Current (and Upcoming!) Exhibit: "Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times"

Did you (like us, boohoo!) miss out on getting to see the "Costumes of Downton Abbey" exhibit while it was at Winterthur?  Well, never fear!  We've done a bit of sleuthing and have some exciting news!  The exhibit has been slightly revamped and is now slated to visit several other historic sites and museums around the country over the next couple of years, so there's still plenty of time to catch a glimpse of these iconic pieces of costume drama history!

Photo linked from Biltmore's "Dressing Downton" exhibit page.

"Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times" will feature approximately 35 different costumes and accessory items from the series' first four seasons.  The pieces on display will span fashions from 1912 through the First World War and all the way up into the mid-1920s.

Photo linked from Biltmore's "Dressing Downton" exhibit page.

5 February - 25 May 2015
Biltmore, Asheville, NC
The first stop for "Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times" will be Biltmore House and Gardens, the sprawling estate built by George Vanderbilt between 1889 and 1895.  Drawing on its Highclere-esque opulent turn-of-the-century setting, Biltmore plans to fully integrate the costumes into its incredible period rooms and the high-society domestic stories they tell.  Admission to the exhibit is included in your general admission ticket.


Additional tour dates include:

20 June 2015 - 20 September 2015
The Paine, Oshkosh, WI
(click for details)

October 2015 - January 2016
Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, VA

As we hear about additional dates, we'll update this post!  So...who's going?!!!

***UPDATE ON MARCH 22nd: The official "Dressing Downton" website has just gone up!  There, you can find the full list of tour dates, along with lots of additional pictures and information!***

Exciting news for Downton Abbey fans in the United States!

Exciting news for Downton Abbey fans in the United States!  This February, The Countess of Carnarvon of Highclere Castle (the spectacular setting of Downton) will be visiting a few states to promote her latest book, Lady Catherine and the Real Downton Abbey.  On her blog, Lady Carnarvon mentions a couple of different stops on her tour, including one in Nashville, TN, just before heading to Virginia; I have not been able to find a more detailed tour schedule listing, however.  Colonial Williamsburg will be hosting two events with Lady Carnarvon on February 9th & 10th.  You can join her for tea on February 9th at the Williamsburg Lodge to hear her speak about Highclere and its past inhabitants.  And February 10th she will speak about life at Highclere at the DeWitt Wallace Museum in Williamsburg.  A book signing will follow the lecture.  You can find further information and purchase tickets online here.  If anyone has heard about additional stops on her book tour, please let us know so we can post those here as well!

The second of the Countess' books will be the subject of her

upcoming book tour in the U.S.

Don't forget about the upcoming exhibit of fabulous Downton Abbey costumes at Winterthur, starting March 1, 2014!

Coming Soon: Downton Abbey Costume Exhibition

Many thanks to Burnley and Trowbridge for the tip-off yesterday about this exciting upcoming exhibition!

Image linked from Winterthur's press release for the exhibition.

From March 1st, 2014 through January 4th, 2015, Winterthur will be staging an exhibition of 35 costumes from Downton Abbey!  According to the press release, the exhibit will also include "photographs and vignettes inspired by the fictional program and by real life at Winterthur."  Winterthur, a 175-room mansion, was completed in 1932 as the home of the Du Pont family and is the fifth-largest historic house in the country.  Now a museum of decorative arts, it features both its original period rooms and gallery space to display over 90,000 objects produced or used in the United States between 1690 and 1860.

I sense a road trip approaching... :-)