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Found 92 Stories

Blog

A Better Pointe Shoe Is Sorely Needed

Ballet is an art form steeped in tradition, but pointe shoes need not be out of step with the times.

Blog

A Photo-Fitted Suit

A camera, some mirrors, a projector, a screen, and a calculator combined for made-to-measure clothing tailored “PhotoMetriCally.”

Blog

John McMullen and Joseph Hollen, Jr. patented a machine for knitting stockings in 1831 that promised a greater facility in shaping the work, the production of firmer and more even fabrics, and “the employment of children” to attend the operation.

Blog

Deep in the Heart of Texas?

The surprising origins of the iconic Stetson cowboy hat

Beyond Words

Lecture: Wear a Hat to Keep Your Feet Warm, and Other Lessons from the Science of Dressing for Extreme Weather During World War II

Lemelson Center Fellow Rachel Gross, a PhD candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, discusses how Americans paradoxically invented and relied upon all kinds of high-tech inventions to escape the modern world and get “back to nature.”

Invention Stories

What to Wear Today? Invention and Innovation in Dressing

Did you ever think that when you get dressed in the morning, you're expressing inventive creativity? Dr. Linda Przybyszewski says this has been true throughout history.

Invention Stories

From the Collections: Charles Brannock

Charles Brannock (1903-1992) was born into the shoe business—his father Otis Brannock and Ernest Park had founded the Park-Brannock Shoe Store in Syracuse, New York, in 1906. The business was remarkably successful.

Invention Stories

Charles F. Brannock

In 1925, Charles F. Brannock invented the Brannock Device to measure feet and determine shoe size.

Invention Stories

Stephanie Kwolek: Kevlar® Inventor

The ubiquitous fiber that had an unlikely beginning.

Beyond Words

Podcast: Adam Harvey Counters Surveillance with Fashion

Artist-designer-inventor Adam Harvey explores the aesthetics of privacy.

Invention Stories

Sound and Vision

Timothy Westbrook's fashions weave cassette tape into shimmering new life.

Invention Stories

Knitting Inventions

A few inventions that help make my newest hobby—knitting—more pleasurable.

Invention Stories

Running: A High Tech Sport

As a runner but also someone who’s interested in innovation, I started thinking more about the gear I use, and how invention and innovation have impacted the sport of running.

Invention Stories

It’s in the Details

Sequins—whimsically employed—are what first drew me to artist Timothy Westbrook.

Invention Stories

Don’t Make Me Get the Flying Monkeys

A donation of Elphaba's costume from "Wicked" to the collections of the National Museum of American History prompts a look into the inventions and innovations that help make "Wicked" such an amazing spectacle.

Places of Invention

Lowell through the Lens

The "Places of Invention" Affiliates Project is empowering communities across the US to document local invention and innovation. Here's a story from Lowell, MA.

Beyond Words

Podcast: Regina Lee Blaszczyk and the Color Revolution

Regina Blaszczyk traces the effects of inventions in colors on American businesses and consumer goods from cars and clothes to butcher shops.

Beyond Words

Podcast: Matthew Hersch and the History of the Space Suit

Historian Matthew Hersch explores the underpinnings of the space suit's development.

Invention Stories

Innovative Lives: Sally Fox, Colorful Cottons

Two strong threads of interest weave through Sally Fox's life as an innovator: a passion for natural fibers and textiles, and an equally passionate commitment to protecting and preserving the environment. It was the coming together of these two interests that led her to develop Fox Fibre®, the first commercially spinnable, naturally colored cotton.