios where students, who were mostly women, could learn to create beautiful painted designs on blank, white pieces of china. Akron, Ohio, a growing city at the turn-of-the-century, had a china painting studio. The studio was called Spicer Studio, named after its proprietor, Lizzie Spicer. Lizzie Spicer and her studio remained in business for over forty years, outliving the domestic art trends of the Aesthetic Movement. She was able to do this by adapting the art of china painting to the latest design styles and even modifying painting techniques to glass, which had become more popular than china in later years. There are many surviving examples of china and some glass pieces from this studio, with its distinctive mark on the back. They have become collectable items. The longevity of the Spicer Studio and the fact that a single woman, who never married, owned the studio and earned a living from it, was rare for the time period, but serves as a notable success story for women and their role in domestic art.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Keywords: China painting; Spicer Studio; Lizzie Spicer; The Art Amateur; The Art Interchange; The Aesthetic Movement
More Like This
4.
Flament, Gale Vance.
Fanny Brawne Reconsidered: A Study of a Fashion-Conscious Woman of the British Middle Class, 1800-1865.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2007, University of Akron
► The thesis re-examines the life, character, and interests of Fanny Brawne. Brawne…
(more)
▼ The thesis re-examines the life, character, and interests of Fanny Brawne. Brawne is a known historical figure as a result of her connection with the English Romantic poet, John Keats, whose life has been studied closely. Previous research has considered Brawne in the context of her relationship to Keats, rather a brief and early period in her entire life. In 1934, Brawne’s family donated her collection of fashion and costume plates, and other plates, to Keats House, in London. These plates were gathered together into two volumes, entitled “Fanny Brawne’s Costume Plate Book” and “Fanny Brawne’s Scrapbook.” Both volumes are now housed at The London Metropolitan Archives, along with three hand-worked items made by Brawne. These artifacts and other primary sources help document Brawne’s life-long interest in all aspects of fashion. Brawne’s interest in fashion is a focal point of this analysis, and forms a major part of this study. Many of the plates Brawne collected originated in magazines. This thesis examines the ways in which, as a regular reader, Fanny Brawne embodied models of femininity presented in these publications. The collections and artifacts are analyzed as a means of understanding both Fanny Brawne herself, and the larger culture in which she lived. Brawne emerges from this study as an accomplished, fashion-conscious woman of the British middle-class, whose hobbies and interests are very much in line with those of other women of her class and time.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Keywords: Fanny Brawne; John Keats; Fashion; Regency Fashion; Romantic Period Fashion; Britain; British Middle Class; 1800-1865
More Like This
5.
Kiehl, Kathryn A.
FENG SHUI: THE USE AND VALUE OF FENG SHUI IN INTERIOR DESIGN IN NORTHERN OHIO.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2005, University of Akron
► Grand Master Thomas Lin Yun and his American pupil, Sarah Rossbach, brought…
(more)
▼ Grand Master Thomas Lin Yun and his American pupil, Sarah Rossbach, brought Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese art of placement, to the United States in the early 1980s. Their introduction of Feng Shui to the West opened doors for ordinary people to learn, practice, and adapt the art of Feng Shui. Traditional schools of Feng Shui, such as the Form School and the Compass School, continue to evolve. The newer Black Hat Sect and Pyramid Schools, however, have become the major versions of Feng Shui used in the United States. Traditional Feng Shui is a complex system that may involve years of study. Westerners have found Feng Shui interesting and intriguing, but Americans prefer quicker resolutions. Books, with titles such as Fast Feng Shui and 10-Minute Feng Shui, promote the idea that this Eastern concept can be implemented in a short time. They offer readers do-it-yourself advice and discuss basic concepts that are easy to understand and implement because they relate to common sense. Western Feng Shui focuses on reducing clutter, which can impede the flow of energy or chi. Books suggest changes that can be made in the existing environment to increase the flow of chi and stress that people who carry out the recommended changes are likely to feel a personal sense of accomplishment. The bagua is the newest and most important tool used by Western Feng Shui practitioners. Analysis revealed that the bagua has been increasingly simplified by Western authors and practitioners since being first mentioned by Sarah Rossbach in her 1983 book, Feng Shui, The Chinese Art of Placement. Feng Shui is only beginning to be offered by interior design specialists in Northern Ohio. Those who prefer this service report a growing interest in this practice. The designers and practioners who were interviewed for this study believed that the process of learning, teaching, and using Feng Shui was beneficial and of value. Feng Shui provided clients a new intriguing path to design solutions. In turn, practitioners reported personal gratification from learning and implementing a new skill that enhanced their professional work.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Dr. Virginia.
Subjects: Fine Arts
Keywords: Feng Shui; Interior Design
More Like This
6.
Lindsey, Gwendolyn Sweezey.
USING THE DESIGN PROCESS AS A MODEL FOR WRITING A GUIDE TO MAKING MAILLE ARMOUR.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2005, University of Akron
► Maille Armour, also known as chain mail, is an intricate fabric of…
(more)
▼ Maille Armour, also known as chain mail, is an intricate fabric of inter-linked metal rings which are passed through each other in a specific pattern to create a strong, flexible material. It has been used by many cultures throughout the ages and is still being used today. For an individual interested in making maille, it can be difficult to find instructional materials. This applied thesis utilized the design process as elucidated in Don Koberg and Jim Bagnall’s The Universal Traveler to design, write, and evaluate the process of creating a manuscript for an instructional book on making maille armour and other maille items. The process Koberg and Bagnall describe involves seven stages: acceptance of the situation or problem, analysis, definition, ideation, selection, implementation, and evaluation.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Keywords: Design process; armour; armor; chain mail; maille
More Like This
7.
Mehta, Archana.
STORAGE OF EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY WOMEN’S COSTUMES AT THE KENT STATE UNIVERSITY MUSEUM.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2007, University of Akron
► The main objective of this thesis was to evaluate and reorganize the…
(more)
▼ The main objective of this thesis was to evaluate and reorganize the storage of the eighteenth-century women’s costumes at the Kent State University Museum (KSUM). Initially all the eighteenth-century women’s costumes – gowns, bodices, petticoats, and stomachers – were hung on hangers and stored within a single wardrobe unit, which caused compression, stress, and abrasion. The primary plan of this project was to spread the costumes into two wardrobes and to develop a hanging mechanism for the gowns whereby they were not just suspended from the shoulders but could also be supported at the waist. In order to develop an efficient and effective storage solution for these costumes, I visited eight museums to interview their curators and gain first-hand knowledge of various storage techniques currently in use. I evaluated recommendations made by museum curators, conservators, and published experts. I also examined catalogues of archival storage products to determine what was available for the storage of costumes and textiles. Thus I was able to compare and evaluate various storage techniques. Since this project was mostly about the storage of eighteenth-century women’s silk costumes, I also delved into the history of eighteenth-century women’s costumes and silk textiles including weighted silks. Each eighteenth-century women’s costume, at the KSUM, was carefully examined to assess its condition so as to determine a suitable storage method. Some costumes had to be stabilized before they were put back in storage. A hanging method was developed distinctive for each costume such that a complete ensemble –gown, stomacher, and petticoat – could be stored together. Dustcovers were made for all costumes and included provisions for the storage of stomachers and various trims. Labels stitched on each dustcover provided information on each garment and made them easily accessible. The garments were stored in two wardrobe units. The storage technique thus incorporated was simple, easy, and relatively inexpensive for other museums, with limited space and budgets, to follow.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Subjects: Home Economics; Fine Arts
Keywords: eighteenth-century costumes; storage; restoration and preservation; museums
More Like This
8.
Orr, Lois C.
Elizabeth Parke Firestone: Her Couture Collection and Her Role as a Woman of Influence.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2006, University of Akron
► Elizabeth Parke Firestone was the daughter-in-law of Harvey Samuel Firestone Sr., the…
(more)
▼ Elizabeth Parke Firestone was the daughter-in-law of Harvey Samuel Firestone Sr., the founder of Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, and the wife of Harvey Samuel Firestone Jr., chairman and president of the rubber company after World War II. She was a patron of the arts and amassed collections of paintings and drawings, porcelain, eighteenth-century silver, furniture, and couture clothing. As the wife of a prominent businessman in Akron, Ohio, Elizabeth took her role very seriously. She believed in representing her husband, family, and the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company with dignity and grace. Her collection of couture clothing began because she felt it was her duty to look her best at all times. She collected paintings and drawings, porcelain, silver, and furniture to decorate their homes, mainly Twin Oaks in Akron, Ohio, and Ocean Lawn in Newport, Rhode Island. Her personal appearance and her homes were elegant and highly admired by others. Elizabeth cared for all of her collections with the same dedication and attention to detail. She researched each purchase carefully. Her collections, including her couture clothing, were catalogued and carefully maintained. The respect she demonstrated for her clothing collection exemplified her belief that clothing is a decorative art. Towards the end of her life, Elizabeth disposed of all of her collections in a determined and methodical manner. The Detroit Institute of Art and the Boston Museum of Fine Art received valuable collections of eighteenth-century silver. She donated clothing to historical societies, universities, and museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Elizabeth’s collections of decorative art, including couture clothing, will be enjoyed and studied by students, experts, and the public for many years to come.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Keywords: Akron Ohio
More Like This
9.
Pace, Lisa A.
CHANGING THE WORLD ONE STITCH AT A TIME: KNITTING AS A MEANS OF SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ACTIVISM.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2007, University of Akron
► The latest revival of knitting, which began around the year 2000, is…
(more)
▼ The latest revival of knitting, which began around the year 2000, is part of a history of hand-crafts revivals occurring over the last 150 years. What sets the current revival apart from its predecessors is the use of knitting in the larger context of Progressive social and political activism. The revival has its roots in the social movements that began in the 1960s (feminism, ecology, civil rights, and anti-war) that became permanent though often unrecognized fixtures of Western culture and thought. As part of the larger Post-Modern world, activist knitters in the twenty-first century have continued their advocacy of human rights and the peace movement and have further championed a broad spectrum of social justice and ecological causes. The communication revolution afforded by the World-Wide Web has allowed like-minded individuals to connect and participate in a grassroots movement largely unrecognized and unreported by corporate media, leading knitting to become a personal and collective symbol of both empowerment and dissent as well as a tactic of protest.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Subjects: Fine Arts
Keywords: knitting, activism, feminism, do-it-yourself, DIY
More Like This
10.
Schmitt, Mary Donatelli.
Ohio Quilt Artists as Teachers.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2005, University of Akron
► This study focused on the teaching methods of some of Ohio’s most…
(more)
▼ This study focused on the teaching methods of some of Ohio’s most respected art quilt teachers. The participants shared their unique approaches to the challenges of the teaching and their insights on changes and challenges shaping the art quilt movement. Ohio played an important role in the development of the national art quilt movement. Its artists became leaders in this segment of the late-twentieth century quilt revival. They helped explore and develop new approaches to quiltmaking and helped fuel the movement with exhibits, symposiums, educational opportunities, and publications. The oral history method of research used in this study allowed participants to share their unique approaches to teaching and to express their ideas and concerns. The flexible nature of this method allowed for research findings to extend beyond the parameters of the original interview questions. Participating art quilt teachers included Nancy Crow, Vikki Pignatelli, Elaine Plogman, Susan Shie, and David Walker. Interviews with Ricky Clark and Penny McMorris, who helped shape the art quilt movement, added depth to the research. The study revealed the nature of the art quilt profession. Participants discussed their daunting schedules, the importance of centering when quilting, the pleasures of teaching, and the ways the profession has evolved in response to the modern abundance of fabric, publications, equipment/technology, Internet access, marketing plans, and educational symposiums. They also discussed challenges and concerns shared by art quilt professionals. These included the potential stagnation of a teacher’s own creative work as a result of extensive teaching and the problem of art quilters being overly influenced by each others’ work and popular trends. They also mentioned the value of incorporation academic training in both fine art and textile studies into art quilt education.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia R.
Keywords: teaching methods; Ohio art quilt teachers; art quilt movement; oral history method; challenges/concerns of art quilt professionals; art quilt education in academia
More Like This
11.
Shephard, Arlesa J.
WOMEN’S INVOLVEMENT AND INTEREST IN WILLIAM McKINLEY’S POLTICIAL CAREER AS RECORDED IN QUILTS.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2006, University of Akron
► When William McKinley ran for President in 1896, women did not yet…
(more)
▼ When William McKinley ran for President in 1896, women did not yet have the right to vote. In spite of their limitations in politics, women expressed great interest in McKinley’s political life. He was first elected to Congress in 1876, was elected governor of Ohio in 1891, successfully ran for President in 1896, and in 1900 was the first President to be re-elected since Ulysses S. Grant. Women continued to admire McKinley after his assassination in 1901. Evidence of women’s admiration and support for McKinley is located in primary sources, such as newspapers, and is also recorded in a great number of quilts made during and after his lifetime. Many of the quilts contain campaign memorabilia that has been stitched into the quilts with care. Others contain signatures or outlines of President McKinley. The number and variety of quilts suggest that McKinley was widely respected by women and the public as a politician throughout his political career.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Keywords: McKINLEY; QUILTS; WOMEN; campaign; Canton; Ribbons; Presidential
More Like This
12.
Tecza, Ashlee R.
RAG RUG WEAVING IN NORTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA, 1930-1970.
Degree: MA, Family and Consumer Sciences-Clothing, Textiles and Interiors, 2007, University of Akron
► My grandmother, Angela Benicki Pazco Tecza, wove rag rugs on a Studio…
(more)
▼ My grandmother, Angela Benicki Pazco Tecza, wove rag rugs on a Studio four-harness loom in Erie County, Pennsylvania, from the late 1930s until the 1970s. Using E. McClung Fleming’s artifact study model, I began research on rag rug weaving in northwestern Pennsylvania with analysis of extant artifacts, her loom and several rugs. Oral history interviews with other weavers from the same area helped me set her rag rug weaving activities into a cultural perspective. I compared my findings to those of Geraldine Niva Johnson, who completed an in-depth study of rag rug weaving in western Maryland in the 1970s. My findings regarding reasons and motivations for weaving were similar to those reported by Johnson. My oral interviews provided information on rug weaving in Erie County, Pennsylvania, from 1930s to the present day. I discovered that in the earlier decades, the decisions to weave rag rugs were often based on economics. Weaving rag rugs served several purposes in the life of farm women, like my grandmother. It was economical, and for many of those who lived during the depression era, it was a way to reuse household textiles. By weaving rag rugs, my grandmother was able to recycle clothing worn by any of her thirteen children and create something aesthetically pleasing for the farm home. Other women, in the early years, wove to supplement family income. Those who began weaving in the 1960s to 1980s usually did so for artistic reasons. They found it to be a satisfying hobby and often used their products as gifts for family and friends. Women of all decades found the rag rug weaving craft particularly suitable to home life and important for self-satisfaction and self esteem. The methods they used to learn and practice their weaving craft, and the ways they used the resulting rag rugs supports Johnson’s belief that rag rug weaving should be considered a folk art.
Advisors/Committee Members: Gunn, Virginia.
Subjects: Folklore
Keywords: rag rugs, weaving, Northwestern Pennsylvania, oral history
More Like This
