Monday Morning Inspiration/The Roddis Collection

When I crawled into bed last night, I told my husband that I was putting a period on last week. Done.

The finale of the week happened yesterday afternoon. My husband and I had gone out for an afternoon drive. Sheridan Road is amazing. If you've seen the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off, the road is actually showcased. It winds through Northwestern University, the most exquisite neighborhoods, and lovely ravines. 

At one point, my car began to miss a bit, but then seemed to straighten out. My husband thought it could have been something in the gas that just worked its way through the carburetor. 

Before we turned around to head home, we stopped for an ice cream cone. When I started the car, it really began to miss, but it had power. As I rolled out on the road, the power began to decrease and it was obvious that it was going to die. Thankfully, I was able to pull into a parking lot before it completely died. Long story a tad shorter, we called for a tow truck, waited an hour and a half, but he came, and drove us home. Home, everything always seems a little better once you are home :)

Last week I shared an exhibit that I saw at the beautiful Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend, WI. While the Contemporary Threads exhibit is quite interesting, the main exhibit is; 

American Spirit and Style

Fashions and Lives of the Roddis Family

1850-1995 

This is a spectacular exhibit. The clothes were found in the attic of Augusta Roddis after her death in 2011. Who would have thought that an attic in the small town of Marshfield, Wisconsin would hold so many wonderful treasures. 

What I especially enjoyed about the exhibit was the fact that I could get so close to the clothes. In most exhibits, the viewer is kept some distance away. I loved being able to look closely and even get close up shots of the details.

This is the cover dress for the exhibit. Cut on the bias, I love the sleeve details.

An Yves St. Laurent dress. The exhibit book explains how the women of the Roddis family loved beautiful, well-made clothes, but their taste was very modest.  

The designer of this suit was Gunther Jaeckal, c. 1954.

This piece was one of my favorites. I would love to be able to look inside and see what was used to support the shoulder detail.

An everyday dress made chic with the addition of the cape.

Such a pretty, yet understated dress.

I was happy that I was able to get the close up detail of the bodice. Notice how there are sheer inserts inside the braided detail. Again, understated, but exquisite.

I always enjoy discovering something new to me. The gown below was designed by Gladys Parker, a cartoonist who created the Mopsy strip which ran for 3 decades.

Along with her comic strip, Ms. Parker began designing her own line of clothing in 1934, and even did some costume design work in Hollywood.

This gown was actually worn to a party given by Princess Margaret.

Understated elegance.

Very much from the 1980's! 

The exhibit is much more extensive than what I have shared. It runs through September 17, 2017, so if you can make the trip to Wisconsin, I HIGHLY recommend seeing this exhibit.

The accompanying exhibit book is one of the best I've seen. Beautifully written, it takes you through the history of the family and showcases many pieces that were not included in the exhibit. You can take a look through the book HERE. The best price for the book is at Amazon. I also found the book HERE at AbeBooks(my new favorite book seller)

Have a wonderful week, and if by chance last week wasn't the best, put a period on it...and make this week great!

Rhonda