Profiles of midwestern consumers of Hmong textiles were developed and recommendations were made for improved product design and marketing of Hmong textiles. Participants were 20 consumers of Hmong textiles. In-depth interviews were followed by participants' completing a questionnaire. Central to the interviews were the participants' 1) ranking a set of 10 Hmong textiles according to preference and 2) discussing their reasons for placement of textiles at the top and bottom ranks. Data were analyzed using a content analysis system and hierarchical cluster analysis. Six consumer profiles were developed for Fine Workmanship Consumers, Supporters of the Hmong People, Pragmatic Consumers, Patrons of Hmong Folk Art, Function-Oriented Consumers, and Color-Centered Consumers. The results contributed to a proposition that the majority of textile craft consumers fit a common set of profiles regardless of the textile craft purchased or the consumer's home locale.

We describe the development of an instrument for visually analyzing women's daytime clothing styles as depicted in two women's fashion magazines, The Delineator and Harper's Bazar, from 1873 through 1912. The instrument was designed for a study examining relative changes in diversity among women's clothing styles over time. Measures used in previous visual analysis research are reviewed and ways in which these measures were adapted to the new instrument are explained. Instrument validity and methods used in the evaluation of reliability are discussed and findings are reported. Recommendations for further evaluation and uses of the instrument are included.

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Brassieres developed in the United States as an expression of health reform. Between 1863 and 1940, women and men secured patents for breast supporters intended to improve women's general and reproductive health, posture, or ability to participate in sport and exercise. Advertisements for breast supporters appeared in national advertising as early as 1881; brands proliferated in the early 1900s. Physicians encouraged the substitution of breast supporters for corsets, beginning in 1890. Medical opinions of brassieres fluctuated in the 1910s and 1920s, but by the end of the 1920s, cup-style brassieres answered physicians' criticisms and conformed to newer methods of pre-and post-natal breast care.

Using key principles of perceptual theory, the researchers examined new instructional methods for presenting visual images of historic costume (in three 5-year increments) to students for analysis and categorization. In addition, principles of cognitive theory provided the basis for examining the effectiveness of the stimuli for each learner. Visual images consisted of different compositions: fashion plates with five figures, single figures, or segments (close-up images of upper, middle, or lower part). The historic costume lesson was developed using hypermedia technology which combines computers and videodiscs allowing for the integration of text, visual images, and audible information. Seventy-nine undergraduate students completed a Learning Style Profile and an achievement test after using the lesson. During the lesson students chose visual images (56%) more often than written descriptions (30%) or audio messages (14%) for acquiring information about historic costume. The visual composition selected most often was the single figure, followed in order by 5-figure fashion plates, and last, segments. The type of media selected correlated strongly with a student's analytical skills. Strong analytical learners used text significantly more frequently than students with average or weak analytical skills (p = .0029). The t-test revealed that for all students the mean scores for the ending achievement test increased significantly (p = .01) over the scores for the preliminary test. In addition, high analytical skills had a significant interaction (F (2,76) = 5.21, p = .008) with high achievement scores. This study lends support to the recommendation that various compositions of visual images are an effective strategy for assimilating information about historic costume. Visual images are highly important but not to the exclusion of text and audio.