Tag Archives: lingerie

Say goodbye to girdles!

Circa 1949 magazine ad for Blue Swan Suspants
Circa 1949 magazine ad for Blue Swan Suspants

The answer to a maiden’s prayer.

Wanna see the Blue Swan Mills factory? Just scroll at bit at the link.

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This is why we can’t have nice things. Oh, wait…

1948 magazine ad for the Van Raalte Company
1948 magazine ad for the Van Raalte Company

I’m assuming this company wasn’t named after Dutch Reformed clergyman Albertus van Raalte, but maybe?

Nope. It’s was Emanuel van Raalte. Oh well.

I tried, but can’t quite make out the artist’s signature. Probably not Walt Disney.

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Rhythm is gonna get you.

1948 magazine ad for Rhythm Lingerie
1948 magazine ad for Rhythm Lingerie

Slip into something a little more comfortable.

Enjoy a brief history of nylon from Mental Floss.

Enjoy a less-brief history of nylon from Science History Institute.

A little bit and a little bit more on “artist of the stars” Bradshaw Crandell.

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Because who doesn’t enjoy pointy bras from 1961!?

Earlier this year, an antique shop owner in town was retiring and winding down her store. I picked up a pretty good batch of vintage magazines at a nice price on the last weekend, and went back after work on Monday, the final day, just to see if I had missed anything.

Well, turns out I was recognized and she had an impressive stock of vintage magazines in back that never made it out on the floor. She made me a great offer and I took it. And on top of that, she had a collection of various things she had cut out of other old magazines — random photos and illustrations from ads, stories and features — that she had started on for an unspecified “girly project” but decided after a while that it was too much work. She had this particular collection stored in the cover/lid from a case of office copier paper and it was filled to overflowing. She offered it to me for five more bucks and I said yep.

I still haven’t made it to the bottom of her cutouts, but so far have found a plethora of full, intact vintage ads, and also many partial ads where she was only interested in the primary photo or illustration and saw no need to cut out or keep the rest (headline, body copy, logo, etc.). The image below is one such example.

I am Spartacus.

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