field reports from my book The Secret History of Home Economics (I started this installment two weeks ago—whoops. I hope it will be a diverting read on a stressful day!) As I write this update, I’m listening to Joe Biden’s policy director talk to the Education Writers Association about wearing masks. Like me, you probably frantically contacted friends with sewing machines this spring or spent hours bent over your own machine, suddenly seeking an accessory/vital health implement you never imagined needing. That surge of mask-sewing made me think back about a century—not to the flu pandemic but to World War I, which home economists helped America win through sewing and cooking.
Home Work: Home economists unmasked
Home Work: Home economists unmasked
Home Work: Home economists unmasked
field reports from my book The Secret History of Home Economics (I started this installment two weeks ago—whoops. I hope it will be a diverting read on a stressful day!) As I write this update, I’m listening to Joe Biden’s policy director talk to the Education Writers Association about wearing masks. Like me, you probably frantically contacted friends with sewing machines this spring or spent hours bent over your own machine, suddenly seeking an accessory/vital health implement you never imagined needing. That surge of mask-sewing made me think back about a century—not to the flu pandemic but to World War I, which home economists helped America win through sewing and cooking.