The Golden Rule

I cannot wait to show off my newest Common Thread Vintage Designs bag. Using an original, Golden Rule Flour sack from 1946, this is the bag you want to take along for...a walk in the park...a flea market trip....a farmer's market outing...a day at the fair....it's the perfect size, the perfect weight and roomy enough for your wallet, cell phone, sunglasses, sun block lotion, camera, bottle of water etc. And the HISTORY of this bag is amazing...

(From the history of Gold Medal Flour, 1946:)

In February, Gold Medal Flour was withdrawn from the market because of the War Food Order Number 144 issued by the government. This regulation, issued to make existing supplies of wheat go further, required millers to extract 80% of the wheat kernel (68% to 72% was normally used) which produced a coarser, darker flour. The Gold Medal "Kitchen-tested" Flour trademark was not used on the new product since it did not meet the company's quality standards for the product. (Gold Medal Flour was again available in 1947 when the regulation was lifted.)

The front of the bag says:

"Golden Rule Flour. Conforms with Government Order For Emergency Flour. Igleheart Brothers Milling Company, Evansville, Indiana."

The back of the bag says:

"Under War Food Order 144, we cannot offer you Tender Flake Flour or Swans Down Flour, BUT....You can be sure of the best in emergency flours when you use Golden Rule Flour."

The bag is 8" and 12" with a zippered top. A pocket is cleverly disguised on the front of the bag. It is fully reinforced, fully lined and the cotton rope handle can be easily adjusted. You can cross it over your chest so the bag sits at your waist (no hands) or you can shorten the handle to your desired length.

The bag has great history, great graphics, great design and it's "hands-free".

Check out my website at www.commonthreadvintage.com or call me at 877-321-1930.

Patti

Who can answer this question? What exactly is "the golden rule?"

Fighting Hunger

I am so excited! One of Common Threads most popular bags is the "Dottie Fighting Hunger" bag. I was fortunate to have ten (10) of these original feedsacks dating from the 1940's, but my supply is running low. Today, I located another thirty (that's right, 30) original feedsacks! That means I can make another 30 bags! I love selling these bags, and I've had wonderful comments from people who have bought them. And, by the way, as part of Common Thread’s commitment to fight hunger, 10% of the proceeds of the Dottie “Fight Hunger” bags will be donated to “Feeding America”.

This wonderful bag features an original cotton feedsack, which once held 50 lbs of flour. The flour was part of the United States Mission to distribute food to needy countries around the world. This Mission began following WW I, when the American Relief Administration distributed more than 4 million tons of food. The focal point of the bag depicts two clasped hands surrounded by blue and white stars and red stripes. The words “Donated by the People of the United States of America” are boldly written on the bottom of the bag. The translations of these words in many different languages are printed on sections of the feedsack and make up the two side gussets of the bag. The words “USE NO HOOKS” are featured on the bottom gusset. The feedsack is framed with a charming piece of vintage blue floral feedsack. The back of the bag is a remnant of a rescued quilt top displaying a beautiful assortment of printed feedsacks from the depression era.

The numbers are startling. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry each night, and nearly 50 million people currently face acute hunger as a result of war, civil strife or natural disaster. Additionally, the United Nations estimates that malnutrition is a significant factor in the deaths of 11,000 children each day.

Our sale is happening now. You can get this bag for $60.00 (using coupon code) . Go the website www.commonthreadvintage.com to view more pictures and place an order. Enjoy!

How to Create YOUR Special Gift

Our Common Thread Vintage Designs™ unique and one-of-a-kind vintage feedsack and antique quilt bags make terrific gifts for the special people in your life. But if you want to make them even more personalized to the recipient, here are some fun, creative, and not-too-expensive ideas for Common Thread Themed Gift Bags you can put together yourself.

Just order the bag you want—from the Florrie, Dottie, Lizzie or Annie Collection—and then fill it with fun and readily available items that turn it into a truly customized gift. Here are just a few ideas:


Seeds of Success Gardener’s Bag: Collect some seed packets, pretty gardening gloves, decorative garden stakes, a small ceramic pot and you have a gift that will be appreciated by a growing audience!




Cutting Edge Crafter’s Bag: Fill this bag with colorful yarn, wooden knitting needles, a craft book, crimping scissors, scrapbooking items, or supplies for whatever your favorite crafter likes to do!

Steeped in Tradition Tea Lovers Bag: Combine colorful boxes of tea, a tea infuser, lovely cup and saucer and a box or two of biscotti and you have the perfect gift for the tea fans in your life!


Breakfast Epiphany Bag: If the first meal of the day is her favorite, combine some yummy breakfast items: pancake mix, flavored syrup, gourmet coffee, homemade muffins, a mug and plate and small recipe book.

The Players Club Game Bag: Whatever her game, from Bingo, to mahjong to bridge, this bag can be the perfect tote for all of her supplies, with plenty of room for the all important mid-game snack!

Business Unusual Working Girl’s Bag: Who says you have to fit it all in a briefcase…your favorite working woman will appreciate the is collection of legal pads, post-it notes, pens, a planner and coffee mug, whether her office is in or outside of the home.

One Size Fitness All Bag: With everyone working out today, who wouldn’t appreciate a towel, portable water bottle, small hand weights, a pedometer and the latest fitness book all in easy grab and go vintage bag.

That’s Just Beachy Bag:

Summer’s coming, so why not get ready for the fun in the sun with this themed bag…just add a rolled up towel, suntan lotion, funky sunglasses, a couple of magazines and a flopping hat!


Music to My Ears Bag: Whether they prefer to get their music via iPod or CD, this is the pitch perfect gift for your favorite music lover. The latest CDs, iTunes certificates, some headphones and a book of sheet music for the musician complete this harmonious bag!




Shop Till You Drop Your Bag: From bargain basement Bettys to extravagant designer label seekers, it’s in the bag: just add a grocery coupon holder, calculator, notepad and pen, credit card holder and the latest advertising circulars from the market and the Mall and she’s ready to go!




Spa-tacular It’s All About Me Bag: Gather a collection of pampering lotions and potions for face and body, pair them with an eye mask, loofah and bath pillow and it’s a luxury spa in a bag!
Animal Magnetism



Pet Lovers Bag: Whether they’re a dog or cat person, pet lovers will appreciate a collection of chew toys, treats, pet shampoo, a doggie sweater and other fun items for their four legged friends.






Sugar and Spice Baking Lovers Bag:

Imagine filling a flour, sugar or salt-themed feedsack bag with a collection of either new or antique baking accessories: wooden spoons, measuring cups, potholder, real vanilla, organic flour—a sweet gift for the baker in your life.



Cute as a Button Baby Bag: A perfect way to package a baby shower gift…just add a small stuffed animal, baby blanket, some changing table necessities, a cute outfit and this bag will make any new or expectant Mom smile—even sleep-deprived ones!


Page Turner’s Book Club Bag: People love their Book Clubs, and now you can give your favorite reader a happy ending, with this bag filled with hardcover and paperback bestsellers, a handy book light and the equally handy extra pair of reading glasses!


THESE ARE JUST A FEW POSSIBLE WAYS TO TAKE A GREAT GIFT—YOUR COMMON THREAD VINTAGE DESIGN BAG—AND MAKE IT EVEN MORE SPECIAL! ORDER YOUR BAG TODAY, FOR MOTHER’S DAY, AN UPCOMING BIRTHDAY, BRIDAL SHOWER OR JUST TO SAY THANKS TO A SPECIAL TEACHER OR FRIEND. AND DON’T FORGET ONE FOR YOURSELF! TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR SPECIAL ONLINE DISCOUNT!

http://www.commonthreadvintage.com/

New bags ready soon!

I'm excited to showcase 2 new "dottie" bags that I am working on. They should be ready for the website soon.
http://commonthreadvintage.com/

Gift Code for Mother's Day

I'm so excited to share my collection of vintage fashion handbags and tote bags for Mother's Day gift ideas... Here is a code that will save you $25 on any one of a kind bag in the http://commonthreadvintage.com/ web store.

The discount coded is: SPECIALGIFT-25 and it will take $25 off at checkout, but it does expire at the end of April, so if you see a bag you like, order it now. Or if you want to give this as a Mother's Day gift and let the selection be personal, how about a gift certificate?

Designer’s Tribute to Her Mother is New Gift Idea for Your Mom, Wife, Girlfriend or Daughter

Handbags and Tote Bags quality-crafted by hand from vintage fabrics, quilt pieces and feedsacks, each distinct in design now available for Mother’s Day 2010

Guilford, CT— A Connecticut designer who creates one of a kind antique feedsack and vintage fabric handbags to honor women like her mother, introduces new collection, as great gift idea just in time for Mother’s Day.

Common Thread Vintage Designs handbags and tote bags tell stories of American women. Each new Common Thread Vintage Designs™ Collection is defined by the type of fabric that is used, as well as by the design of the bag itself. And each is a reflection of the life and times of real women who lived, worked, toiled, and sewed during different periods of American history.
“These designs tell stories of courage. Of overcoming hard times… Of old-fashioned ingenuity and creativity,” said designer Patti Biller in announcing the collection. “These versatile, sturdy bags are handcrafted from old quilt tops and “orphan” quilt blocks--those that were pieced together but never made into quilts--along with feedsacks—the colorful sacks that were used for more than a century to hold flour, sugar and animal feed.”

Common Thread fabrics date from as far back as the mid-1800s to those that were popular in the 1920s, 30s and 40s, during two World Wars and the Great Depression.
Each Common Thread Vintage Designs™ collection is represented by a woman…and she in turn represents thousands of other women who cut and stitched and quilted and labored to create pieces that were functional, practical and beautiful.

“But there is one woman who has a special place in the Common Thread family, because she is family.” Said Biller, a mother of four grown children. “The picture of Florrie is a 1946 photograph of Florence Zuckerman, a young woman living in New York City, on her way to work. Not long after this picture was taken, she got married and started a family.” Florence Biller, or Florrie as she's known, is designer Patti Biller’s 86-year old mother, and she resides with her daughter in Guilford, Connecticut.

The Common Thread Vintage Designs™ collection is available to browse and buy online at www.commonthreadvintage.com. The store also offers gift certificates, so the woman in your life can choose the bag and the story that speaks directly to her. Ten percent (10 %) of each Gift Certificate purchased goes to Feeding America, the nation's leading hunger relief charity making this truly the gift that gives.

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Contact: Common Thread Vintage Designs. 877-321-1930