I love and admire the artistry of textiles of the past. Artistry on a par with great paintings, yet just starting to be recognized (needles and thread are the tools of ladies, after all). I have no illusions about the toll our fore-mothers paid for their adherence to fashion.
On Labor Day, I'm always reminded of the toll in lives. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911 was the culmination of greed at the expense of a workforce without agency. A female workforce that was majority immigrant, was the perfect tinder for that fire.
I'm linking a post from a fews years ago, she wrote it better than I can.
http://bkaccelerator.com/104-years-later-remembering-the-triangle-shirtwaist-fire/
Over one hundred years later it still has the power to move. Their sacrifice outraged the public and began to change opinions. It was a hard price.
A workforce that is disenfranchised is always vulnerable to abuse.
Ever Your Thimble Servant,
Miss Brilliantine
