Vintage shines in ‘star event’
La Sociedad Folklorica Merienda fashion show to feature members modeling styles of yore
A cream-colored gown with tiny beads stitched in an intricate floral pattern along the seams, and pearls and lace along the pleats of the skirt, lay folded in a box with a handwritten note: “Wedding gown worn by Rosario Ortiz, who married Alfredo Hinojos at St. Francis Cathedral 1879.”
It was one of more than 200 dresses entrusted to La Sociedad Folklorica de Nuevo Mexico, an all-women’s volunteer organization dedicated to preserving Santa Fe’s Hispanic heritage and customs.
A dress “is a treasure,” said Ruth Ortega, jokingly dubbed the society’s “keeper of the dresses.”
“They were made with no synthetics, true materials,” she said of the collection. “… That’s why they’ve lasted so long.”
Every year since 1935, the group has hosted Merienda, a Fiesta de Santa Fe fashion show of about 65 dresses, as well as children’s outfits and men’s suits, that date back to the 1800s. At this year’s event, La Sociedad Folklorica hopes to stir interest among local youth and draw new members who share a passion for vintage ware and Spanish culture.
The society has thousands of hats, about 50 handbags, countless shawls and at least 10 wedding dresses — some of them more than 200 years old, Ortega said. It also has a number of men’s military suits, including a New Mexico National Guard naval uniform from the 1940s and, she said, “the heaviest, I mean the heaviest” coat from World War II.
To the society, these garments are so much more than pieces of clothing.
“It’s a preservation of our
traditions and culture and history,” said Ortega, who grew up in Las Vegas, N.M., and joined the group in 1973.
Dresses in the group’s collection were either ordered from stores in the Midwest or made by local seamstresses using fabrics shipped from Mexico by wagon trains, she said. Many silks were transported via the Chihuahua Trail, worn by Spanish colonists and passed down through generations.
Every item is carefully folded and kept in a climate-controlled storage space, society member Pauline Duran said.
In addition to the Fiesta weekend fashion show, La Sociedad Folklorica participates in several traditional events tied to the Catholic faith: It hosts a nine-day Novina ,or nativity pageant, at Christmastime; stuffs eggshells with confetti and teaches children an Easter season dance for the Baile de los Cascarones, or Dance of the Eggshells; and creates rose bouquets for May devotions to the Virgin Mary.
There are other events throughout the year: family reunions, genealogy gatherings, shows at the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, comedy skits for newly elected officials and fashion-themed luncheons for the New Mexico Legislature.
Merienda, however, is “the star event,” said Duran, who joined the group in 1996.
The word “merienda” means “snack” in English. “It’s similar to English high tea,” Duran said. “Spanish people would get together with chocolate and biscochitos.”