From My Grandma's Sewing Machine to WGN: The Story Behind Rare Dirndl

It started with a sewing machine, a grandmother who knew how to use one, and another grandma with a eye for fashion.

My mom's mom taught me how to sew. How to read a pattern. How to make something real with your hands. My dad's mom taught me about quality fabrics, fashion trends, how to style and pushed me to be creative. I didn't know at the time that those afternoons with them would eventually turn into a business... but here we are.

I'm Erika Neumayer, founder and designer of Rare Dirndl. And this spring, WGN Evening News came to our little studio on Lincoln Ave to tell our story and honestly, I'm still a little bit in shock about it.

How This All Started

I grew up in Chicago, deeply embedded in the German-American community here. I've been a member of the American Aid Society of German Descendants since 1990. I danced, I celebrated, I showed up to every festival... and I wore dirndls.

But here's the thing. The dirndls available in the US? They were bad. Like, really bad. Germany was designing these incredible, modern, beautiful garments and we were over here with the same five styles that hadn't changed since 1987.

That bothered me.

I went to Dominican University, studied Apparel Design, traveled to Ghana, studied couture techniques in Paris... and came back home to Chicago with one very clear mission: someone needs to fix the American dirndl market. So I did.

Ten Dresses and a Dining Room Table

In 2010, I started with ten dresses, one sewing machine, and my family's dining room table. Then I took over the living room. Then my sister's bedroom. The basement. The backyard shed. Occasionally the kitchen.

My dad politely suggested I find my own place.

So in 2013, Rare Dirndl moved into our design studio in Lincoln Square (Chicago's German neighborhood) and that's where we've been ever since.

Every piece is still cut by hand. Every detail is still intentional. These aren't costumes. They're garments built to last and to actually live in.

The WGN Moment

This April, WGN reporter Erin McElroy came to the studio and spent time with us. The segment focused on what this brand is really about, keeping a handmade tradition alive, honoring heritage without being stuffy about it, and making dirndls that feel like you.

You can watch the full segment here → WGN: Rare Dirndls — Preserving Heritage Through Handmade Fashion

It meant a lot. Not because of the press... but because my grandmother would have gotten a real kick out of it.

What Rare Dirndl Is Actually About

Here's my thing: you don't have to be German to wear a dirndl. You don't have to prove your heritage to anyone. You just have to want to feel fabulous in something that was made with care.

Whether you're a German-American who grew up going to German Club picnics, or you're heading to Oktoberfest for the first time and want to look like you belong there (you do, by the way)... Rare Dirndl is for you.

We design for the adorable badass in all of us. That's not a marketing line. That's genuinely who I'm thinking about when I'm at my sewing machine.

Come Find Us

If you want to follow along — new designs, behind-the-scenes studio stuff, the occasional rant about cheap costume dirndls — come hang out with us:

• Instagram: @raredirndl
• TikTok: @raredirndl
• Facebook, Pinterest & YouTube: Rare Dirndl

Or just browse the collection and find your dirndl. I promise it exists.