Thrift coupled, with a good plan, will make a success every time. The young man I have mentioned above had a very poor appearance, was not educated, and had much to overcome, but his willingness to sacrifice clothes, amusements and even food and sleep for a good plan brought him permanent business in a remarkably short time.
PLAN No. 695. CLOTHES CLINIC
She had a family of six and she was the sole support of the home. All six children were too young to work. The mother was ambitious for their education and determined to do all that was possible to give them all the educational advantages of other children.
To begin with, she had some old clothes on hand, and she soon became very skilful in making them over into handsome suits for the boy and pretty dresses for the girls. In fact, her children were the best dressed of any in their school. Their clothes all had the appearance of being made by a tailor. She dyed their shoes and made hats, coats, dresses, underwear, neckwear and stockings. She became familiar with dying and learned to remove stains from clothing.
People soon learned of her skill in this work. She arranged to teach other mothers her art and received a good income every year from this source. She would also, for a certain sum, take an old suit or dress and help the mothers plan and cut out the kind of dress or suit it could be made into.
During the war-time her work became very popular, as lots of good material was found in old garments. Her specialty enabled her to assist others to make a great saving in the home every year.
The government offered good assistance in this work during the war. The Board of Vocational Education, Washington, D. C., puts out a pamphlet on “Clothes for the Family” that would be an asset in any home. During the war, in different parts of the country, there have been fashion shows of clothes which were made from old garments. In one instance a pretty little dress was made from a pink woolen nightgown.
This should be an excellent specialty for any ambitious woman. Clothes should not be wasted when there is so much poverty.
A man and wife could base substantial and profitable business on the above lines. Among the well-to-do, old clothing consisting of excellent cloth can be purchased for a song. These garments can be made into first-class outfits, by proper cleaning and tailoring, and sold at a good profit.