The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes: Secrets from a Victorian Woman’s Wardrobe

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An evocative and often touching exercise in re-imagining these fragments of fabric into historical life... it is delightful Prospect I saw a social media post by the author of this book, and really wanted to read this. It took a while until my turn came up at the library, but it was worth the wait! I knew very little about the history of fashion or textiles outside of North and South, but I found this approach to the subject really engaging. The detail is cleverly contextualised so that it feels part of the fabric of every day life. Teeming with history and detail - a fascinating exploration of how even the smallest scraps of fabric can open up large stories Lynn Knight, author of THE BUTTON BOX

This interjection of broader and sometimes darker histories running alongside Anne’s does not come withoutbeing ableto share in the joy of these wonderful textiles. While the book does not have frequent images of these, Strasdin’s vivid descriptions of not only the textilesthemselves but the ways and settings in which they would be worn or used are so transportive, it doesnot leave asmuch to be desired by way of imageryas you might expect. Unexpectedly, perhaps, the element of surprise is present even through the textiles documented by Anneas much as the stories that come from them. I would consider myself relatively familiar with textiles and prints typical of the period, but even I was fascinated at Strasdin’s detailing of an 1842 leopard print waxed cotton, captioned as being used for Anne’s furniture. Leopard print, that I would associate as having emerged in popular usein the mid-20th century, used in interiors two centuries earlier! Further evidence that the personal objects of one, seemingly ordinary for her standing, woman can bring so much to our ownpictureof the past (a theme throughout thebook, as you might sense). I thoroughly enjoyed The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes - a unique take on history using the clothing of one ordinary Victorian woman as a gateway to explore her life and the world she lived in. The Dress Diary of Anne Sykes and Kate Strasdin proves beyond a doubt that fashion history stands as a part of the social history of any time period that must be considered when we truly try to know a time and place. Women were hugely influential in the choices connected to fashion, letting us find some of their stories within the shadows of "important" history as so often focused on by men, but Strasdin reminds us in this book of the huge web of social and global economic influences a phrase like "fashion history" truly means. Not something to be scoffed at, it is a growing field of study that should be both celebrated and encouraged. Anne’s identity radiated out in myriad hues and materials, connecting her to her world and allowing us to join her. Discovering that Anne Sykes was the hitherto unknown creator of the book that I had been meticulously transcribing was at once both exciting and perplexing. I felt certain that she had to be a dressmaker, a woman whose role in life was to clothe her clients, taking a keen interest in shape and style, keeping the secrets of bodies. In that moment I could never have anticipated just how much I would be able to uncover.At times the author gets somewhat effusive in her descriptions and overly speculative about the could-have-beens. Readers don’t have to be reminded time and again that the historical record is sparse. And I wish that Anne’s actual (unreadable) captions had been replaced by a modern font. I gather from the introduction that these books were perhaps not as commonly kept as a written diary but were at least enough of a phenomenon that other clothing textile scrapbooks exist in the collections of other museums. It's wild to think that even if these things were frequently assembled by lots and lots of women, they would have probably been something discarded into the trash by heirs after the deaths of their makers, as not worth keeping. And yet it's clear from this book analyzing the contents of just one extant swatch diary, they indicate so much about the lives of people otherwise invisible in the history as recorded by Western colonialism. Despite all the knowledge we have gained as a result of Anne’s diary finding itself in Strasdin’s hands, there is also so much we can never know. Throughout the book, alongside the concrete findings, are queries about the intricacies of their thoughts, emotions, and activities. How close the relationships between Anne and those mentioned in her diary, whether they genuinely liked or politely accepted the fabrics and garments gifted to them, all these personal thoughts and more that are just beyond our reach, not recorded in marriage records or newspaper cuttings. In many ways, thisadds to the intrigue maintained throughout the book. We know Anne so well, having been able to trace her life (and wardrobe) from these fragments of cloth, and yet we also come out knowing so little about her personality. Ultimately though, this remains a value, not a disappointment – these questions that are raised providing a constant reminder of the individual people, with all their thoughts and feelings, mundanehabits and routines, excitements and tragedies, attached to every historical artefact. This appears to me as a fascination, more than a frustration, at least as I read it. ‘The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes’ may start with snippets of fabric collected by just one Lancashire woman, but it certainly does not end there. This is a journey Kate Strasdin takes us on with her; the precision, openness, and curiousity, with which she does so filling me with positive affirmation of my fascination with history (and love of prints!). The author captures it best herself: ‘Anne’s story is both remarkable and ordinary’.

The author received a book that held many samples of fabric, annoted with the names and dates of those who wore those fabrics. Eventually the creator of the sample book was revealed as a "Mrs Ann Sykes" - by a single mention of her name. The author has researched extensively into the life and times of Mrs Sykes, and discovered many interesting facts, which she has woven into a fascinating picture. Despite, as the title makes evident, the book focusing on one Victorian character – Mrs Anne Sykes, in a sense while reading you follow the stories of two main women; Anne Sykesherself, and the story of Kate Strasdin’s research process as she uncovers Anne’s story. Both of these stories converge around one key item, Anne’s diary, in which swatches of textiles are documented, starting after her marriage in her early 20s. Using these textiles and captions, Strasdin follows Anne, tracing her movements and her acquaintances, with the help of historical records and knowledge of the lives of women of Anne’s standing. Fantastically; what starts as a collection of fragments of textiles – not even whole garments – becomes a full life. The colour plates of the material fragments are a revelation - over a century and a half later their gleaming colours and patterns shine out like jewels. It's so easy to think of the Victorians as drab and grey, or, worse still, sepia. These bright and often beautiful materials make me realise that they loved fashionable colours and patterns every bit as much as we do now. Snippets of fabric, snippets of biographical detail, snippets of historical evidence - this is a book entirely made up of snippets and I found it irresistible Ysenda Maxtone Graham, The Times My thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK/ Vintage publishers for my advance digital copy given in exchange for my honest review. It has been an absolute delight and pleasure to read this novel.From a few snippets of information, the author was able to piece together a patchwork of life in the mid 1800s. The way the author has approached the content makes it very accessible. Each chapter focusses on a different aspect of Anne Sykes’s life and combines the evidence from the scrapbook with genealogical research and associated historical information. This is a fascinating read if you - like me - are a lover of textiles, and textile history. As someone whose ancestors worked in the textile industry, I am always drawn to books that can bring their history to life. Strasdin's knowledge is evident in her descriptions of the fabrics displayed in this diary . . . This is too good to miss Literary Review It was just beyond fabulous to learn about such a unique journal and book, and to have the privilege to have the talented author draw us this picture through her writings. I greatly enjoyed and appreciate this experience. An acquaintance of the author gave her a book that had been found in a thrift shop, knowing her interest in textile and fashion history. A homemade journal of types, but filled with fabric swatches from the Victorian Era in England, rather than written entries. The fabrics have caption like "Mary's dress for Helen's wedding" and a date, but not much else.

This results in a book that gathers so much information about the textile industry & clothing in one place – the history of cotton, wool and silk, the changes and developments in dyeing and printing techniques as well as glimpses into the trade of the time. For instance we have a whole chapter devoted to lace, which explains how the traditional handmade bobbin lace of Honiton & the surrounding Devon villages became virtually obsolete due to the invention of machine made net that was so much cheaper to produce, but then saved by Queen Victoria who used handmade Honiton lace on her wedding dress. Honiton lace is now a luxury product, still made in the traditional way by hand. This is a wonderful book! The life of a woman, a time and an industry, woven, like cloth, into something unique and beguiling. A treat for the curious reader Pip Williams, author of The Dictionary of Lost Words

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There is just so much information gathered together in one place. The history of cotton, calico, silk, the development of dyeing techniques, as well as descriptions of trading and the politics of the time. I have spent a lot of time myself looking up the beginnings of retail as we know it today. The development of off the peg clothes as opposed to having everything made. How shops such as Kendals in Manchester first began. I didn't know where the term 'mad as a hatter' came from, but I do now. Thanks to Strasdin's forensic research...this book opens into a vivid history of expansion and empire. And all wrapped up in 2,184 pieces of cloth BBC History Magazine Intriguing and engaging... A fascinating and creative unravelling of Anne's life and times Clare Hunter, author of THREADS OF LIFE Lace is where Anne's story and my own became entwined. Were it not for that desire to learn a traditional technique...I would never have joined the lace group amongst whose members was the custodian of Anne's diary. In the years since, and along the path of discovering Anne's life, I realize that while our experiences of the world inevitably differ, there is that which connects us: female friendship and an appreciation for the threads of textiles women into our lives." p. 73