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| The Farm, c. 1950 |
My
Grandparents Dobson, living on the farm in the first half of the 20th
century, used the Sears Roebuck catalog to order items they needed. I don’t
know if they had the Montgomery Ward catalog, but my mother said she shopped
from both Sears and Wards in the ‘30s and ‘40s. Once she placed her Ward’s
order in the Sears’ envelope and vice versa. The two companies notified her
that they had made the necessary exchange. She was embarrassed for what she saw
as a careless error, but she was grateful for their efficiency. Truth be told,
it probably happened frequently.
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| C. O. Portfors, c. 1954 |
My
Grandfather Portfors, a businessman, preferred the John Plain catalog. John
Plain was a wholesaler, and the deal was that you had to order through a
business. Since my grandfather owned the Ford Garage, the family could order
anything from the John Plain catalog, even if it had nothing to do with the
automotive world. A number of my dolls came from John Plain, and more often
than not, something was wrong with them. Mother believed that John Plain sold
“seconds,” and that might have been true, but we put up with it.
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| Grandma Nina Portfors, c. 1954 |
Grandpa
Portfors always said that Grandma could have anything she wanted as long as it
came from the John Plain catalog, and yes, Grandma did feel restricted. She
frequently had to compromise her heart’s desire, which, I might add, was
needless. But these are the attitudes with which we were raised, and they
influence us to this day.
My
mother also shopped other catalogs. I remember that the Miles Kimball catalog had
a cute little story every other page, and she would read those to me until I
could read them for myself. Then there was Lee Ward’s, not to be confused with
Montgomery Ward. Lee Ward sold crafting supplies, and wonderful things came
from there, including Mother’s boutique ornament kits, string lights for the
tree, etc. Eventually the business was sold to Michael’s and closed.
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| The view on a recent walk |
When
I had a family of my own, I shopped catalogs very little. By that time, I could
find what I needed / wanted in the marts, and I didn’t feel I could afford to
be frivolous. It wasn’t until online shopping came into being and I was retired
that I began to make orders.
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| Nell & Bess -- Oh the wonderful smells! |
I
really enjoyed the “Black Friday to Cyber Monday” weekend, and I placed a
number of online orders. A few things will come in boxes. As a matter of fact, UPS just delivered
one of them, but most of it was downloads. And just like my mother, I did
something silly. I forgot to use the code that would allow me a bonus pattern
bundle, so I pressed the seller’s contact button to state my plight and my
apologies. A very nice customer service rep replied that she was there to help
me with anything I needed, and she provided the links. KW
4 comments:
We, too, ordered from both catalogs when I was growing up, but not extensively. We seldom got as far as even Lewiston, so the catalogs provided a source for things not available in our town. I must say, I miss those big catalogs, and the Christmas one, especially. Oh the dreams they held!
I ordered not one single thing over this big cyber weekend. All the tempting emails were steadfastly deleted from my inbox lickety split. It seems I have no needs and very few wants at this time. And my crafting room is well stocked as is my kitchen.
I shopped Pixie Faire for doll patterns that fit into my advent project. Of course, I might not have time to use them. We'll see. But I admit that just shopping to be shopping, looking for something to buy, does not interest me. I usually have a couple of things in mind, and beyond that, I'm not interested. And I'm not buying into that "last chance" stuff. You know there will be another good deal.
I miss looking at the big catalogs and the Sears Wishbook, too. They filled a niche in our society for many years.
I cannot add to the conversation about catalog ordering, but I have a question. Is that an outhouse at the bottom right of the first photo? If so, was it later moved or was a new one built in the grove?
The roof looks right for an outhouse, doesn't it? I don't think that's what it is, though, because when I was little (approximately the timeframe of this photo), the outhouse was behind the woodshed and approached from the right of it. Outhouses have to be moved from time to time, so Daddy and Chuck moved it farther north and turned it around so that it faced into the grove. Daddy told me that the appropriate phrase for using the outhouse was, "I'm going out north."
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