This is an original 1920 correspondence course lesson from the Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences, one of America's best-known home study schools for sewing and dressmaking during the early twentieth century.
Written by Mary Brooks Picken, this lesson teaches the selection, care, and preparation of wool fabrics, along with professional methods for constructing tailored plackets used in skirts, jackets, and other garments.
Our research collection includes the 1920, 1921, 1922, and 1923 editions of this lesson. Comparison shows that the 1920 edition retains the same lesson organization, illustrations, and instructional content found in the surrounding editions, suggesting the Woman's Institute considered this material current for several years before making substantial revisions.
Mary Brooks Picken (1886–1981) was one of the most influential sewing educators of the twentieth century. She authored numerous books on sewing and dressmaking, helped develop the Woman's Institute correspondence courses, and later wrote educational publications for Singer.
The Woman's Institute correspondence courses document the evolution of sewing education, textile knowledge, tailoring, and women's home study during the early twentieth century. Original lessons are valued by collectors, costume historians, textile researchers, reenactors, and vintage sewing enthusiasts.
This lesson is especially useful for its detailed wool fabric reference tables, textile illustrations, and professional tailoring techniques that remain valuable to students of historical garment constructio