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Image credits: The Women's Library, London Metrpolitan University - image references are at the end
See our collections on display in our free exhibitions "All work and low pay: the story of women and work" and "Cycling to Suffrage: The Bicycle and Women's Rights, 1890-1914" and related events
Key class numbers and search terms
Key references, latest academic works and acquisitions
Press cuttings and ephemera
Periodicals
Zines and Artists' Books
Electronic resources
Archives (personal and organisational papers, oral histories)
Museum (objects, textiles, visual materials)
Identifying images
Web Archive
Further information
The Women’s Library, founded in 1926 as the Library of the London Society for Women’s Service, exists to document and explore women’s lives in Britain in the past, now and in the future. Printed material, ephemera, archives, oral histories and museum objects together form The Women’s Library collections. The Library holds a range of material on women and fashion including books, pamphlets and periodicals from the 18th century to the present day. This includes fashion in literature, histories of fashion, marketing and ‘how-to’ guides in addition to fashion magazines. These materials reveal different aspects of fashions impact and influence whether this is at political, psychological and social levels. In addition to contemporary books, pamphlets and periodicals relating to fashion, the collections also contains related material such as the portrayal of women by the media, beauty and health, textile arts and biographies.
Key class numbers and search terms
Aesthetics (History) 646.7209
Costume 746.92, 391.209
Dress and Clothing 391.2 , 391.4209
Fashion histories 746.920..., 391.20941, 391.20942 and 391.42
Psychological Aspects 391.2...
Key references, latest academic works and acqusitions
The Library holds the following guides and bibliographies, useful for identifying further information and material on the subject:
Every woman's encyclopaedia. Needlework [Pt.6]. [London:[s.n.], c[1910]. WL Vault 032 EVE
Ritcher, E. The ABC of millinery. London, New York, Skeffington [1950]. Reading Room 646.504 RIT
Naidoo, R. Beauty queens: bibliography. London: The Women's Library, 2004. Vault OS Pamphlet 016.79162 NAI
The Women's Library's recently published and newly available acquisitions
Periodicals
The Library holds a wide range of periodicals on women and fashion, including academic titles, popular magazines and Zinesmany of which explore fashion and beauty through the ages, notably through publications such as The lady's magazine: or, polite companion for the fair sex; La belle assemblee ; The Queen, Vogue (London); Fashion forecast; Fashion theory: the journal of dress, body and culture. Further periodical titles on the subject can be identified through the printed materials catalogue.
For further guidance on identifying periodicals click here.
Press cuttings and ephemera
The press cutting collection covers the whole of the 20th century and are particularly valuable for identifying contemporary comment where retrospective online newspaper coverage is unavailable. The Library holds many press cuttings relevant to costume, fashion and the beauty culture on Reel 77 of the microfiched press cuttings.
The Library's ephemera collection contains information relating to women's organisations, including leaflets, flyers, minutes of meetings, agendas and all kinds of campaign literature. A full list of relevant organisations can be found in the ephemera subject card index in the Reading Room.
Zines and Artists' Books
The Library's collections currently include more than 300 zines and 27 artist books some of which explore fashion from alternative perspectives, including titles such as Pigeons and peacocks; This season's must have; Bearing the weight and Things that help us feel good!
Electronic resources
Electronic resources (online journals and databases) are currently only available to London Metropolitan University staff and students, and can be accessed via the online catalogue with their institutional identification and password. London Metropolitan Academic Liaison Librarians have provided a list of relevant e-resources.
Archives
A brief guide to the archives is available on The Women's Library's website. Further details of archives available for research can be found in the archive and museum collections catalogue or in the hard copy catalogues available in the Reading Room on the shelves adjacent to the Information Desk. The following archives, including records of organisations, societies and campaigns relate to women and fashion.
5FWI/E/4/2/24 Records of the National Federation of Women's Institutes
5MGB Records of Miss Great Britain
5WFM/B/07 Records of the Women's Forum and its Predecessor
6CFW/E/13 Records of Careers for Women
6IHE/D/01 Records of the Institute of Home Economics
7JNG/2 Papers of Jean Gooding
7DMB/02 Papers of Dorothea M Barton
7ANG/B/28 Papers of Angela Martin
8LWR Records of Lincolnshire Women’s Research Group
8ODH/02/01/02 Out of the Dolls House
9/09/026 Autograph Letter Collection: Fashion Designing Notes.
Museum
This includes badges, postcards, photographs and posters. All the objects can be researched in terms of format e.g. photography, as well as by the specific events or subjects they relate to. Further details of museum objects available for research can be found in the archive and museum collections catalogue (ensure that the term ‘twl’ is entered in the ObjectNumber field) or in the hard copy catalogues available in the Reading Room on the shelves adjacent to the Information Desk. Museum objects on this topic can be located in the catalogue using terms such as ‘fashion’ and ‘modelling’.
Identifying images
Images can be found throughout The Women's Library's collections in periodicals, zines, books and in archives. The Women’s Library has uploaded many digitised images to Flickr, VADS (here and here), and The Mary Evans Picture Library. Use Mary Evans Picture Library's fast service for a non-watermarked high resolution images suitable for publication. If you require an image which has not been digitised you are welcome to use our reprographic service. Normal copyright conditions will apply. Follow the link to view a selection of images from the collections at the Mary Evans Picture Library.
Web Archive
Women's Issues is maintained by the British Library in collaboration with the Women's Library, London Metropolitan University. The collection was established in 2005 and has regularly collected web sites since then. It includes sites of women's organisations and campaigns, research reports, government publications and statistics pertaining to women, personal sites of women, such as blogs, and women focused e-zines. Specifically relevant to fashion are sites of magazines such as Mookychick, Needled a knitting designer’s site and Precious on line.
Further information
The staff of The Women's Library can help you find material relating to your subject area; please don't hesitate to ask. You can contact the Information Desk staff prior to your visit on email twlinfodesk@londonmet.ac.uk, by telephone 020 7320 3515 or in person at the Information Desk when in the Reading Room.
Image references: A fashion plate in the Englishwoman's domestic journal. Vault CB periodicals (MEPL 10050918A). A fashion plate in the Lady's magazine. Vault CB periodicals (MEPL 10050919A)
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