Still- can you imagine the average housewife spending even 2 hours a day sewing? For me, that would be closer to heaven - but back then a woman being the Director of Finance would be totally unheard of.
The automatic washing machine was another big time saver too - lots of things invented to make it possible for a woman to have a working life outside of the home. (not sure if that is good or bad . . .)
Back then people had much less clothing - only the rich could afford multiple outfits. That is one great advantage of the sewing machine, it made clothing more affordable - so instead of saving money, it just resulted in being able to afford more outfits.