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Make it yourself

Sarah A. Gordon

2008164 pagesabout 3–4 hours
2008
first published
  • 2008Columbia University Press · 164 pages · ENGISBN 9780231142441

"Through home sewing, Sarah A. Gordon examines domestic labor, marketing practices, changing standards of feminity and understanding of class, gender, and race from 1890 to 1930. As ready -made garments became increasingly available due to industrialization, many women, out of necessity or choice, continued to make their own clothing ... The shifting meanings of sewing formed a contested space in which businesses promoted sewing machines as tools for maintaining domestic harmony, women interpreted patterns to suit -or flout- definitions of appropriate appearances, and girls were taught to sew in ways that reflected beliefs about class, race, and region."

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