In early 2024, members of our Guild studied the history of pockets, and were challenged to create their own pocket. The challenge resulted in the exhibition of over 100 pockets at the Silk Purse Gallery in West Vancouver. What follows are exhibition statements, photos and a video of that display. Thank you Catherine Nicholls for providing the statements and video.
What do you carry in your pockets? Do the garments you’re wearing even have pockets?
If you’re wearing traditional male garments you probably have lots of pockets but if you’re wearing traditional female garments you won’t have so many or maybe none at all.
Before pockets were sewn into men’s clothing, about the end of the 1600’s, history shows us that men used small pouches which hung from a belt around the waist. These separate pouches could be concealed inside their coat or tunic.
For women, pockets were an accessory that tied around the waist and were accessed through an opening in a skirt’s seam. Tradeswomen and market vendors might keep their pockets over their skirts for easy access but otherwise women wore their pockets under their skirts, keeping them private and secure.

These hidden pockets were as personal as their wearers; some were elaborately embroidered with patterns of flowers, some might be made from patchwork, while others were plain. Women often exchanged pockets as gifts and if sewn for a friend, might include dates, secret messages and signatures.
As women’s fashions changed, the size and shape of the pocket did as well. The early 19th century brought thin, gauzy dresses that fell in columnar lines, reflecting the architecture of Greek columns. Some of these risqué dresses actually clung to the body and as a result the bulky tie-on pocket lost its hiding place under the skirts.
Women began carrying tiny purses called “reticules” – derived from the latin reticulum “ a small net” . These draw string net purses were worn hanging from the wrist and could be all the way to the ankle. In 1817 a Londoner commented that “women now walked with their pockets in their hands” While some called the fashion accessory a “ridicule” and mocked its tiny size.
Fashionable young women stopped wearing tie-on pockets as tie-on pockets became associated with more traditional women, housewives and “old ladies”. In them housewives carried everything they needed; scissors, needle, thread and thimble . They were called an “honest” and useful receptacle.
Mrs Ridgely of Delaware wrote to her son advising him “don’t marry one of those reticule-carrying women, an anti-pocketist” .

Women have long been “under-pocketed” and women’s rights activists made a political issue out of the bulky skirts, tight (often debilitating) corsets as well as the lack of pockets that comprised women’s garments. The pocket became a symbol of independence.
In the 1800s, the Rational Dress Society launched campaigns fighting for more practicality and freedom of movement in women’s clothing and to abolish the corset. The Society had ideas of the perfect dress for women, and modern-thinking women were enthusiastic converts. A 1910 “Suffragette Suit” became all the rage, which sported six to eight easily accessible pockets and some were even in plain sight!
“She has a dress with pockets? This is not allowed! If women have pockets, they have secrets !” @austenimpro
The fashion industry decided that pockets were no longer necessary for women and the handbag industry seduced women into thinking that the handbag was the answer to all their portable needs. To support this theory, women were told that pockets ruined the female silhouette… pockets made the hips wide or the behind too big or too lumpy. The handbag was also elevated as a status symbol, which played upon women’s desire to be fashionable, leaving women with an even more expensive insecurity.

Women still long for pockets. Pockets allow people to easily walk through life comfortably and securely. The pocket is hidden from view which makes it very different from a bag or handbag. A handbag is externally carried and leaves one vulnerable. If a handbag is lost or stolen, then all it contains is gone as well. While pockets are not perfect, they do allow for a certain freedom in not having to think or worry about what you are carrying in them.
Members of the North Shore NeedleArts Guild have studied the history and usage of the women’s pocket through the ages. Artists began their research by creating traditionally stitched pieces and then allowed their imaginations to explore what a modern pocket using contemporary materials might be. These personal explorations have taken them far and wide, using unconventional materials and techniques.
From October 16 to November 9, 2024 over 100 pockets will be on display at the Silk Purse in West Vancouver, British Columbia. We hope you will enjoy our interpretation of this honest and useful receptacle . Some members have replicated historically accurate pockets, while others have used non-traditional materials and created contemporary versions of the pocket.
Prior to the opening reception, our team took this video.
“Men have pockets to keep things in, women for decoration.” Christian Dior
You can view the pockets more closely in our Portfolio here.