MODERN LIVING: Sew & Reap

Sister Susie's sewing shirts for soldiers;

Some soldiers send epistles, say they'd sooner sleep in thistles

Than the saucy, soft, short shirts for

soldiers sister Susie sews.

—World War I ditty

Since World War I, the fingers of Susie —and her sisters—have become as nimble as professionals—and thereby started a new kind of home sewing boom. In the 1920s women who could not afford to buy even cheap store dresses did most of the home sewing. But no longer. Women are still sewing to economize—but on the fanciest dresses that Paris can design. Inundated...