Dressing The Social Register: The Almost Secret Life of Ann Lowe

EPISODE NOTES: From humble beginnings in rural Alabama, Ann Cole Lowe rose to become one of the most sought after fashion designers of the twentieth century. Her life story is one of tremendous highs and cruel hardships. Tune in to hear about New York high society's "best kept secret" of the mid-twentieth century. If you would like, you can support us at:https://www.patreon.com/historyunhemmedhttps://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/historyunhemmed Drop us a line at [email protected] and/or follow us on social media:Instagram: @history_unhemmedFacebook: History Unhemmed  Thank you! <3 RESOURCES: Brockell, Gillian. “Jackie Kennedy’s Fairy-Tale Wedding Was a Nightmare for Her African American Dress Designer.” The Washington Post. WP Company, August 28, 2019. https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/08/28/jackie-kennedys-fairy-tale-wedding-was-nightmare-her-african-american-dress-designer/ Chrisman-Campbell, Kimberly. “The Way We Wed: A Global History of Wedding Fashion.” New York: Hachette Book Group, 2020. Davis, Nancy, and Amelia Grabowski. “Sewing for Joy: Ann Lowe.” National Museum of American History, August 29, 2019. https://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/lowe. Hunt-Hurst, Patricia. "The fashion industry." In Diana R. Berry (Ed.) Black Women in America, 2nd Edition, NY: Oxford University Press, 2005. Kirkham, Pat. Women Designers in the USA, 1900-2000: Diversity and Difference. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000. Messner, Kate and Margaret Powell. Only The Best: The Exceptional Life and Fashion of Ann Lowe. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2022. Miller, Rosemary Reed. Threads of Time, the Fabric of History: Profiles Of African American Dressmakers And Designers From 1850 To The Present. Washington, DC: Toast and Strawberries Press, 2002. Minutaglio, Rose. “Ann Lowe Is the Little-Known Black Couturier Who Designed Jackie Kennedy’s Iconic Wedding Dress.” ELLE, October 24, 2019. https://www.elle.com/fashion/a29019843/jackie-kennedy-wedding-dress-designer-ann-lowe/. Mulvaney, Jay. Kennedy Weddings: A Family Album. New York: St. Martins Press, 2002.  Powell, Margaret. “The Life and Work of Ann Lowe: Rediscovering ‘Society’s Best Kept Secret.’” MA thesis. The Smithsonian Associates and The Corcoran College of Art + Design, 2012. Smith, Julia Faye. Something to Prove: Ann Cole Lowe, America’s Forgotten Designer. 2016 Tracy, Kathleen.  Everything Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Book: A Portrait of an American Icon. Way, Elizabeth. Black Designers in American Fashion. New York: Bloomsbury, 2021.