Vintage 1950's Maytag Wringer Washing Machine - Electric - Antique | #1803041968
WASH DAY
When I was very young, women had a designated day for their
chores. Mother and Mimi did their
laundry together on a certain day every week at a laundry mat. There was an electric
clothes washer, but it did not have a spin cycle so they used a manual
wringer. Mimi was fearful for us to help and would keep cautioning to keep our
fingers clear. It was really more fun to play around outside. The wet clothes
were carried home and hung on a clothesline outside to dry. (There were no
clothes dryers until several years after we moved to Bismarck Street. Mother
had a clothes washer inside then, and they eventually placed a dryer in a store
room under the carport.) We only had cotton
clothes (there were no artificial fabrics) so ironing was essential. We didn’t
have a steam iron, so dry clothes had to be sprinkled with water. A cork with
holes in it could be bought to put on a coke bottle for sprinkling. After the
clothes were sprinkled and slightly damp, each piece was rolled and placed into
a plastic bag, waiting its turn to be ironed. Cotton was prone to shrink so
clothes were bought large until “preshrunk” cotton was introduced.
Many clothes that I wore were made by mother, and Mimi was
the master seamstress. I was proud to wear them. Mother had an old Singer
sewing machine, which I still have tucked away in the back of a closet. She
taught me to sew on that machine and I’m lucky to have learned the basics of
how garments are sewn together.
