Dress, child's

item details

NameDress, child's

ProductionCraftmaid; manufacturer(s); circa 1950s; United States

Classificationdresses

Materialscotton

Techniquesmachine sewing

DimensionsCentre back: 690mm (length)

Registration NumberGH017186

Credit lineGift of Shelley Venimore (née O'Brien), 2011

Overview

Hand-me-down from America

This dress is part of an extraordinary collection of 21 children's dresses and home-made dress-ups worn in the 1950s and 60s by the O'Brien children – Shelley, Maureen, and David. The dresses represent popular girls' fashion from this period, and include a range of home-made garments, and garments made in New Zealand and USA.

The collection embodies the story of the three children growing up in Tinui, a rural community near Castlepoint in the Wairarapa, with all the rituals, triumphs, hardships, and joys of a rural life.

The children's Aunty Nancy sent this particular dress, a hand-me-down from Shelley's Cousin Linda, from America. The dress was probably part of an annual Christmas package from Aunty Nancy, who often sent hand-me-downs as well as new dresses and Christmas presents. Aunty Nancy had married an American marine who was based in Masterton during World War II.