[Gutenberg 48050] • Needlework Economies: A Book of Mending and Making with Oddments and Scraps

During and after the First World War, there were severe shortages of many items, including clothes and fabric, and what was available was often much more expensive than before the war.

This book offers suggestions for how to cope with these difficulties and minimise waste by mending, repurposing, and making your own textile items. For example, it teaches the reader how to make warm, insulated quilt from little fabric scraps and how to cut down worn-out adult clothes to make items for children. It offers practical instructions for mending and reinforcing items to last longer, such as darning.

A theme throughout the book is that "make do and mend" items don't have to be purely utilitarian but can also be made attractive without much cost in money or materials. It suggests simple decorative stitches to brighten up garments, knitting patterns for fancier socks, and pretty filet crochet patterns that can be used to trim nursery curtains. Some of the suggestions are a little more unusual, such as the author's description of how she makes fancy buttons for dresses using sealing-wax and little pieces of pottery dug up in her garden then smashed with a hammer!