What's in the Mail?

Mail time! I received some more postcards and cabinet photos in the mail this week and thought I would share a few with you. The first one is a flapper girl that I have named Adoree. I'm working on a project to turn my pictures into prints, postcards, and posters and Adoree is going to be in that group. The first poster has been printed and is on it's way to me. I can't wait for it to get here and have my fingers crossed that it will come out good. If not, it will be back to the drawing board!

I like to imagine that the young girl in the second photo is getting ready to go to a dance. Maybe her prom! Did they have proms back then? I don't know. I'll have to research that.

I fell in love with the picture of this little boy and just knew I had to buy it. I call him Dapper Danny. From the look of him I'm sure he grew up to be a charmer and the ladies must have loved him.

I think the last picture may be a wedding picture. They didn't always wear veils back then so it's hard to know. I love old wedding pictures and have recently bought some lovely ones to frame and put on my wall. When they arrive I will share some with you.

Well, I hope you've enjoyed these photos. I'm working on a knitting pattern for a corset cover that I will be posting in the next few days. So, please come back!

Obesity Cure

Are you TOO FAT? That seems to have been the worry even back in 1898. Do you suppose our current day diet aids stem from this product? I can't imagine what must be in this, but you can get a sample box FREE (in a plain sealed package) upon the receipt of 4 cents to cover postage, packing, etc. Mrs. Helen Weber , in the upper right hand corner, reduced her weight by 40 lbs. "without sickness or any inconvenience whatever". And Mrs E. Brown, in the upper left corner, says "It's an excellent flesh reducer, and improved my health wonderfully." This was thought to be needed because "obesity predisposes to Heart Trouble, Paralysis, Liver Disease, Constipation, Rheumatism, Apoplexy, Etc., and is not only dangerous, but extremely annoying to people of refined taste." Heaven forbid, we should be annoying to people of refined taste! I, personally, find many people of refined taste annoying! They also offer $100 in Gold to anyone who can prove that any of their testimonials is not genuine. I wonder if that offer is still good?

As I spend hours going through old magazines and books, I often think to myself that no matter how evolved we think we are today, we really haven't changed at all.

Valentine

Whooo! Hooo!!! I just won an auction for 27 issues of "The Ladies World" published between 1895 and 1900! I'm jumpin' up and down!!! I'll be bringing you some of the articles from these wonderful magazines pretty soon. For now I'll just show you a valentine that I came across yesterday in going through some boxes. It's really beautiful when you open it up. I guess I'll have to get the camera out and take some pics so I can show you.

Rose Doily

I have a very large collection of vintage knitting, crocheting and tatting patterns and am adding more vintage books to my collection everyday. I'm hoping to open an ebay store in the next couple of weeks selling copies of all my collected patterns. I collect patterns from the 1800's up through the 1940's. Although I do have a few from the 1950's. I really love the glamour patterns of the 1940's and the intricate lace of the Victorian and Edwardian periods. I will also be posting free patterns here on my blog. The first is the Rose Doily pattern pictured above. You will find a link to the pdf for it listed under Vintage Patterns on the right. Some of you who are familiar with vintage patterns may notice that this pattern is based on an old potholder pattern. In fact, if you don't crochet the outer lace and end it after the folded points are finished you will have the potholder. Hope you enjoy making this doily!

"What Grandma Taught"

While pouring though magazines this morning, I found many little articles I want to share with you. Among them was this charming poem in a Needlecraft Magazine from September, 1925 by Josephine L. Ingham. I hope you all enjoy it as I did.

What Grandma Taught

When I was quite a little girl, and sat at grandma's knee,

She taught me how to sew a seam and turn a hem, you see;

To piece the gayest patchwork and work buttonholes, so fine,

And all the little tucks I made must be right on a line.

And Grandma used to tell me that I might go and play

When I had neatly finished that pattern of crochet!

*

And, too, the knitting-needles I was taught to swiftly ply,

To fashion socks for father, and sometimes I would cry

When I tried so hard to "turn the heel" and couldn't do it right,

And Grandma said "My goodness, child, that surely is a sight!"

And when holes showed in those stockings, either in the heel or toe,

I must learn to darn them neatly, over, under, to and fro,

*

All these "arts and crafts" were taught me, as I sat by grandma's knee,

Happy when my stint was over and I once again was free,

But these two things I decided in that time so long ago

"When I became a woman I shall neither knit nor sew!

And if my heavenly father little ones to me should give,

They'll never have to take a stitch as long as they shall live.

*

Time has sped and my dear grandma long since has passed away,

But the good old things she taught me have been my help and stay,

Once when fortune frowned upon me, ill-luck hovered o'er my head,

The homely art of mending helped to earn my daily bread.

And the hours have been less lonely, many days have been less gray,

Just because my grandma taught me how to do "that old crochet!"