4-H Seamstress Wins Big With Victorian Dress

Sullivan County 4-H member and high school senior Makayla Bedford may have surprised herself with a Best of Show ribbon awarded for her Civil War era, Victorian period dress – her first individual entry in the Pennsylvania Farm show in all the years that she has attended.

Story by Rick Hiduk / Submitted photo

(originally published in the Sullivan Review)

Makayla Bedford, daughter of Carrie Richmond of Hillsgrove Township, has been a regular participant in the Pennsylvania Farm Show from an early age, following in the footsteps of her mother and her aunt, Melanie Hottenstein Parrish, both of whom have served as Sullivan County Dairy Promotion princesses. In 2024, Makayla helped to staff the Farm Show’s 4-H booth as well as the Dairy Promotion Corner after, she too, became a Dairy Princess.

An avid history student as a senior at Sullivan County High School, Makayla’s interest in the Civil War already has her eyeing an eventual job as a park ranger at Gettysburg National Military Park. This year, she took her intrigue with the Civil War to a new level with a unique 4-H project that was well-received by judges.

With some guidance from Sullivan County 4-H leader Patty Lane, she embarked on the design and sewing of an 1860s Victorian-era period dress as a member of the Ready-Set-Sew Club. “I’ve always been interested in that era of history,” Makayla offered. She created the dress, which features a delicate blue-on-white floral print and matching handbag, to wear for living history and Civil War re-enactment events.

She learns quickly and wasn’t afraid to improvise and make changes as needed as the garment took shape,” Lane said of Makayla and the dress that she has already modeled it at a regional 4-H fashion show. “The dress fits really well too, which I hope means she’ll get a lot of use out of it,” Lane added.

It had been a goal of hers for many years to make a Civil War dress, and she perservered, improving her skills with each project until she was ready to take on this challenge.”

Despite the fact that she doesn’t normally sew her own clothing and had never previously entered an individual project in the PA Farm Show as a 4-H member, Makayla was excited to circle back to the judging and display area to find her dress sporting a new decoration: a large orange Best of Show ribbon. Makayla isn’t done sewing yet. In the coming year, Lane explained, Makayla will change eras and create a 1940s outfit

Makayla is the oldest member of the Ready-Set-Sew 4-H Club,” 4-H adviser Sandy Pardoe Peterman noted. “As the club president, she leads meetings and assists younger members with club activities.”

In addition to completing her own projects, Makayla has been a huge help with the newer, very young members of the club,” said Lane. “We have a limited number of adult volunteers, so her ability to share her knowledge has been a real bonus.”

The Pennsylvania Farm Show continues through Saturday, Jan. 11. For more information, interested readers can log on to pa.gov/agencies/farmshow.

1 Comment

  1. Way to go! Great folks up there and I’m so proud of the many young people that I had the privilege to teach at Sullivan County High School some 60 yrs. ago

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