Hello All –

This request came in to LesbianFamily.org a week ago, but I’ve been too crazed to post it. I think the project is wonderful and I’m totally participating. I hope you will too!
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I’m carrying out some research for a book to be published in 2008 by Berg, Oxford. The book is called Fabrics of Desire, and one of the chapters will focus on the selections made of garments for lesbian civil partnerships. I’m interested in the ’singular iconic and symbolic wedding dress’ and how it gets challenged anew by the possibility of ‘double brides’.

I should let you know that my partner and I celebrated our CP in September 2006, and that my interest is for genuine scholarly research. I would be happy to anonymise any information as necessary.

I noticed that you had some civil partnership images on your flickr pages and I was wondering if you could help me in any way with research for the book.

I would like to contact lesbian couples who would be willing to discuss the significance of the garments they chose, and give me some insight to how they marked their ’special day’ through their choice of clothes. This could be highly formal, traditional, casual, wacky, neutral, different to each other, the same as each other – I’m interested in exploring the meanings for each couple of their choices of clothes…

It may be also possible that we could discuss using your images in relation to their interview if this seemed like a good idea. I would be most grateful for any help you are willing to give.

If you wish to forward my email onwards to any interested people, please feel free to do so.

I do hope that you will be able to help, and I’m really grateful for any assistance you can give me.

Many thanks

Best wishes

Dr Catherine Harper

Catherine (dot) Harper (at) brighton (dot) ac (dot) uk