1/28/21 (Thu)
An Inside Look, Literally
What do a beaded Chippewa shirt, moose-hide mittens, a rodeo queen suit, and a hunting vest have in common? They're all featured in our Fashion & Function exhibit opening soon! See the hidden details.
News and Events
1/21/21 (Thu)
Not So White Wedding Dress
Many women dream of the perfect white wedding dress. But a white wedding dress wasn't in fashion until Queen Victoria wore white to her wedding in 1840 and started a fashion trend among the high society set in Europe and North America. See early 1900's wedding wear in Fashion and Function: North Dakota Style, opening later this year.
1/13/21 (Wed)
A 1930s Timeless Black Dress Still Stuns Today
Every woman seems to search for that timeless black dress that looks fabulous and helps them feel fabulous, that they can wear for years and it will never go out of style. Fortunately for Donna Weinrebe of Minot, in 1936 she found that elusive dress.
1/07/21 (Thu)
The Nitty-gritty of Nostalgia
The dress forms, mannequins, and garments featured in Fashion & Function: North Dakota Style make up only half of the gallery installation. The exhibition also includes a significant number of historical images drawn from the State Archives and contributed from other sources.
12/31/20 (Thu)
Dressing the Mannequin
The process of dressing a mannequin is a lot more complicated than simply slipping an outfit on a dress form. Padding, chopping, trimming, or a host of alterations might be involved.
12/21/20 (Mon)
Once a Bennie, Always a Bennie
When this dress from the early 1900s was pulled for the upcoming Fashion and Function: North Dakota Style exhibit, Assistant Curator Lori Nohner found she had a personal connection to the lacy cotton gown.
12/09/20 (Wed)
Upcoming Fashion Exhibit Includes Objects from the Jewish Faith
The upcoming Fashion and Function: North Dakota Style exhibit includes a section about faith. Included four items from Temple B’ne Ephraim, formerly located on North Fifth Street in Bismarck. The agency collected these items from the temple in 1979 before it closed.
12/04/20 (Fri)
1920s Fashion in the Governor's Mansion
Stunning inaugural gowns worn by First Lady Grace Sorlie in the 1920s show the decade’s dramatic shift to a more carefree women’s style. Farewell, corsets! Hello, flapper dresses!
11/24/20 (Tue)
Hats and Hunting: Fashion and Feathers in Our Museum Collection
The long-tailed pheasant was first introduced to southern North Dakota in 1917. At that time, pheasant feathers were becoming popular accessories in the millinery industry, and feathered hats were in demand as haute couture for the wealthy.
11/19/20 (Thu)
Western Symbols Tell Stories of Cattle Culture
Our upcoming Fashion & Function: North Dakota Style exhibit squeezes quite a collection of stories into the 5,000-square-foot Governors Gallery. One of those stories involves a military scout's buckskin suit.