Items from our past-SEARCH

[crazy connie]

Now that I am FIRE my clothing has changed from dry clean wools & silks to home done cottons. I have some that I iron for myself and I also iron and starch dress shirts for my kids which I do not use spray starch on. I use liquid starch and dilute to what ever I choose. Remind kids not to tick me off or I can do EXTRA Heavy!!!

I remember a sprinkle top with a cork neck that could be put into a pop or beer bottle to dampen the clothes with water before ironing. Does anyone know where I can find one of these? I have been checking around for months and can opnly assume no one else does this in Phoenix!!! Let me know and thank you!

What else in gidgets & gadgets has disappeared from your life and do you miss it?

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

what gadget is missing: my whistle ring.
do i miss it: nah.

 

[wabmester]

Did anybody recieve "Things of Science" as a kid? A box that came every month or so with a cool experiment inside. Light magnesium on fire. Play with fossils. Optics. Etc.

I want something like that for my kid. Heathkit too.

 

[Fireup2020]

My mom always used an old dishwashing liquid bottle to "sprinkle" clothes with. If memory serves correctly, it was an old Ivory bottle

 

[Nords]

I remember a sprinkle top with a cork neck that could be put into a pop or beer bottle to dampen the clothes with water before ironing. Does anyone know where I can find one of these?

I bet the people who used to use those threw theirs away as soon as they found empty trigger-spray bottles. We always have a spare or two floating around to refill.

What else in gidgets & gadgets has disappeared from your life and do you miss it?

I don't miss any of the following:
Dial telephones.
TV antennae.
Radio-tuning knobs.
Vacuum tubes & tube testers.
Boom boxes.
Slide projectors.
16mm movie cameras.
Movie projectors.
Tea balls.
Incandescent light bulbs.
Aluminum screens.
Chrome car bumpers & chrome polish.
Whitewall tires.
Carburetor-cleaning fluid. Heck, carburetors.
Valve-grinding kits for lawnmowers & cars.
Brasso & NevrDull.
Lighter fluid.
Top-loading washing machines.
Turntables & vinyl records. (We just haven't gotten rid of them yet.)
Cassette-tape players & cassette tapes. (Still wasting space.)
My college-era 400-pound refrigerator-size JBL stereo speakers.
Mimeograph machines.
White-Out.
Typewriter key-cleaning fluid.
Typewriter ribbon-inking kits.
Ink pads.
Carbon paper.
Kitchen knife-sharpening grinding wheels.
Manual meat grinders for "making your own hamburger".
Cranking an ice-cream bucket ("jes' like we did on Dad's ol' farm").
Manual hedge-clippers & grass clippers.
Mechanical sprinkler-timer controllers.
Winding clocks.
The Sears catalog (and all other mail-order catalogs).
Daily newspaper delivery.
Milk delivery.
Dry-cleaning delivery.
Collar stays.
Tie clips, tacks, & bars. Ties, too.
Pocket watches & watch fobs. Winding a watch, too.
Slide rules & adding machines. Still have two TI-55 IIIs, though.
My 1970s polyester leisure suits, shirts, & matching platform shoes.
Analogue oscilloscopes & meters.
Anything with bell bottoms.
Degaussing & adjusting CRT computer monitors. CRT monitors, too.
Computer memory 64K chip-removal tools.
Darning socks.

Sheesh. Considering all the maintenance we were doing back then, it's amazing that we found time to do anything else.

I'd like to get rid of all my corded power tools, too, just a few more Father's Days...

 

[whitestick]

Cassette-tape players & cassette tapes. (Still wasting space.)
My college-era 400-pound refrigerator-size JBL stereo speakers.

8 Track Cartridges and Players

Hey Nords,
were your JBLs the ones that had the red volume indicator lights across the front (or actually I think they called them sound pressure indicators).
I had a couple of those as well, and ended up replacing the speakers in them at least once, 'cause I think they finally dry rotted on me. They did sound good though.

 

[Nords]

I remember 8-track tapes! I'd used the players but we never had one in our own house (or cars).

Hey Nords,
were your JBLs the ones that had the red volume indicator lights across the front (or actually I think they called them sound pressure indicators).
I had a couple of those as well, and ended up replacing the speakers in them at least once, 'cause I think they finally dry rotted on me. They did sound good though.

No indicator lights, but we could measure their output by the flex of the room's window glass.

They were stolen by a couple juvenile burglars in 1990. Never missed them...

 

[UncleHoney]

http://www.lehmans.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=1121

I'll take heavy starch please.

 

[crazy connie]

http://www.lehmans.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=1121

I'll take heavy starch please.

THANK YOU UncleHoney! I appreciate the link and will be ordering them PDQ. I knew someone would help me. Bring the shirts over when you have a minute and they will be ready in the morning.

 

[LOL!]

Why iron? Why starch? My mom bought me some 100% cotton, no-iron dress shirts from BrooksBrother. Ever since I get about 3 to 4 compliments a month on the shirt I wear. Get them online when they are on sale.

I didn't think anyone ironed anything nowadays.

 

[Fireup2020]

I still iron - and I do notice when others do not. BF irons too - he tends to forget to drop his shirts off at the cleaners...rather amusing when he is ironing

My ironing his shirts is milk he is not entitled to on a regular basis - lol!

 

[crazy connie]

Why iron? Why starch? My mom bought me some 100% cotton, no-iron dress shirts from BrooksBrother. Ever since I get about 3 to 4 compliments a month on the shirt I wear. Get them online when they are on sale.

I didn't think anyone ironed anything nowadays.

My son wears company issue shirts and is a fine dining waiter and fulltime student. Yes, he could send them out but I enjoy ironing. We all wear a lot of cotton here in Phoenix and a light starch and quick press helps to combat the heat rumpled look. I usually iron 10 or 12 items a week unless I am doing table linens for a formal dinner party. Those are not often anymore though.

 

[DRiP Guy]

... I enjoy ironing...

Now I know where the 'crazy' part comes from....

Maybe you should try an Extreme Ironing Competition?

Example with pics:
http://my.opera.com/Mathilda/albums/show.dml?id=75801