A Rhode Island native, Meredith Liu relocated to St. Louis to pursue a BFA in fashion design at Washington University.

This hobble skirt–style dress from the early 1900s—most likely the work of Annie Cummings, a St. Louis dressmaker—was her inspiration. The MHS collection contains more clothing by Cummings than by any other St. Louis designer. Her work ranged from simple lingerie dresses and suits to her own interpretations of French designer fashions, like this blue and gold silk dress trimmed in fur that was a gift of the estate of Eugenia H. Buder. Eugenia would have been in her early 20s when she wore it.