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There’s nothing in this hundred-year-old illustration that anyone today would recognize as a radio, but that is in fact what you are looking at. As we see again and again in catalogs, early technology was often awkward an unrefined. And yet it was also magic… Continue reading “An outfit for the person…who doesn’t believe in wireless”
Mid-century modern is not as common in mid-century catalogs as you might expect. This 1952 Glidden catalog is designed to help the housewife with solid ideas on how how to paint her home in Niagara Green ceilings and Diamond-colored walls… Continue reading Mid-Century Modern design creeps into your paint
S&H Green Stamps “Ideabook” 1975: What exactly is going on here? What this man staring at? And what does this have to do with lawn products? You'll need to click to see the entire catalog page… Continue reading Lawn Items…and what to use with them
The Brown Fence and Wire Company, 1941: This page is eye-catching as much for the date as for the subject matter. It’s early 1941 and this moment, over half of American farms still didn’t have electricity…. Continue reading This Black Leather Team Harness will handle any farm job
Lace bloomers and diamond-pattern rayon hose, cloche hats and Art Deco-patterned dresses – this was the “It” girls’ and flappers’ wardrobe in the summer of 1928…. Continue reading Jazz Age Sex Appeal
Need the sound of a cow for your next silent movie? A fly? A dog? A horse? How about an interurban train whistle or a baby’s cry? All available in this 1920’s Whittle Music catalog… Continue reading The Sounds of Silents
Watch this space. A collection of Christmas gift timepieces for him or her. $1 a week would buy you the the Bulova Goddess of Time model, and $2 weekly would pay for a Hamilton Pacer, a seriously space-age design… Continue reading Become a Goddess of Time for $35.95
So what were we reading exactly one hundred years ago? Skimming through the ads, you can’t help but notice the urgent headlines promoting books about the Great War — what we now call World War One…. Continue reading What We Were Reading 100 Years Ago…
During WWII, growing vegetables was not only patriotic – in a country still pulling out of the Great Depression, it was economical. Those packet of asparagus seeds were 5 cents each, and beans just 10 cents. Continue reading Vegetables – Vitamins – Victory!
It’s hard to appreciate how many modern conveniences, particularly of the electronic variety, began their lives so awkwardly. This Sears-Exclusive device brought closed-captioning to your existing TV for the not-insignificant price of $249… Continue reading At least 20 hours a week of captioned programs!
