PRESENT TRENDS IN HOME SEWINO 



Table 6. — Reasont for making garments at home given by women, classified by size 

 of community and by income groups 



Women 

 answering 



this 

 question 



Good 

 stores for 



ready- 

 made gar- 

 niei)is in- 

 accessible 



Better ma- 

 terial? in 



homemade 

 garments 



Lower 



cost of 



homemade 



garments 



Ilomemsd* 

 garinenta 



mure 



nearly 



meet 

 individual 



needB 



Summary of all answers 



BlEe of community: 



Rural 



Under 6,000 



6,000 to 10,000 



Over 10,000 



Not given 



Income: 



Under $1,000 



$1,000 to $1.999 



$2,000 to $2,999 



$3,000 to $."1.999 



$4,000 to $4,999 



$6,000 or over 



Not given 



IfumbeT 

 1.697 



Percent 

 7.8 



Per cent 



76.4 



Per cent 

 90.2 



572 

 380 

 172 

 487 

 86 



126 

 415 

 363 

 178 

 97 

 145 

 373 



13.7 



&e 



L7 

 2.6 

 7.0 



16.9 

 6.6 

 9.4 

 4.6 

 3.1 

 6.5 

 8.9 



78.4 

 7a 8 

 73.8 

 74.0 

 6Z6 



73.7 

 77.8 

 80.9 

 79.1 

 76.2 

 62.0 

 71.6 



93.3 

 89.2 

 87.7 

 88.4 

 01.0 



94.4 



92.8 

 92.5 

 92.6 

 86.6 

 73.7 

 90.4 



Per cent 

 64.fi 



6a8 

 64.2 

 65.8 

 6L0 

 6L0 



47.8 

 62.5 

 64.3 

 67.2 

 61.5 

 6Z7 

 47. » 



In the summary it is shoNvn that 90.2 per cent of all the women 

 answering the question sewed because of lower cost and that 75.4 

 per cent of them sewed because of better materials in homemade 

 garments. 



The greatest variation is in the percentage of women, classified 

 by size of community, answering on "Good stores for ready-made 

 garments inaccessible." In the rural sections 13.7 per cent gave this 

 reason, as compared with 1.7 per cent in cities from 5,000 to 10,000 

 and 2.5 per cent in cities over 10,000. There is only a slight varia- 

 tion in the percentages given under the reasons "Better materials 

 in homemade garments" and "Lower cost of homemade garments." 

 Those in rural communities were apparently not so much concerned 

 about suiting individual needs as were those in the cities. This 

 reason seems to gain in importance as the size of the community 

 increases. 



More of those having the lowest income sewed because of lower 

 cost of homemade garments than did those having the highest 

 income, there being a difference of 20.7 per cent. More (11.7 per 

 cent) of those having the lowest uicomo sewed because of better 

 materials than did those having the highest income. The group 

 with an income from $2,000 to $2,999 seemed to be most intei'csted 

 in satisfying individual needs and in iiaving ix'tter materials. 



Studies by liaker (4) and Glanton (6") attcmjited to evaluate the 

 savings rea ized and the time spent in home sewing. They showed 

 that the amount saved depended upon the kind and ciuality of the 

 garment made. 



It is to be regretted that the questionnaire did not ask how innny 

 sewed because they enjoy it. This i-eason was volunteered by many 

 women and indicates that not all are sewing entirely beraus(> of 

 economic reasons. Other reasons volunteered weie: Homemade 

 clothing is made better and weai"s better; it fits iiettcr; the style, 

 design, and color combinations are more attractive; and the gannouts 

 have more individuality. 



