A spectacular miniature fashion mannequinkit for the young fashion designer duringWorld War II, including the mannequin &stand, several outfits, sewing implements,skeins of colour silk thread & blue woolyarn, sewing patterns 4390 and 4402, booksincluding: Miniature Fashions Simplicitysewing book for young fashion desingers;Miniature Fashions Simplicity, hints for theyoung desinger, all contained in originaloak case

A spectacular miniature fashion mannequinkit for the young fashion designer duringWorld War II, including the mannequin &stand, several outfits, sewing implements,skeins of colour silk thread & blue woolyarn, sewing patterns 4390 and 4402, booksincluding: Miniature Fashions Simplicitysewing book for young fashion desingers;Miniature Fashions Simplicity, hints for theyoung desinger, all contained in originaloak case
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New York: Simplicity Pattern Co., Inc., for Latexture Products, Inc., 1943. Oblong oak case (16.75 x 12.5 x 4 in.), dovetailed, w/brass clasp, hinges, and wooden handles on eitherend, with tray, and rails on inner side of lid to holdpatterns & books, cardboard die-cut inserts to hold kitpieces (some scuffing, edgewear, rubbing to lid &base) which include: 15 inch tall doll made fromcomposite, molded wedge shoes on feet, w/ pegs,brunette hair w/ 1940s era hairstyle, fitted compositearms present as issued, stamped Latexture copyrightNY on back; 3.5 x 3.5 gold-painted base with holesdrilled with which to mount the doll; 2 plasticthimbles; spool of thread, skeins of various colouredsilk sewing thread, 2 sewing machine bobbins w/thread; 1 skein of blue wool yarn, w/ knitted scarf,dressed in finished outfit, several others, clippedpattern clipped with sewing pin; 2 Simplicity patterns(w/o the blue composition dress form often used aspincushion by young seamstresses, or the linenmeasuring tape). First book: 4to. 88 pp. 100s of text illustrations,diagrams, colour illustrations, colour plates at center.Quarter-black cloth over colour-illustrated softcovers(minor creasing, shelfwear, light uniform toning), stillVG; 2nd book: 4to. [16 pp (unpaginated)]., photoillustrations & text illustrations throughout. Illustratedself-printed wrappers (minor creasing, shelfwear), stillVG copy, stapled as issued. This fantastic Miniature Fashion Mannequin doll andcase offer an invaluable time capsule for a vital pieceof the Home Front effort during World War II.Introduced just before the War, these Fashiondolsproduced by Latexture Products were intended tooffer young girls the means to practice sewing andlearn to produce their own fashion designs, withouthaving to use adult size patterns. With wartimerationing, and fabrics in short supply, these fashionmannequins offered an excellent means to train youngwomen. Perhaps the most significant aspect of thesefashion dolls was that matching patterns could bepurchased from Simplicity in adult sizes as well, somothers and daughters could sit side by side and sewthe same dress, fit their respective mannequins, orcrochet miniature hats. The Miniature Fashion SewingBook is exceedingly scarce and instructions called forthe same construction used in adult sewing: intricateshaping with darts and tucks, side placket openings,facings and lapels, with no simplifying of instructionsfor young hands. Typically these kits were purchasedwith just the doll and possibly the dress form, and acouple sewing kit pieces, but more elaborate ones likethis would have extra trays for holding fashionscompleted, extra supplies, and lots of room foradditional patterns. This present kit includes severalfinished pieces by the young fashion designer --muslin blouse & apron, cotton colour percale apron, aslip, a strapless red silk evening dress w/ black lacetrim, a red striped sundress, and the doll is dressed inan excellent miniature representation of a Women’sArmy Auxiliary Corps uniform. These MiniatureFashion Mannequins continued to be heavilymarketed into the early 1950s, and paved the way forfuture adult fashion dolls such as Barbie, and thosesimilar which followed. See: Womans Day, February,March, April, May, June, November, 1943 forRationing information of fabrics; S.S. Kresge 1942 fallneedlework catalogue; Wade Laboissonniere,Blueprints in Fashion, home sewing of the 1940s(1997); Worldcat locates 1 similar piece (NationalLibrary of Australia); No copies located of the 2 books. (Item Id: 106899)

$1,500.00
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