During World War II, when silk for wedding gowns was virtually unobtainable, determined brides recycled their grooms’ silk parachutes. Writing for The Vintage News website in “Dresses from the Sky,” Goran Blazeski says “people had to do without many things for the sake of victory.” Inventive wartime gowns designed from chutes are so prized they’re on display at the Smithsonian, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the Imperial War Museum. What’s next—the Maine Military Museum in South Portland?

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