A short post this week. I'm continuing to work away at my knitting, and I have a new dressmaking project started, but neither are well enough progressed to be worth a blog post. So instead, here's a little leaflet from Singer which I came across recently. I think that it dates from the mid 1950s.
It's only four pages, a single sheet folded in half, and it provides details of the services available from Singer shops. These seem to have existed in most towns: this leaflet comes from the Liverpool shop, my buttonholer was originally bought from the Chester shop, my mother remembers there being one in Crewe, and her sewing machine came from the shop in Golders Green (a north London suburb).
Unfortunately, by the time I realised that the first photo was blurred, it was too late to go back and retake it. I've added the two sections of text below.
It's only four pages, a single sheet folded in half, and it provides details of the services available from Singer shops. These seem to have existed in most towns: this leaflet comes from the Liverpool shop, my buttonholer was originally bought from the Chester shop, my mother remembers there being one in Crewe, and her sewing machine came from the shop in Golders Green (a north London suburb).
Unfortunately, by the time I realised that the first photo was blurred, it was too late to go back and retake it. I've added the two sections of text below.
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| Learn to sew with Singer |
"Topsy Turvy was my label when it came to home dressmaking and home was written all over it. Could a novice like myself become a proficient needlewoman? To my surprise the Singer Sewing Centre said "Yes" and proved it! After eight lessons of their expert tuition, I had made a dress - which certainly did not go unnoticed. Yes, it's all sew easy from now on!"
SINGER SERVICE . . . This little folder is presented to you to acquaint you with the many Singer Services. Firstly SINGER SEWING CENTRES where, in eight easy lessons from experienced instructresses, you can make yourself a dress as you learn home dressmaking . . . Then there is
The reference to the new dress not going unnoticed reminded me of something I read when I was studying for my Masters; "The Sewing Machine as Magic Wand" by Eileen Margerum in The Culture of Sewing. This looked at how Singer advertised its Teen-Age [sic] Sewing Course in the post-war years with the basic premise of 'make a new dress and get a boy'. While the language of this leaflet is less teen-oriented, the message is similar.
Things don't improve greatly on the second page.
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| Get your machine repaired or serviced |
Having inherited her grandmother's machine, the narrator apparently needed her husband to suggest that it should be serviced. I was intrigued, though, that at this time Singer were describing their older machines as "first class" and worth keeping, rather than pushing the idea of a trade-in for a newer model. Admittedly, in terms of features there is not a lot of difference between my 1930s treadles and Mum's 1953 machine, so perhaps at that time the focus was on persuading customers to electrify. Which brings us on to page three.
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| Convert to electric sewing |
The emphasis on having both hands free rather overlooks the fact that this advantage was already available to treadle owners, but never mind!
Finally, page four reverts to the fairy tale theme with a vengeance, complete with a fairy godmother with a magic wand.
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| Oh, to have a local button and belt making service now! |
One of the things which I want to look at in my study of Vogue Pattern Books is sewing machine advertising, and it will be interesting to see how Singer advertisements in particular compare to this leaflet.
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