Avocado green polka dot lace top worn on Soul Train by dancer Sheri Byers: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

An avocado green polka dot lace top worn on Soul Train by dancer Sheri Byers in the late 1970s. The front of the top has a boxy, straight cut and is made from one panel of fabric, which includes the scalloped collar. Green machine lace makes up the entirety of the garment and there are polka dots of various sizes woven into the fabric. Below the collar is a v-neckline with a 1.5” top stitched border around it. Sewn to the edge of the collar is a .25” wide panel of black scalloped machine lace. There’s a green .75” wide machine lace channel sewn to the inside with a synthetic plain weave drawstring fed through it. The black drawstring has knots on either end. Each sleeve is sewn to the bodice, raglan-style and they’re made from one panel of fabric, sewn to itself at the inner arm. It tapers towards the wrist and like the collar, has a .75” wide green machine lace channel with a panel of black elastic fed through it. There is 3” cuff at each wrist that has been gathered and sewn, creating a ruffled effect. One panel of green machine lace make up the back of the garment and there is a 3/8” rolled hem at the bottom that has been machine sewn into place. There is no lining and no brand label.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1978-1980
• Created by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Soul Train, American, 1971 - 2006
• Worn by: Sheri Byers, American
• Type: blouses
• Type: shirts
• Medium: machine lace, synthetic twill, and elastic
• Dimensions: Length (collar to hem): 22 in. (55.9 cm)
• Dimensions: Width (shoulder to shoulder): 22 in. (55.9 cm)
• Dimensions: Chest (flat): 17 1/2 in. (44.5 cm)
• Place used: Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Clothing and dress
• Topic: Costume
• Topic: Dance
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Popular music
• Topic: Television
• Object number: 2020.9.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Costume worn by Sheri Byers, dancer on Soul Train 1977-1980
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: No known copyright restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.