The Crocheted Dress

Sue, Rita, Kyndall

Not my photographs, but they have meaning… In December I edited and put together this tryptic of my sister, Sue, her daughter, Rita, and her granddaughter, Kyndall; 3 generations photographed in the crocheted dress made by our Grandmother, Hildred French. According to my calculations, Grammy (as we called her) likely made this dress in 1958. The photo of Sue was taken by our mother in our home in Elkhart, Kansas—sitting on our familiar, unassuming coffee table. Thanks to our mother, and to Sue, the dress was kept, over the years, in pristine condition. Grammy even crocheted a few more rows to the bottom to accommodate Rita who was a little older than Sue was when the photos were taken.

I edited, printed and had this framed for Sue’s 2023 Christmas gift. I had considered colorizing the photo of Sue, or converting the other two to black and white, but instead decided (and Sue agreed) that the coloration differences were appropriate to help convey the the time span of the 3 images.

So, we have this photograph recording some history; of a little blue and white dress, a Great Grandmother, and 3 generations of little girls who wore it. (Kyndall is now 13 years old.) And there is history to be made as we see what happens to this little dress in the years to come.