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Home » Sewing » 1930s Flour Sacks Featured Colorful Patterns For Women To Make Dresses

1930s Flour Sacks Featured Colorful Patterns For Women To Make Dresses

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Times were lean during the Great Depression,so scrimping and saving and reusing everything possible was a way of life.

Today, people still loveto save money and reduce waste through clever DIY projects,like turning old tires into lovely ottomans. But in those days, “doing it yourself” wasn’t a trend; itwas a necessity.

In those difficult times, if women wanted to provide for their families, they had to get creative especially when it came to clothing.

That’s whenwomennoticed that one of their food staples flour came in cotton sacks. Innovative and desperate,theyoften emptied the sacksandused the fabric to make clothing for their children.

But whenflour sack manufacturers caught word of the trend, they decided to reinvent the way they packed their flour and the results are stunning!

Did you or anyone you know ever wear a flour sack dress? Let us know in the comments below.

(h/t: Kindness Blog)

When flour manufacturers saw women turning their flour sacks into clothing, diapers, dish cloths, and more, they started packing their flour in pretty patterns. Families greatly appreciated this, as times were very hard.

When

Via Kindness Blog

The sacks came with bright, colorful designs, and sometimes patterns for toys like the one seen here being filled with flour for delivery. The sacks were labeled, but the ink was washable.

The

Pinterest

Due to the tight budgets of struggling families, flour sack clothing was very common thus, many unique designs were printed on the sacks.

Due

Via Kindness Blog

The patterns came in a variety of colors and styles. There was something for everyone!

The

Via Kindness Blog

It’s estimated that during the Depression, 3.5 million women and children were wearing clothing and using items made from flour sacks.

It's

Via Kindness Blog

It seems strange to think about wearing a flour sack now, but for millions, it was a way of life due to the severity of the Depression.

It

Via Kindness Blog

And if they had to wear flour sacks, they might as well have looked nice.

And

Via Kindness Blog

The patterns were diverse in styles, as manufacturers tried to make something appealing for people of all ages and interests.

The

Via Kindness Blog

Many of them were adorable, and fabric designers still use a lot of the same styles today.

Many

Via Kindness Blog

The sacks even came with instructions on how to wash out the ink of the company’s printed logo.

The

Via Kindness Blog

There were also tutorials on how to turn the sacks into all kinds of useful items. These were like the DIY articles of the 1930s.

There

Via Kindness Blog

Some sacks even came with instructions and suggestions printed right on them in washable ink, of course.

Some

The Etsy Blog

As the popularity of flour sack clothing grew, booklets with sewing ideas for “cotton bags” were distributed.

As

Treasures N Textures

The children you see here are wearing clothes made from the flour sacks. But because of the bright patterns (and some serious sewing skills) you’d never guess.

The

Via Kindness Blog

Often, people could tell which children were related based purely on their outfits as their clothes shared the same sack pattern.

Often,

Textile Ranger

And it wasn’t just children. Women made dresses for themselves out of the bags, as well.

And

Via Kindness Blog

Some women even used their sewing skills to bring in some extra cash, sewing dresses and other items for friends and neighbors.

Some

Vintage Dancer

And when the clothing finally wore out, it would be cut up and made into something else, like a quilt.

And

The Etsy Blog

However, things changed with the onset of World War II. Cotton started being rationed to make uniforms for soldiers, and people were more than willing to give up the fabric in order to support the war effort.

However,

NWW2M

From then on, flour was packaged in paper bags and it’s been that way ever since. Who knew something as simple as flour could be so rich in American history!

From

Pinterest

Reusing and recycling materials is not only a great way to be more sustainable it’s also a part of our American heritage!

Inspire some thriftiness bySHARINGthis article, and see what genius ways you can reuse old things.

Read more: http://www.littlethings.com/flour-sack-dresses/

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