Remember when?
 

We only had scissors to cut fabric with?

Sewing machines only sewed straight lines?

Electric irons were only "dry"

We "made" starch at home

Cotton, wool, silk, and linen were the only fibers available for fabric? (also jute for burlap)

Fabrics and thread came with a "boilfast" label?

Pieces were cut out one at a time - templates were not made of plastic - cardboard, metal, paper

I remember my great Aunt cutting templates from cardboard. Don't remember any boilfast label or making any starch at home. I started quilting in the early 80s.

Yes, remember when...and that makes me appreciate all the newer conveniences even more! Can't imagine cutting everything with scissors anymore! I bought one of the first rotary cutters that came out (and it sat in my drawer for quite awhile as I was scared to use it and no one I knew at that time had one to show me how to use it!) I did quilting many years with scissors, templates, and hand-stitching. Quilting has come a long way!

I remember my mom cooking starch. It came in a powder and was added to cold water and stirred constantly until it came to a boil so it wouldn't lump. Then the starch was thinned with water in a tub, and the clothes that needed starching were put in the tub, thoroughly soaked, then sent through the wringer (yes, we had a wringer washer with two tubs) to squeeze all the starch out. Then the clothes were dried outside on a line, then brought them in and sprinkled with water, wrapped in a terrycloth towel and put in the back refrigerator until we had time to iron them.

I made all my buttonholes by hand. There were no fabric stores in my home town. Fabric was sold at TG&Y and at Woolworths, and Coats & Clark was the only thread they sold.

I still cut templates out of cardboard.

Because I'm cheap like that.

I use a dry iron with a spray bottle of water. Too cheap to replace my steam iron that started vomiting rusty water. (shudders)

But I only use scissors anymore for odd shapes.

Oh YES, I do remember all of these things, we also had the wringer washer and tubs for rinse. We always started with white close and finished with jeans. Everything was washed and rinsed in the same water. We also made our own starch.

We also made our templates with cardboard and later with sandpaper. Boy does this bring back a lot of fond memories.

Oh all right, so some of us pre-date plastic, panty-hose, ball-point-pens, 33RPM records...remember buying yarn and Coast and Clark thread at Woolworths... hanging clothes on the line (but we just sprayed with water and ironed, none of the fancy fridge routine) ;)
A walk down memory lane for sure!

All all all of the above.... and don't forget the "laundry stick".....a cut off broom handle that we used to lift the clothes out of the hot water and put them into the stationary tubs of cooler water before going through the ringer. It was a marvel when we got a washer with a removable hand crank ringer assembly and a built in small spinner next to the wash tub.

Oh...and no trash burning allowed in the Burgh on Monday--- Monday was wash day !!!

However...i still do the powdered starch and boiling water method for my DH dress shirts. He loves them heavily starched - and for his traveling then stay much nicer that way....so some things carry on.

Yes do I ever remember, I hated the time it took to cut. I remember living in the country until I was six and watching my mother wash clothes in tubs outside carrying buckets of water from a well. Boiling then in a big cast iron pot and using soap she hand made every fall when they killed hogs. When we moved to town she bough a ringer Maytag washer and was thrilled. I look back at being a housewife back then as to what it is now and wonder how they ever got it all done. Being a housewife was a hard back breaking full time job.

I'mm 55 and I remember when the first rotary cutter came out. that guy had to send his assistants back to the truck to get more supplies. it seemed everyone bought one but me. it took me a year to save up for the whole setup, I cut with templates since iwas 10 or so, this rotary system cut my quilting time in half!! It's amazing we got quilting done at allwith qall the old fashioned ways. I'm glad I learned it the old way. I was self taught. didn't know I was making quilts back then, I just thought it was all part of sewing, didn't know it was going to be as popular as it was.