Lisa Thompson has been collecting St. Louis history in the form of fashion for decades. Whether on the hunt at an estate sale or at a vintage clothing store, Thompson has amassed a treasure trove of women’s garments from the 1930s to the 1990s, many of which come with fascinating stories.
“I started to realize that the garments I was collecting had more value than money,” said Thompson. “Most every woman I spoke to would tell me a story that went with their dress or coat that was totally captivating.”
For example, a St. Louis woman in her late nineties gave Thompson a black dress she wore as a young girl. “It was the only dress she wore out,” said Thompson. “She mended it six to eight times. It was somewhat chilling, but she explained that she couldn’t afford to buy another dress.”
Recently, Thompson and Helen Douglas-Taylor launched the Modern Classic Society, a nonprofit organization that will host its debut event “Coats and Conversation,” from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Jewish Community Center’s Arts and Education Building. This free event is an open house, where attendees can view a dozen or so vintage coats on display and learn about their stories. Light refreshments will be served and two coats will be auctioned.
“The purpose of the Modern Classic Society is to build a historical costume collection through preservation, oral histories and research for the exploration of women’s history through fashion and culture,” said Thompson, whose “day job” is as a reading and academic specialist with the Ritenour School District. “Essentially, we’re creating a fashion historical society.”
Thompson says that while she has collected some show-stopping garments over the years, most have come “from the closets of ordinary women.”
“It’s interesting to read the labels in the clothes – Stix, Baer & Fuller; Peck & Peck; and if she had a little money, Saks Fifth Avenue,” said Thompson. “So many of these pieces have wonderful stories and capture a time and place in St. Louis women’s history. We’re excited now to tell these stories.”
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