Sunbonnet Sue and Friends: Black and White Illustrations from Music Books

This Sunbonnet Sue is from an Etude Magazine. She has an ingenious ironing board, literally a board suspended by two chairs. The following were illustrations in an early 20th c children's piano book.

One Patch Quilt

I found this many years ago in an antique mall outside of Lansing, MI for $20 or less. Simple, but it is fun to look at the fabrics. The fabrics were in good shape, but I did have to replace some fabrics which had rotted. I appliqued a fabric square over the original fabric. The quilt was not stained, so it was in pretty good shape for being so cheap. The batting is quite heavy and bulky, and makes the fan quilting stand out more.

In the photo below the purple colored blocks is new fabric appliqued over the rotted blocks. You can tell because they are not quilted.

1921 Philipsborn Catalogue

The last of my old catalogs is a winter 1921 Philipsborn of Chicago. The claim that over "Thirty One years we have Served Millions and Saved Them Millions." Rather ragged, and missing its covers, it offers 280 pages of fashion illustrations in color and black and white, including unmentionables, corsets, and handkerchiefs, and even hair extensions.

Note the slim silhouette, the dropped waists, and short hemlines. Narrow sashes, pleats, and buttons were in. I love the embroidery and details using Chenille or glass and bugle beads. You can see the emerging Art Deco influence in the embroidery. The models all have bobbed hair. Mary Jane shoes with straps abound.

The silk mignonette dress on the right features five rows of fringe and was available in black, platinum grey or brown for $10.88. The "petal bottom" hem of the center dress was a new fashion. The silk embroidered dress could be had for $10.98. Steel colored bugle beads ornate the silk Georgette dress with picoted ruffled sleeve son the left, available in grey, tan or navy  for $9.68.

Three suits for the modern young woman of 1921. The left has silk embroidery and a "Directoire" style turnover collar and came in dark brown, navy or reindeer for $24.98. The middle suite with a high choke collar has silk embroidery. For $19.98 it came in Navy blue or black. The right suite has a Beaverette, or sheered coney, collar with a stylish choker collar and embroidery ornamenting the wide lapped folds on the coat bottom. It came in Reindeer or Havana Brown for $33.98

Adorable sweaters and tam hats, with shawl or caplet collars, self-belted, and pocketed.

"House and street dresses" costs started at $1.46. Most were in gingham or plaid, with chambray in the foreground, and seem a cross between a robe and a dress.

Hats! Still a fashion must-have item. Feathers and pleats and ruffles galore!

The functional boot involved a lat of lacing.

Corsets were still worn under the looser dresses. Or you could choose ladies long johns!

I do love these coats! The left coat has a Beaverette collar. The middle coat was inspired by the popularity of the knitted cape, but was a brushed wool. The coat on the right in a napped velour featured braided trim and a tassel finish.

Bobbed hair beauties primping for a night on the town? Description for the left dress reads "Note the smart becoming lines given by the tinsel embroidery on the long graceful collar." Available in taupe, plum or black for $14.98. Middle dress "is one of our handsomest models" with a lavish use of bugle and glass bead embroidery, available in Midnight Blue and Seal brown for $18.48. Right hand dress has ribbon loops down sides of the skirt in front and back, with a draped waist and elbow sleeves with ribbon trimming. It was in silk satin in black, in midnight blue or mocha brown at $14.98.

Being a collector of handkerchiefs, I enjoy seeing what was being sold in 1921. More embroidery, of course, but also some drawn work, but nearly always white. In the center left you see the one women's print choice for 59 cents each. For 28 cents men's print handkerchiefs are  found at center left bottom.

Perhaps I will add some more fashions in the future.

Michigan 101: The Little Deers and Other Critters

Since living in West Michigan we have seen a lot of animals in our yards. Even living in the 'village' deer run through the yard and fox and owl can be heard at night.

When we lived in a newly built house in the woods every spring Mama Deer had two fawn. Mama would come around the house every day, just like she had for years before the house was there. The brazen fawn is below. Mama and the twin stayed in the woods.

Other critters in the yard included a Box Turtle, who migrated from the woods to the sand to lay her eggs, and a Wood Frog who lived in a hole in our fence one summer. I could not find our frog, so I am sharing my brother's.

Tom Turkey and his family came through regularly, eating the acorns from the oak trees.

Later we lived in a house near farmed land and an open field. We had lots of amphibians.

Mud Puppies are pretty yucky looking!

And with the amphibians came the Sandhill Cranes.

My brother took this photo of a Sandhill Crane.

My brother's cabin has a nice spring feed pond that hosts salamanders.

And also attracts lots of frogs.

My brother has the ability to sneak up on animals. He gets great shots. Photographic that is.  Like the racoon below who did not notice my brother for the longest time.

'Peekaboo' Beaver above and Possum below!

Great Blue Heron above and Trumpeter Swan to the left. We had hundreds of Swan in Montague's White River.




And we have snakes. Lots of Hognose in the sandy areas around Lake Michigan. We once found a Milk Snake in our son's sandbox. Thankfully I never saw a Massasauga Rattlesnake!


















My brother has a motion camera and a salt lick and gets pics of the night life at his cabin, like this coyote.

Plus Michigan has Loon, Pileated Woodpecker, Redheaded Woodpecker, Flickers, and ducks and geese and gulls... And Bald Eagle have lived near most of our houses in the last ten years. Black bear have been seen in our area here. Bobcat sightings have occurred around the state.  And the Wolves are returning Up North.

I was shocked to hear that in Oakland County north of Detroit the deer have been running into the roads and making a mess of rush hour traffic! Coyote were seen in Woldumar Nature Center just outside of Lansing. And Peregrine Falcon live in the city park in Clawson, MI.

It is wonderful that animals who lost their natural habitat are returning to many places in the state. But I don't think the Plains Buffalo will be seen in Coldwater, New Buffalo, or anywhere else along the southern tier where they originally roamed. Except in the Buffalo ranches!