Researching early NZ. dress What did great-granny wear?

Press, 6 October 1987, Page 22

Researching early NZ. dress What did great-granny wear?

By

JENNY LONG

FASHION and etiquette rather than practicality dictated early New Zealand clothing, says a lecturer in the consumer and applied sciences department at the University of Otago. Jane Malthus says early colonial women wore British fashion and mostly did not adapt it for New Zealand climate and circumstances, although middle-class women did wear some working-class dress items for everyday chores. Ms Malthus is gathering material for a doctorate on New Zealand clothing and the way it has changed. The research is taking her through diaries, letters, museums, newspaper articles, and advertisements. She would be pleased to hear from anyone who has sketches or information about early New Zealand clothing. Christchurch women were active “dress reformers” forming an association in 1894 which

aimed to do away with corsets and other restrictive garments, says Ms Malthus. Whether corsets were worn regularly, dr did New Zealand women adapt and wear them less than their British counterparts, are questions she hopes to answer by her research. She would like to gather more' information also about the clothing worn by the poor, as she for this has found little resource material. Ms Malthus says clothing is a fascinating topic, inextricably bound to a people’s history. She would have liked to have included in her study the way Maoris adapted new clothing, but limited resources made this impracticaL Other aspects she will research include the impact of New Zealand woollen mills on clothing style. She suspects that overseas labels were more highly regarded than New Zealand ones. New Zealand-made clothing was seen as rugged and serviceable, rather than fashionable, says Mr Malthus.