paper dresses

Paper Dresses was an odd fad from the 1960's. The dresses were made of treated paper, they could not be washed, were basically created for one or two uses.

I don't know why anyone would want a shapeless dress made of paper, but they were a huge hit. Quite a few companies made dresses based on their products, including this Campbell soup dress.

1950'S JELLO-O ADVERTISEMENTS

Jello Magazine ads

Jell-o was developed around the turn of the century, but was not a big success. Gelatin was a complicated, expensive desert. The new gelatin powder was inexpensive, but people really didn’t know what to do with it and sales were low. So the company turned to print advertising in 1902. The ads did raise awareness of the product, but it was the free jell-o cookbooks that were given away that really helped. Now people knew what to do with the product. Today Jell-o still advertises extensively and the company is still creating new recipes.

1922 ADVERTISEMENT

1928 ADVERTISEMENT

60's bra ad

I have seen in the stores bras that made sure your nipples don't show. Nowadays this is considered vulgar. But not always, in the 1960's at least some women wanted to wear a bra while looking like they are not wearing a bra and a product was developed to take care of this need.

Electric Cures

When electricity first started being available commercially many products were advertised with electricity in the product name. These products had nothing to do with electricity, but around the turn of the century, putting electricity in the title said your product was modern and cutting edge. These are some of the ads from that time. Note: the electric toothbrush is nothing like a modern electric toothbrush, it is just in the title.

Society woman wearing corset.

Maybe I'm wrong about corsets. This woman seems to wear it with aplomb.

corset ad from 1890's

I cannot imagine wearing this! I don't know how women survived these, they used to wear them even when they were pregnant.

French meat advertisment

This is just about the sickest advertisement I ever saw. This could make you a vegetarian. It reminds me of the cow in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, where the cow comes over to the table and recommends himself for eating.