Vintage Potions and Notions

How much fun it is to go to a rummage sale and find vintage sewing notions! The great thing about notions is that even if they are old (and sometimes *especially* if they are old) they are still useful, and so much about their design is delightful.

My first find was this "Imbitrox" box.

You can see the pencil writing on it saying "Snaps, Hooks, Belts", and that is exactly what was in the box. (Note the important moustache.)

Seam bindings are always useful. Wouldn't it be nice if they still cost 10 cents (like the pink one from Sears Roebuck.)

These wooden needle containers are the best. They're not plastic for one thing. I can't walk 3 feet without coming into contact with something or other made of plastic; so having a small, useful container that is a natural material is a breath of fresh air. And the container gives advice too: if your machine start skipping stitches, it's time to change the needle!

This little container I found along with the wooden ones of the same size, but this isn't exactly a notion -- it is dental floss! And what an absolutely cute container. It is a glass vial with a screw-on metal lid that has a small hole for the floss to come through, and a notch in the metal used to cut the floss. (I wonder what the environmental impact would be, and the costs both long and short term, if more modern packaging was made from renewable resources such as these instead of plastic?)

The hunter-gatherer in me is quite pleased with these fine finds!