Thrifting History

In what is starting to seem like my never ending search for green wool blazers, I hit a couple more thrift shops today--not much luck in that regard, but I found some neat things anyway. As always, I made a point to visit the "crafts gone bad" aisle and noticed a box on the top shelf. I pulled it down and found it jam packed with old patterns. Well, I just LOVE old paper stuff, so I had to go through the box.

Goodwill annoys me by marking the price on the front of the patterns. One of the cool things about these old patterns is the pictures on the fronts, and writing the price across the front oftentimes ruins them completely for anyone looking to collect them. Still . . . sometimes you find some gems anyway.

I thought the address label on this one was amusing--"4012 Lios Lane (or Lois Lane?)." The pattern was printed and mailed in the 1950s, so the sender obviously had Superman on his or her mind, don't you think?! The address on another envelope to the same woman said "Leo's Lane."

Here's what was inside that envelope--a pattern to make a boy doll.

And in another envelope? A girl doll pattern, of course!

And another pattern from the same newspaper pattern service, but this is addressed to a different woman, F. A. Guild. Both women--and I don't know if they may have been related or not--wrote what the pattern was on the outside of the envelope. This gal, F. A. Guild, used the envelopes to jot notes on too.

I don't know if you can read it, but she wrote on the pattern envelope, "Shorty, have gone to the Auction. Will be back about 1:30. Betty." I wonder what auction Betty went to? We've had a farmer's market/auction in Roseville since 1947, and that isn't too far from where Betty lived, so I wonder if that's where she went? One or both of her patterns were dated not long after WWII--which is about when the auction started--and that makes them over 60 years old.

How about a couple apron patterns? The pattern on the right wasn't dated but I'm guessing early 50s. The pattern on the left was dated early to mid-70s. The floor length aprons seem a little goofy to me! But then it was the 70s, and everything was goofy!

And a couple more early 50s patterns. And let's not forget something for the little girls . . .

The one on the right seems older but the one on the left wasn't dated. Both, though, clearly state they're "not suitable for chubby girls." Poor chubby girls!

I found a few more things at the thrift store and photos may well show up here at some point. Finding these patterns was awfully fun, and looking through them tonight more closely was even MORE fun! Of course, a gal can NEVER have enough fun, can she? So tomorrow, I'm going here:

I'll let you know if I find any more treasures!