"I loved to be photographed and always dreamed of becoming an actress. I collected photosand constantly changed costumes. In post-war Kyiv people had no money and clothes were difficult to find. People rarely had an opportunity to buy new clothes and often altered old clothes. For example, you could sew a new dress out of two old ones. After all, longing for something beautiful was always there regardless of whether a person had money or not. You always want to be beautiful. I did not sew clothes myself and didn’t use the services of tailors either. My mother, her acquaintances, friends, and even neighbors we asked for help did the tailoring.

People at that time always put socks with shoes and sandals because wearing shoes barefoot was unacceptable."

Comment by Tamara Lubenets

1951, September

This photo is contributed by Serhii Hrynenko, Tamara's son.