Hi, have been watching silently for quite a while, but couldn't resist a comment. I started sewing my own clothes in 1954 and can remember that I could not go over $1 per yard. I believe the fabric has to be at least that old

I worked at W.T. Grants and they sold fabric. My mother always ordered from Sears. My first sewing lessons came in 1949 when she ordered terry cloth yardage to make wash cloths and towels for my new baby brother arriving. I learned to sew and hem them on an old Singer treadle. Thanks much for the memories. I really enjoy spending time with you.

The flower one on the far right struck me as familiar and then it dawned on me. My sister just bought the same pattern (...I don't remember where). It's feedsack material! They used to have some really pretty feed sacks because women used the material to make their children (and themselves) clothing.

I just posted a comment about your picture. Of course I did it wrong and now I'm doing it properly. I hope they're together and will be self-explanatory.

Oh sweek Jiminey Crickets!!...I do remember that machine!!!

I had to sew most of my clothes for school and in high school purchased most of my fabric from Penney's since their quality was good and reasonably priced. I grad. in 1965 so that tells you how many years ago that was!
One year I purchased this beautiful red Asian print and made a blouse to go with the red wool skirt I also made. Thought I looked pretty spiffy. Then when I went to school on one of the first days of the year there was a friend whose mother sewed for her in the exact same outfit! We had a good laugh over that as we never compared notes on what we were making/wearing to school. The only difference in the blouses was that one was made from a Simplicity pattern and the other McCalls but still the same style. Who said you could be original if you sewed your own clothes!!

Yes, and I thought they were very accurate compared to how they do it today. I haven't seen one of those in years. Wish I could have picked up one as a neat piece of yesterday to display in my sewing area!

That's something I probably never would have remembered without your description. For some reason they seemed really cool. I wonder why they stopped using them?

Oh that brings back memories I had forgotten #6 in. material hasn't been around for many years. I think you have material from the 50's.

OMG. I was given some fabric that was in my Grandmother's stash of fabric and I have those fabrics too. She passed in 1986 and hadn't bought fabric for years. Most of her stuff was given to her from her kids or recycled. I have used the one on the left for a quilt. It is truely a small world. I doublt that she ever went to a Penney's because she did not drive and I don't remember her town in VA having a Penney's within walking distance for her. But they had a Woolworth's that I remember as a child walking to, sitting at the soda fountain while my Grandma shopped. That was 40-45yrs. ago!

I remember that! Boy that goes way back to when I was a kid learning to sew with my grandma's help! I think that way of measuring and tearing was far more accurate than the way it is done today. Tearing across the grain is always straight. And with that little machine, you always got the amount you ordered. I wonder why they don't use that thing anymore!?

Oh boy, is this thread taking me back! I can remember making blouses and skirts when I was twelve and living on the farm, from the fabric that the chicken grain came in. All kinds of pretty flowered fabric. Those were the days. Now I'm 72 and look back on those days with fond memories.

O.M.G. I used to work in the fabric department at J.C.Penney, and I don't remember fabric at 25 cents a yard. But I do remember 35 wide cotton. WOW!! That is some old fabric! :lol:

I worked in the fabric dept. of W.T.Grants when I was 16 and 17 years old and that was in 1956 and '57 and material was 29c yard to 49c.a yard. 36" wide. I bought a yard and half every week to make a gathered skirt to wear to the Sat. nite square dance. I loved material way back then.

My first 4-H skirt was made from a pretty feedsack.

I THOUGHT IT LOOKED LIKE A FEEDSACK WEAVE.

I love the lavender flowers!!!!!

How wide is it selvedge to selvedge? The older cotton calico fabrics prior to 1950 were usually about 36" wide compared to the post 50's that were 54" and other widths. Although it depends on the manufacturer, since some were manufacturing on the older machines later than 1950. True "vintage" cottons are 36" in width.

[quote=illinois]--and do you remember there was a device mounted on the edge of the table that they simply pulled the fabric through it and it measured off the length? A dial would go around to indicate how much yardage had been pulled through. Then it would clip the appropriate spot for how much you requested and they tore the fabric instead of cutting it? Really quick way of measuring yardage![/quote

That does bring back memories. Those were so cool!

Does anyone remember buying fabric from So-fro Fabrics?

The middle fabric looks very similar pattern to the fabric I made my first shell blouse with....about 1960-ish.

Patti

I have no idea how old this fab. is, but I love the lavender print. I am almost 66 now and made my first outfit in 4-H at 9 yrs. old, thus developing my love for sewing. Back in the 50's almost all fabric was 36 wide, once in a while you would find some 45 and that was a treat. I remember patterns were 10 & 15 cents each, then went up to 25 cents. But then we only paid 12 cents to go to the movies, and could have a coke, and popcorn, all for less than 50 cents. Am I dating myself or what. I do remember fabric being less that 50 cents a yard. When double knit came into being it was more expensive and 60 inches wide and we all thought we were in heaven, because we didn't have to buy as much fabric to make anything. We bought fabric from most dept. stores, Woolsworths, Pennys, Sears and Wards when we went out of town, plus from a local dept. store in town. But then most ladies sewed for their families. I definitely remember the old dials, and tearing the fabric and they were always accurate. You never had to worry about having enough fabric from someone who can't cut straight or doesn't know how to even cut fabric. The last time I saw one of those dials was in the 70's when I was really sewing for my two kids, and that was at an area store C.R. Anthony's. My Home Ec. teacher taught us how to correctly tear fabric, but she was more of the new school and thought we also needed to know how to cut it, that was in '58 & '59. I would guess and say the fabric is definitely from the 50's and possibly from the late 40's at that price. But I am not an authority by any means, just going by the price and print. What a treasure. I would be careful about washing it, might do so by hand, as washing it in a machine might cause it to come apart, because at that price and with the tag label it is "old". I do remember fabric really fading at times, so watch what you wash with it if anything. Great find, I would make something that I didn't have to wash often if I had it, to preserve it. I loved TG&Y, and all of the stores like that. There aren't around anymore and that is another lost treasure.

To Illinois...I remember that device to measure the material too...I have a 16 mo. older sister and a 3 1/2 yr. old younger sister...a good friend of our family was a great seamstress...therefore, my Mom had all of our dresses made by the good friend...the bad part was, they were ALL the same...ugh!

It's a 36 and never been worked with at all. It sounds from all the help I've had on this you all think it would be okay to use in a quilt. If I do, I'll be sure to post pics. Thank you all so very much with your input!

Remember that fabrics from those years will shrink much more than todays', so if you are not usually a pre-washer, you may want to do so with these.

Patti

Thank you Gerbie for the washing hints. You are absolutely correct, I am sure. I'll remember that before working with it.

You are right. Thanks!

My mother sold fabric at Penneys in 1951/1952 in Bryan, TX while we were waiting to join my father overseas in Germany. They had a large fabric department then that had been in existence for some time. I'm not sure about pricing, as I was just learning to sew my doll's clothes at the time.

Nice fabric

Oh, yes. I well remember mom buying fabric at Penny's, the local Ben Franklin, etc. in the early 40's. Do I date myself. That's o.k. I'm 83 yrs. young and proud of it. I can see where I acquired my love for fabric and it shows. Certainly glad it does.

Every year, as far back as I remember, my mother would get material delivered by UPS from Sears, to make all the school clothes for all 4 of us kids. We would "sweat bullets" as we never knew what we'd be wearing, but since she was an excellent seamstress, we didn't have much to worry about! This would be from the 50's to the 70's - she even made undergarments, bathing suits, my wedding dress and trouseau!

i would say that material came from the 1940's my aunt saiod she got fabric at 2cents a yard when she started quilting at the age of 15

I had a thought about the passing of the measuring machine - could it be that the invention of polyester made tearing the fabric impossible and it had to be cut by hand?

In the 70's I used so much of that fantastic no iron new stuff for sewing clothes for my 2 DD's and myself that they accused me of killing so many polyesters that I made them an endangered species.

I'm thinking the 'grainy part' might be, because the thread count isn't as high as most quilting fabric is today. That would make it seem more coarse, I'd think.

I too believe the fabric is from the fifties. I remember going to our Penney's store to buy fabric. I made my little girls dresses out of it and washed with a wringer washer. They held up well but had to be ironed but then again so did everything else. I still remember going with my friend when our Penney's stopped selling fabric. What a madhouse. There was bodily harm done.

[quote=NewYearsOld]I loved SoFro fabrics and also NorthWest Fabrics. Sad that they have passed from existence.

Oh, my gosh! I remember those measuring machines!! In regards to tearing material - I was taught not to do that as it stressed the material, to always cut it . . .

I paid .98 a yard for some good percale to back a quilt, and my grandma told me I paid too much! (She was finishing the log cabin quilt I had chosen and I was to buy the backing for it. She didn't think the backing needed to be that fancy, but the color is as true today as the day I bought it.)

I was going to say early 60s. I can remember fabric for 49cents a yard. Most was 79 or 99 cents. I have a seam gauge I bought back then at Penny's. It has served me well for all those years. The new ones they make just don't come close to that quality.

wished I could help you. Penny

My mother's family owned a "general merchandise" store in our small town. We bought EVERYTHING there. Only when we wanted something very special did we go to the next town to shop around. That store had everything you could imagine in it. There was a warehouse full of sacks of animal feed, flour, salt; tanks of kerosene, supplies for horses (those were used instead of the more modern tractors). There were dishes, ladies hats, men's work clothes (khakis and denims), shoes -- work shoes, dress shoes, kids shoes. And in the front of the store were bolts of fabric, patterns, thread and other notions, costume jewelry, small appliances - toasters, hand mixers, and, in later years, electric rice pots. We could also get all of our lingerie items there too. And the list goes on.

We bought all of our fabric there and when we went to church there may have been someone else dressed in the same fabric. A friend and I always tried to have at least one matching (of course, different colors of the same print) outfit every season. I still have pieces of some of that fabric (the store closed in '75). I don't remember the prices, though. The pattern line was Advance.

Our first sewing machine came from that store. The brand was Blue Grass. It was a sturdy machine that sewed "many miles." It resembled the old black Singers. It was a heavy machine in a cabinet.

[quote=chris_quilts]Ooooh! I remember all those things and stores too. I thought Northwest Fabrics became Hancock Fabrics.