Learn from the past

As a vintage/history enthusiast, it is often funny to me how my generation takes credit for ideas, products, and even ways of life that are decades or centuries old. Spanx? Yeah. Thats a weak girdle.

Most people who grew up during the depression or the war are the "greenest" people you'll ever know. Only they didn't call it "green", they just called it life. It was a necessity for saving money, and making the most of rationed materials and guidelines. I know there are many ways modern culture uses the resources we have to conserve energy on a large scale: solar power, recycling plants, etc. But as far as having a green way of life, those people can tell you young whippersnappers how it's really done.

I have a few knitting and sewing books from the 1940s, and they are full of patterns for non-wasteful everyday things. Lots of reusable market bag patterns for instance. Plastic grocery bags were not in existence until the late 1970s, until then there was paper, and whatever cloth bag you brought with you.

Making new clothing out of old frocks was a necessity for almost everyone during WWII. It's now a fun way to take old unwanted clothing and make them into something new, but back then, it was the only way you would get a new dress, blouse, or hat. There are even patterns and how-to booklets for turning old into new, it was especially popular for women to take their husbands, fathers, or brothers suit, and turn it into something for themselves.

Homemade cleaning supplies are nothing new. They did wonders with vinegar, baking soda, and lemon.

Canning, buying food locally, purchasing dry goods in bulk, growing your own vegetables, keeping chickens, It's all been done.

Saving the last bits of soap bars, drying laundry on a clothesline, mending good clothes. They did it first.

My favorite online resource for helpful domestic tips and tricks from a pre-Martha Stewart era is Things Your Grandmother Knew. It is full of snippets from old magazines that will make you go "Oh! Thats amazing! Why didn't I think of that!"

Also check online, antique shops, and thrift stores for little booklets and hard back books that contain a wealth of "Make do and Mend" knowledge.

Honestly I think it's more difficult now to live a wasteless life since we live in a disposable world. We no longer have milkmen to drop off bottles of milk in the morning. Our flour no longer comes in cotton bags we can turn into blouses and dishtowels. Our snacks are conveniently pre-packaged in little plastic bags. Even our fruit can come individually wrapped. Toys come with a crazy amount of packaging, even books, books come wrapped in plastic.

What are your "green" methods of living?

My vacuum matches my kitchen appliances.

I get a lot of nice emails from Vixen Vintage readers. However the other day I got a rather unusual one :" This is probably going to sound funny/odd but 'Do you want my vacuum?"

As a matter of fact I do!

Even though we moved into our place in April (or maybe end of March, whatever), Sam and I had yet to buy a vacuum for our carpeted apartment. For the record, I hate carpet. Rugs, I am in favor of, but beige industrial carpet? Just writing that sentence makes my nose wrinkle.
So if having an ugly carpet was not enough, I would also have to get an ugly vacuum. No thanks, I'll just keep the curtains closed and pretend the floor stays clean, and buy a hat instead. That is my logic: Why buy something ugly and practical when I can have something pretty and unpractical?!

And for that reason I have more hats and dresses than I can ever hope to show you, and until yesterday, no vacuum.

But when pretty and practical marry, and have gorgeous, useful offspring, I am in heaven.

Jessi, a sweet and need I say generous blog reader, stopped by my workplace yesterday and dropped off this little beauty of a vacuum, it's a reproduction 1950s Eureka! She is moving and didn't want to haul it with her, and thought I might appreciate it's retro prettiness. I have not been so excited over a vacuum since I asked for one for Christmas when I was 4 (I was a weird kid).

When I got home I used it right away and it is surprisingly powerful! Now I can open the curtains! Woohoo!

I currently cannot bring myself to put it away in the closet, so it sits in my living room, just being pretty. The only info I could find on it (actually Jessi sent it to me), is this Amazon listing, which doesn't even have them for sale, it just taunts you.

So thank you a million times to Jessi, now I can pretend to be June Cleaver without a hitch ;)

Vixens need to clean too

Here are excerpts from the 1952 book "How to clean everything" by Alma Chesnut Moorre. Described as and "Encyclopedia of what to use and how to use it" this book seems to have solutions for cleaning or preserving anything in your house, and is especially useful for vintage things that newer cleaning books do not include. I have only used the silk scarf method, so I cannot tell you from experience how well the others work, but feel free to try one out and let me know :)

STOCKINGS

"The following general instructions are for all kinds of stockings. Wash them by hand as soon as possible after wearing, since perspiration is bad for all types. Remove catchy rings and use warm suds, made with pure soap flakes or detergent. Do not rub soap directly on your stockings, and do not twist, rub or wring them and you may break a delicate thread and cause a run. Instead squeeze them gently through the suds. Rinse in lukewarm water, roll in a turkish towel and pat to remove excess moisture. Ease gently into shape and dry away from heat and sunlight. Rayon stockings require careful handling because the fibers are weak when wet or damp. In shaping them dry, stretch the ankles gently crosswise. Allow them to dry at least thrity-six hours before wearing them. If rayons are not thoroughly dry when they are worn they will stretch and sag and threads will be broken causing runs. Nylons dry so quickly and are so sheer that they are likely to float right off rods and racks with the attendant danger of snagging. To avoid this place a dry towel on the rod and hang the stockings over that."

BAKELITE-MOLDED PHENOLIC

*There were three different types of plastics that made up various bakelite products, but this one was used for radios.*

"Molded Phenolic maintains it luster, strength and rigidity through repeated washings and under humid service conditions. Alcohol, oils and grease do not affect it. It will not transmit electricity. Trade-marks for molded phenolics are Bakelite, G.E. Phenolic, Indur and Resinox. Wash phenolic plastics with a cloth or sponge wrung of warm suds made with soap or detergent. Do not use scouring powders. Keep them from direct flame to avoid charring. They will not burn."





SILK SCARVES

*Most silk garments should be taken to a professional cleaner, but most scarves can be washed by hand using this method*

"Synthetic detergents are much better for silk because silks are damaged by alkalines, and even the purest soap is likely to be alkaline in reaction. In hand laundering silks do not rub the fabric but squeeze and work in about in the suds in cool or lukewarm water. Rubbing is likely to break the fibers and dull the finish. Rinse carefully in water of the same temperature, then remove excess moisture by squeezing and patting it between dry towels. Do not wrinkle silks more than Necessary. Wrinkles, especially those caused by an extractor are difficult to remove. No not hand silks in the sun or place them near any source of heat. But do dry them as quickly as possible. Rapid drying in front of an electric fan prevents formation of watermarks, and aids in retaining the glossy finish. Exquisite bits of sheer silks, especially those inclined to run are sometimes dried by shaking them gently until of the proper dampness for ironing. Silks should be uniformaly damp when they are pressed. Iron them before they have dried completely for best results. (If allowed to dry, dampening may cause water spots.)If they are too wet when ironed, the material will be stiff and papery. Use warm (never hot) iron and press on the wrong side, preferably with a piece of clean cheesecloth protection the fabric. "

STRAW HATS

"Keep them will brushed and they will be damaged less if caught in the rain. To clean them, wipe with a cloth dipped in warm suds, made with a synthetic detergent or soap. Rinse with a cloth wrung out of plain water. Do not get a straw hat too wet or it may shrink. Limp straws can be stiffened by brushing them over with a light coat of sheer shellac, diluted with an equal amount of alcohol. To brighten color and renew the gloss of dark straws, rub them with a dark cloth dampened with denatured alcohol, diluted with one quarter the amount of water, then polish them lightly with a piece of dark colored velvet."

FELT HATS

"You can keep felt hats neatly brushed and you can remove surface dirt with a clean rubber sponge. For a beauty treatment steam the hat gently, using the tip of your steam iron or the spout of a teakettle. Steam the crown first, turning the hat slowly until the surface has been covered, then brush it lightly in the direction of the nap. Steam the brim and brush it. Do not get the hat too wet or it will shrink."

VEILS

"Veils that have lost their oomph can be restored with gum arabic solution. Dip limp veils in the solution, spread them on a towel and press them carefully with a warm iron. Another method is to press them between two pieces of waxed paper.

Thank you to Atomic Mama, Andrea, Roslyn Joyce, Kendra, and Casey for submitting you questions!

"How to Clean Everything"

I got a book a few months ago, "How to Clean Everything" and was really exited to find it at a thrift store. From 1952 it is in perfect condition and has items listed in alphabetical order and how to clean them. It's so interesting because there are items that have become outdated you wont find in modern cleaning books, but I know a lot of you have these things like bakelite and stockings. Seriously , this book seems to have everything big or small, from things you wear, to your actual home, it's like a little cleaning encyclopedia.

So, here's what I want you to do. If you don't know how to clean something, or are curious to know how it was cleaned in the 1950s, just comment with what you want to know and I will do a post in a week with the answers.




And yeah. That's what I look like when I clean. Doesn't everyone?

;)