Sears Roebuck, 1958
Totally Tubular
What the well-dressed house was wearing in 1958 – affordable, practical, up-to-the minute tubular furniture. Continue reading Totally Tubular
Sears Roebuck, 1958
Sears Roebuck, 1945
A Little Dickey for Valentine’s Day
No, not what you’re thinking. Continue reading A Little Dickey for Valentine’s Day
Toys'R'Us, 1997
90’s Kids
Were you a Toys’R’Us kid? Did you happily leaf through the sale catalogs that once were stuffed into Sunday newspapers? Then you’re a dinosaur too! Continue reading 90’s Kids
Estes Model Rockets, 1972
Space: The Final Hobby Frontier
Starting in the 1960s, boys could pursue a hobby which seemed exactly in tune with the Space Age – model rocketry. Continue reading Space: The Final Hobby Frontier
Hardin-Lavin, 1923
A World of Tubs
Coming up with names for products is always a challenge. Just ask car makers. So how about bathtubs? Continue reading A World of Tubs
Sears Roebuck, 1920
A Century of Progress
Sears, Fall 1920 100 years ago, what things were changing us? Cars, still, certainly. Also electrical items in their many manifestations. In 1920, the breakthrough was about to be radio broadcasting. Wireless communications (of either telegraphy or voice) represented the latest tech, proven during recent War. But the concept of sharing public audio performances for … Continue reading A Century of Progress
Aldens, 1966
What killed off women’s hats?
Aldens, Fall/Winter 1966 For most of the 20th century, women’s hats were a major fashion statement. We’ve shown off various styles in different decades: here and here for example. But suddenly in the 1960s, hats started fading from the pages of catalogs. Why? What killed off women’s hats? Women’s hair. Or – judging from this … Continue reading What killed off women’s hats?
Neiman-Marcus, 1979
Sweeping away the Decade
Chim Chimney Chim Chim Cheroo! In their quest for the best – or certainly the most novel – Christmas gifts, Neiman-Marcus ended the decade of the 1970s by offering up a pair of chimney sweeps. Continue reading Sweeping away the Decade
Sears Roebuck, 1899
Turn of the (19th) Century Toys
What was Christmas shopping like 120 years ago, sometime between Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol, the Wish Book, and the zillion gadgets that we augment our lives with these days? Continue reading Turn of the (19th) Century Toys
Sears Roebuck, 1965
A-door-able Christmas Decorations
Holiday decoration have been in an arms race in for decades now. The early years of the outdoor decoration derby were charmingly simple. And plastic. Continue reading A-door-able Christmas Decorations