Handmade History

• Episode 19: Historical Low & Zero-Waste Garments

  Sponsored by Folkwear Patterns. Folkwear – Where history meets your hands. Visit Folkwear.com and use code HANDMADE20 for 20% off your purchase. Code is good through the end of 2025!  Up until relatively recently, when factory-manufactured fabric became readily available, many garments around the world were naturally low and zero-waste. People who spent days (or months!) creating fabric (or processing animal skin) did not typically throw away pieces of it. Many cultures developed clever techniques to use up all of the material they created, to provide ease and comfort to the wearer, and to make precious fabric fashion. Join us as we explore garments like the Tarkhan dress (the oldest woven dress), the sari, the kimono, and various garments discovered on bog bodies, among others. Learn about the relationship between material and garment design, find out some of the interesting construction techniques people used, and follow us down deep dives into a variety of practices, from traditional weaving in Japan’s Ainu culture to how Egyptians made pleats without an iron.  Show notes and sources here: https://tinyurl.com/54asn73s Have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at [email protected]. Visit our website at handmadehistorypodcast.com for more information. Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts!  

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• Episode 18: Aloha Shirts & Bermuda Shorts

  Sponsored by Folkwear Patterns: Visit www.folkwear.com today and sew something extraordinary. We're gearing up for summer--literally--with an episode on aloha shirts and Bermuda shorts! Aloha wear was invented in Hawaii in the 1920s and 30s, but it really took off during WWII, when millions of military personnel passed through the island--and picked up souvenirs to send home. We share the history of aloha shirts from their birth in Hawaii  to their boom on the mainland, and trace the evolution of two well-known aloha wear designers, Malihini Sportswear and Alfred Shaheen. We talk about the difficulties and opportunities given to different groups in Hawaii and share how Japanese American business owners found ways around discrimination to thrive in the Hawaiian economy. We also share inspiring and unique examples of modern aloha shirts in the New Zealand Museum's collection.  Then, we talk about Bermuda shorts. These long, formal shorts were invented--probably--on the island of Bermuda, which has an interesting history (did you know it was uninhabited until 1609?). We talk about Bermudas vs. Ghurka shorts, the official Boy Scout uniform, and how Bermuda shorts became "badges of independence" on Barnard College's campus in 1960. Plus, we recap our most popular and favorite episodes of our first season--see you in September for more Handmade History! Show notes & sources here: https://tinyurl.com/4bh8w3bd Do you own or make aloha wear? Do you have a favorite Bermuda shorts pattern? We'd love to see your creations! Or have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at [email protected], or visit our website at handmadehistory.com.  Happy listening!

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• Episode 17: Indonesian Batik

  Sponsored by Folkwear Patterns: Visit www.folkwear.com today and sew something extraordinary. Batik is a beautiful resist-dye tradition that has a strong association with Indonesia. In this episode, we share the history of batik and some of the history of Indonesia. The fourth most populous country in the world, made up of 17,000 (yes, you read that right) islands, Indonesia has a thousands-year-old tradition of batik. There are even depictions of batik carved into the stone monuments at Borobudur, one of Indonesia's most famous Buddhist monuments (and a UNESCO World Heritage Site).  In this episode, find out about the ways that batik was traditionally made, learn the differences between classical and coastal styles of batik, and discover how batik that was sold in the West differed from batik sold in Indonesia. You'll also hear about the connection between African waxprints and Dutch imitation batiks. (And learn how to use the word "batik"--spoiler alert: it's noun and verb.) Show notes & sources here: https://tinyurl.com/3w5ymj3y Do you batik? Do you have any batiks? We'd love to see your creations! Or have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at [email protected], or visit our website at handmadehistory.com.  Happy listening!

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• Episode 16: Macrame & Knotting

  Sponsored by Folkwear Patterns: Visit www.folkwear.com today and sew something extraordinary. If you ever made macrame anklets out of hemp or friendship bracelets out of embroidery floss, you joined in on a tradition of macrame that is 3000 years old! Macrame fringe appears on stone carvings from the Assyrian civilization--a kingdom of Mesopotamia--that date to the 1000s BCE. The tradition has continued in the Mediterranean up through the present day, and it spread (perhaps via the Moors of Northern Africa) to Spain and Europe, as well as the Americas. In the US, macrame became popular in the Victorian era as part of the Victorian obsession with lace, and again in the 1970s. We talk about why this simple but extraordinary craft gained popularity with the hippies. We also touch on the broader tradition of knotting, which has been a part of human activity since humans became humans (and maybe even earlier!). We explore sailors' knotting art (a part of marlinspike seamanship) and how sailors may have helped spread the craft of macrame.  Also, those embroidery floss bracelets use a stitch created by a Victorian woman, Valentina Cavandoli, who ran a school in Italy. Hear all these fun facts and more in this episode! Show notes & sources here: https://tinyurl.com/mpesdbxu Do you macrame? We'd love to see your creations! Or have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at [email protected], or visit our website at handmadehistory.com.  Happy listening!

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• Episode 15: The Contentious Invention of Sewing Machines

  Did you know that it took 100 years for the sewing machine to be invented? The sewing machine automated a process done by hand for tens of thousands of years--and it does it completely differently. A sewing machine uses lockstitch, a stitch you can't do by hand (without serious difficulty), two spools of thread, and a four-part mechanism to sew fabric together. Each of these parts of the sewing machine was invented by a different person, leading to mayhem and litigation. In fact, sewing machines are one of the first examples of a patent thicket, which led to the invention of the first patent pool. Listen in to learn how Singer & Company successfully sold sewing machines around the world in the late 1800s and early 1900s, becoming one of the first mass-marketed global products. Find out how the sewing machine changed the readymade clothing industry, the lives of seamstresses (unfortunately not for the better), and the craft of quilting. And guess how many sewing machines we collectively own? Show notes & sources here: https://tinyurl.com/448xt7u2 How many sewing machines do you have? Do you have a question, comment, or idea for a future episode? Email us at [email protected], or visit our website at handmadehistory.com.  Happy listening!

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