Originally Posted by
Rodney
I was watching a Quilt in a Day episode a few days ago and Eleanor was showing depression fabric prices. they worked out to about half an hour's income at minimum wage. You can buy decent quality solid fabric today for about the same rate, a half hour of minimum wage labor. Prints may run a bit more. Careful shopping brings the price down some. Over the long term it doesn't matter what the numbers are, it's how much it works out to as a percentage of wages. As fuel (energy) prices go up, the cost of everything else goes up as well, usually with wages being last in line.
I haven't bought there yet but I was at Thousands of Bolts' website looking just a few minutes ago and batiks were averaging around $7.00 a yard there. Not a bad price IMO. I didn't check other types of fabric, it's not what I'm after right now.
Rodney
I think in order to compare apples to apples, you'd need to compare store prices to minimum wages. Let's take your average store in little town, America. What do they sell fabric for? I'd bet about $7/yard. what is minimum wage? (I don't know). Half that. Can we find fabric at that price? Not regularly, I'd bet and not all cotton high quality unless it is a deep sale.
We can find those prices if we work at it, but during the depression, I think people just went to the local mercantile. That was the store that sold everything retail. So, comparing retail in small town america at little store (I was such a town last May/June) and the price was about $7/yard for fabric of good enough quality) to minimum wage. What is it? I don't know and don't want to look it up right now.