Vintage 1935 Makeup Contouring by Max Factor

Although makeup contouring became popularized recently by Kim Kardashian, it is nothing new.

In the above film,  legendary makeup master Max Factor contours a young actress to look like the "Claudine Colbert", who was a popular actress at the time.  

Vintage Jackson 648 Dynamic Tube Tester

This was spotted at a Habitat ReStore for sale for $75, but unless you repair vintage radio or guitar amplifiers or other vintage equipment, it would just be a cool geeky antique with a futuristic look with sort of steampunk quality to display.   The only other time I had seen one of these was at a hardware shop when I was a child and I am guessing this was manufactured in the 1950's as it looked fairly worn.   It was used to test tubes before they were purchased to make sure they were still good as they could fairly easily be damaged during shipment or handling.

The history of the company that manufactured is that the Jackson Electrical Instrument Company was founded in Dayton, Ohio in 1933 by Paul Jackson, who passed away in 1957.  In 1966 Jackson E.I. moved to Mineola, New York and it became Mercury Electronics Jackson, a division of Mercury Electronics, who had been their competitor, but then disbanded in the early '70's.   (Source: Radiomuseum.org)

The 648 series tube tester was the best known of product of Jackson Electrical and there were 40,000 units made in different variations.  (Source: Radiomuseum.org) 

For more information on vintage tube testers check out Tone Lizard's blog

VINTAGE WPA (WORK PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION) POSTERS NOW AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON FLICKR

I love vintage artwork and excited that the Library of Congress has available on Flickr 25 vintage WPA posters. 

"The 25 posters selected for this set come from the Library’s collection of over 900 WPA posters. (WPA meaning first Works Progress Administration, then Work Projects Administration.) The original silkscreen, lithograph, and woodcut posters were produced between 1936 and 1943 as part of one of the first U.S. Government programs to support the arts. The posters, typically 22 x 14 inches in size, promoted exhibits, community activities, and health, safety, and educational programs."

This one is my favorite and is socially applicable today as it was 76 years ago.


For the link, click  HERE

1895 8th Grade Final Exam

My Uncle Mike sent this to me - it is an actual 1895 8th Grade Final Exam for a school in Salina, KS.  It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications. 
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph
4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of 'lie,''play,' and 'run.' 
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of punctuation. 
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar. 

Arithmetic (Time,1 hour 15 minutes)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. Deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. Wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold? 
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel, deducting 1,050 lbs. For tare? 
4. District No 33 has a valuation of $35,000.. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals? 
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs. Coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent. 
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft.. Long at $20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods? 
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt 

U.S. History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the discovery of   America by Columbus   
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States   
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas   
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion. 
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865. 

Orthography (Time, one hour) 
[Do we even know what this is??]
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals 
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u.'
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each. 
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis-mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last. 
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain, vein, raze, raise, rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks 
and by syllabication. 

Geography (Time, one hour)
1 What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas ? 
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America   
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , Manitoba , Hecla , Yukon , St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco   
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S. Name all the republics of Europe and give the capital of each..
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude? 
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.

I wonder how many high school students (or adults) today could answer all these questions (I know I couldn't!).

GROOVY GARB

A long time ago, back in the dark ages before DVD, CDs, video games, computer, the interenet  and  Cable TV, everything was about peace, love and Earth Day, when fringe was fab and color was cosmic - way back in the early 70's.

The above ad is from , What I Found, a blog that features retro/vintage patterns, fashions and ads.  This ad for "Knitting or Crocheting Great Fashion" is a good representation of those items from the early 70's.  I had versions of the poncho and scarf/hat set that my Mom, and avid crocheter, had crafted for me.  The only thing missing from the group is the granny square vest.

As retro items are starting to make a comeback, I would like to offer a word of advice if you would craft something similar to the above - be careful where you wear it and/or make it for as the holes in the garment, especially the poncho and scarf, can catch on things and result in injury.   I will never forget as a child running through a laundromat the poncho got caught a coin insert handle and I crashed to the floor knocking the wind out of me and I truly though I was going to die as it knocked the wind out me and I literally trying to gasp for air. 

For more items click here.


Photo via what-i-found

Modern Stylist Magazine - 1947

I love vintage fashions and I am a follower of What I Found,which is a goldmine of vintage clothing looks featuring different patterns (some which are available in her store), magazines and advertising material.  If you are into retro clothing or need to create a period piece from the last 100 years or so, I highly recommend checking out this site.

This cover is from a 1947 magazine called "Modern Stylist" and Tina at What I Found
indicates that this is the first time she has ever seen an issue of this magazine and if features several late 40's styles and some with instructions on how to make them and she will be showing more on this during the coming week.  I for one am staying tuned.

Picture and more info at http://what-i-found.blogspot.com/2010/02/modern-stylist-magazine-1947.htm