Work in Progress Wednesday - Treasure Trove

My dear Auntie is in town visiting her children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 

I came to live in Abbotsford because of the influence of my cousins and because of that I see my Aunt everytime she comes here!  I always feel so lucky to be her niece! She is the kind of person who makes you feel good about yourself and is always interested in the things you have to say.  She is a very special person in my life.

Because she knows that I have started an online store, she has been on the lookout for things that might go well in the etsy store.  And Oh Boy!! She brought me a huge selection of buttons that she picked up from friends and neighbours in Winnipeg.  I just know she has as much fun looking for these things as I do, going through them and imagining where they came from and what they were for...

Along with the bags of buttons, there were some pieces that are interesting even though they have nothing to do with buttons.  People tend to mix a few other odds and ends in with their button boxes - I know my mother would keep odd bits in hers...

 

Years ago, I cannot say, and my Auntie says she would not be able to guess, is that companies that may not have anything to do with "household arts"  like sewing would give away, to their customers, small useful items.  In this case, Portage creamery gave it's customers a foldover needle packet.  Inside, a dozen or so hand sewing needles!

 

How about this pretty red flower broach?  I can remember having 2 or 3 of these - probably purchased at Woolworth's or Kresge's in downtown Winnipeg.

 

Now, isn't this a special little broach! A leopard nestled upon your breast pinned to your favourite cashmere sweater.  Before, my time I think!

 

 

Can you guess what these are? I'll give you a hint.  They are expandable and you almost always have them in pairs.   I remember seeing these in my very early years, but didn't remember what they were.   Another hint.   Did you know that up to the mid 1950's and into the 1960's men only wore long sleeved shirts? never t-shirts, in fact there were no t-shirts, but there were undershirts.   Now.  Perhaps you have seen an older movie, where men have long sleeve shirts, with the sleeves rolled up, and sometimes the rolled up sleeve is held in place with these expandable arm bands!  Would you have imagined that if I didn't tell you!!   I think Paul Newman, and the beautiful young men of the movies brought the t-shirt into popularity, thus eliminating the need of expandable arm bands to hold the rolled up shirt sleeve in place...

 

And this tiny tin, Puretest soluable SACCHARIN tablets.  You can tell by looking at the printed lid, the label does not adhere to the accepted flashy labels you see on products today.  And I suspect that at one time it was commonly understood what a 1/4 gr (grain) was.   How long do you think that artificial sweeteners have been available?  Did it every cross your mind to wonder when we humans found a need for a sweetener, other than sugar? Or for that matter, when did we discover and NEED sugar?

 

Facinating stuff, eh?

Not much to do with my usual subjects but I do so enjoy looking back in time - not just at the big historical events, but at the things that made up everyday life.

 

 

I am trying to figure out the uses for these kinds of things, so that makes them works in progress.  I can see some of these jewellery findings becoming enhancements on future postcards to swap.  I am even thinking of putting together some of these into a shadow box frame to display on my wall!  So, everything gets used and reused and turned over and thought about.  

If you have your mother's button box or jewellery collection, pull it out of the drawer and refresh your memory of the days when she wore those things or try to remember what they were used for.

Have a marvelous day, thinking about The Way things Were!