Category
Sewing History
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01.04.101949 American Fabrics MagazineI had a meeting over at PNCA, where I'm teaching a few classes this spring, and Josh showed me the library while I was there. He'd recently discovered the most amazing collection of a vintage magazine, American Fabrics. I actually don't know much about this publication, or even whether it's directed at the trade or consumers. But it's fascinating, nonetheless. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Up on a high shelf, there's something pretty awesome hidden in some inauspicious cardboard magazine holders."][/caption] Anyway, the magazine is an extremely cool snapshot of textile--and cultural--trends. I spent a bit of time thumbing through an issue from ...
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03.09.09Sewing Heritage Sunday – Sew for VictoryFirst things first. Something's been bugging me. Most of you probably read my last post. What you probably didn't read was Ben's post over on BlazersEdge (the most comprehensive and active Trail Blazers blog out there)--because I doubt many of you avidly consume Blazers' news (despite my best attempts to convert you into fans). In that post, Ben references my story about meeting Channing Frye and linked to my post. Wednesday morning--when I saw that post on BlazersEdge--I stupidly thought that he was mocking me. I would like to publicly apologize to Ben for assuming that he was making fun ...
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11.30.08Sewing Heritage Sunday: Boy Sewing[caption id="attachment_308" align="aligncenter" width="450" caption="From the Life Picture Collection, by John Pillips, Ohio 1942."][/caption] While I couldn't find out any details about the boy in this picture and why he's sewing, I think this is proof positive that Ohio boys have been sewing for a long, long time. Right, Josh? ~Sarah Original photo link on Google Images. Related posts:Wanted: Dead or Alive (Size 7) I need these Chuck Taylors. Need. Them. Unfortunately, the...I’m Still Sewing, I Swear! I haven’t written a whole lot about sewing projects I’ve...Book Review: Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross I have been pretty much over-the-moon excited about Heather ...
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11.23.08Sunday Sewing Heritage: Airplane WingsDid you know that airplanes used to be stitched together, and then epoxied? I had heard mention of it in documentaries and such, but the reality of the construction of aircraft literally from cloth didn't really register with me until I saw these photos of women during World War II sewing together the wings of a plane. There's something quite elegant about it, isn't there? ~Sarah Photos from the Library of Congress image collection. No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
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09.28.08Sewing Heritage: More Stitching Up Old GloryAs a follow up to last week's sewing heritage post, this photo is quite striking. In sharp contrast to the highly-mechanized sewing of the American flag in the factory of the Brooklyn Yard, this woman, in 1917---which is about the same time as last week's photo, is hand-stitching an American flag. As Josh said, can you imagine the intense work that went into sewing this by hand? Photo credit: DN-0069332, Chicago Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society ~Sarah Blogged with the Flock Browser No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
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09.21.08Sewing Heritage: Stitching Old GloryWe all know (or should, at least) the story of the Betsy Ross Flag, none of us know the story of these ladies and how they came to be sewing American flags at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1909. This photo was taken while the U.S. was still engaged in military action in the Philippines (an extension of the Spanish-American War, although it officially ended in 1902). The Yard was winding down from a huge surge in manufacturing employment due to goods needed by the military, with women engaged in the production of garments and textiles, including the sewing of ...
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09.14.08Sewing Heritage: Women, Sewing & the WPAFolks, it's time for a little sewing history lesson... The Works Progress Administration (rename Work Project Administration in 1939) was created in 1935, and employed millions of people--especially in the rural West and Appalachia and other mountain regions--following the catastrophic downturn of the U.S. economy resulting in the Great Depression. What many people don't know about the WPA is that a sizable number of people put to work during this time were women, around fifteen to twenty percent of WPA-participants. They were considered unemployed heads of household for a variety of reasons, including abandonment or a husband's death or disability--and the ...
