What's on in Brisbane: Dressed by the Best: Fashion, Glamour and Gwen Gillam

A new exhibition has recently opened at the Queensland Museum and this one is more than a little special. It is a small but beautiful exhibition of the work of a little-known Queensland icon: Gwen Gillam.

Gwen Gillam was the leading dress designer in Queensland in the 1950s and 60s. Born in Warwick, Gwen opened her first store in Brisbane in 1937 when she was just 20. Over an almost 50-year career she became known as 'the best' in the city, designing and making dresses of 'european' quality for her distinguished clientele.

 Gwen Gillam and some of her designs. Courtesy of the Queensland Museum.

The Queensland Museum's retrospective Dressed by the Best: Fashion, Glamour and Gwen Gillam opened on 2 August and will run until 24 February, 2013. There are accompanying events such as talks, curated tours and a special high tea.

I can't wait to head in to Southbank one day for my big hit of culture - Masterpieces of the Prado at GOMA and Gwen Gillam at Queensland Museum.

What do you collect: a Queensland Museum project

‘What do you collect?’ is a project started by the Queensland Museum as part of their 150^th birthday celebrations. The idea is to ‘collect collections’ from people all over Queensland and work with community to co-curate the results into an exhibition.

The Museum will then be delivering a series of pop-up Museum events in different parts of the state, I believe, working at halls and museums and with local communities who hopefully have one or two people featured in the project themselves.

 If you want to become involved you can submit a video, a photo or a story online. Or you can just check out what other people have submitted. Collections range from the more predictable – old cameras, hats and surfboards - to the unexpected – butter wrappers, taps and My Little Pony tattoos (you wouldn’t believe you collects those).

Personally, I collect stamps. Not avidly and not for any reasons other than ‘I like stamps’. But I’m thinking that maybe I should submit my collection. After all, there isn’t a stamp collector mentioned as yet …

Five for Friday no. 2

Flower ice cubes. Having seen this photo I just want to recreate the idea. I want to try it with juniper berries in ice for afternoon GnT's

Photo from A Cup Of Jo.

I don't particularly like Switzerland, but I think I should take Chuck there, and we should visit this restaurant.


For those of us not lucky enough to be in New York at the time, here is a website overview of the Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty exhibition.


Re-learning to sew is one of my projects for 2012, and this Superman Dress is a good example of why I want to be able to make my own clothes!

Photo courtesy of Cation Designs.

I'm not planning any travel in 2012 but budgetary reasons, but the world's best inexpensive hotels makes me wish I was.