Handkerchief Questions

[PrettySquareGal]

I was looking at vintage hankies today, and wondered, when did ladies stop carrying them, as the norm? Was it when Kleenex came out?

I want to buy some and see what would happen if I dropped one in an area of gentlemen.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

I was looking at vintage hankies today, and wondered, when did ladies stop carrying them, as the norm? Was it when Kleenex came out?

I want to buy some and see what would happen if I dropped one in an area of gentlemen.

Oddness that my family and ethnic group is....they still use them...especially at church....wiping, and crying at funerals are the domain of hankies..

Just a week ago, my mom went to a funeral hankie-less....and this week in the post, an aunt of hers posted her two hankies...for future use.

 

[Kaela]

Yes, I always see those sweet little white hankies in antique stores and just can't seem to resist them. I'm not really sure when most people stopped carrying them, but I'm doing my best to bring them back!
Does anybody out there know the best way to care for vintage hankies? Sometimes I get them pretty covered in makeup and I don't know the best way to wash them gently.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

Oddness that my family and ethnic group is....they still use them...especially at church....wiping, and crying at funerals are the domain of hankies..

Just a week ago, my mom went to a funeral hankie-less....and this week in the post, an aunt of hers posted her two hankies...for future use.

Oh good, so you are familiar with hankie etiquette. What is the proper thing to do after using a hankie? Also, do you keep it in your purse? I am clueless.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

They have pockets in their skirts....or just hold it..

Now granted...they don't blow their noses in the 'i have a cold and need to' sense......its more for things like tears and so forth....so putting it back in purse or pocket isn't that gross...

then you just take them home, wash them...and put back in pocket or purse...

 

[Rosie]

I LOVE hankies, have a bunch of them. Actually, I like them so much, I don't really use them, not like I would a kleenex anyway. Usually, and this is silly, I know, I use them for effect, like if I'm on a date, I'll hold it while we are walking or something, looks darling with a begloved hand and a clutch. I will use them to dab at the corners of my mouth or when I am feeling the heat (read as sweating) but mostly, I use them more as accessory than as hankies. I usually place mine in my purse or, my mom has told me to tuck the corner of it in my glove if I am doing something at the time and I don't want to mess it up or drop it.

I wash them by hand, using diluted tide and hang them to dry then lightly iron them.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

They have pockets in their skirts....or just hold it..

Now granted...they don't blow their noses in the 'i have a cold and need to' sense......its more for things like tears and so forth....so putting it back in purse or pocket isn't that gross...

then you just take them home, wash them...and put back in pocket or purse...

That makes sense. I think I may buy a few and start carrying them!

 

[PrettySquareGal]

I LOVE hankies, have a bunch of them. Actually, I like them so much, I don't really use them, not like I would a kleenex anyway. Usually, and this is silly, I know, I use them for effect, like if I'm on a date, I'll hold it while we are walking or something, looks darling with a begloved hand and a clutch. I will use them to dab at the corners of my mouth or when I am feeling the heat (read as sweating) but mostly, I use them more as accessory than as hankies.

I wash them by hand, using diluted tide and hang them to dry then lightly iron them.

Yes, this is exactly why I want to use them. Drama, effect and glamour. I will still keep a pack of these for when I really need one:

http://www.bostoninternational.com/catalog2006/ihr2006vol1p4.htm

 

[Kaela]

Yes! I mostly use them for effect too! Tucking them in your glove is a cute way to keep them aside for a moment! cute! I'll give ya credit if anyone asks where I got the cute idea.
One thing I always wanted to do is wave my hankie out the window of a train, but I wen across country in one last month and none of the windows went down! I guess that era is over *sad* But there are some old trains still running that I'm determined to hop on and wave to strangers from!

 

[LizzieMaine]

Another hankie carrier here -- i've really never much liked tissues for the lint they leave everywhere, so I've always carried a cotton hankie in the pocket of my dress or skirt. Mostly I use it for cleaning my glasses and dabbing tears at the movies, but if necessary I'll use it for sneeze-stifling purposes, and then just throw it in with the white wash.

My grandmother used to say a proper lady carried *two* hankies -- a fancy one for occasions where it'd be seen, and a plain one for functional use. As she put it, "One for showin' and one for blowin'."

 

[magneto]

Another hankie-user. For makeup stains, I find rubbing the spot vigorously with a bar of laundry soap (Fels-naptha) takes care of lipstick, etc, at the end of the day. Or just spray with stain remover and put in the hamper. I keep meaning to get one of those tiny washboards that were sold for washing your "delicate items" with!

 

[Tomasso]

Vintage Hankies Online

Does anybody out there know the best way to care for vintage hankies? Sometimes I get them pretty covered in makeup and I don't know the best way to wash them gently.

Try soaking them overnight in OxyClean.



http://antique-linens.com/hanky.html

 

[Kaela]

thanks for the tips ladies!
i didn't know oxiclean was gentle enough, I've never tried it.
Do all you ladies use vintage or does anyone make their own?
I like the idea of "one for showin' one for blowin"!! I thought that was so cute I told everyone in the room! I think I'll make simple linen ones for daily use.

 

[Rosie]

So far, most of my hankies are vintage, I'm so vain lately, I've been collecting a bunch embroirdered with my initial "S". I do have a few Burberry necck kerchiefs that I've transitioned wonderfully into hankies. I've never thought of making my own, maybe now I will.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

Hanky Spankme

Hmph. The reason I couldn't find this thread when searching for it is because I misspelled Handkerchief.

I'm taking my car in today for a $600 repair. I have decided that this is a wonderful thing, because finally I have a reason to use one of my new vintage floral hankies in public! I must take it out of my purse dramatically and dab my eyes while paying! I've been thinking of other opportunities for tears.

Now I need a hanky case for my purse.

 

[LizzieMaine]

The best trick is to hold the hankie to your forehead while swooning -- make it a big, broad, Ethel Barrymore kind of thing, preferably while declaiming "OHHHH -- I feel FAINT!"

Hopefully one of the big lugs will rush around with a chair while another runs down to the CVS for some Aromatic Spirits of Ammonia. (It's even more effective if there's a fainting couch in the waiting area, but so few of these places are properly equipped. Pity.)

But serioiusly, good luck with the car -- and see ya tomorrow!

 

[PrettySquareGal]

The best trick is to hold the hankie to your forehead while swooning -- make it a big, broad, Ethel Barrymore kind of thing, preferably while declaiming "OHHHH -- I feel FAINT!"

Hopefully one of the big lugs will rush around with a chair while another runs down to the CVS for some Aromatic Spirits of Ammonia. (It's even more effective if there's a fainting couch in the waiting area, but so few of these places are properly equipped. Pity.)

But seriously, good luck with the car -- and see ya tomorrow!

Ha! It's at the shop right now. I pick it up around noon. I will be sure to fill out the suggestion card and mention the absence of fainting couches and aromatic spirits. See you tomorrow at noon!

 

[fortworthgal]

Another hankie carrier here!

I've always loved handkerchiefs, and for someone with allergy issues and constant watery eyes, it makes perfect sense. My father has always carried one as long as I can remember. I picked up several at the flea market last weekend, one really nifty peach one with a brown embroidered art deco design and my initial, "B." I see them all the time at estate sales. They seem to be proflific and generally inexpensive, so why not?

When mine are dirty I just wash them in the sink, or if they're really dirty (lipstick etc) I throw them in the washer with a regular load.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

My grandmother told me that hankies used to be given out as prizes at the cinema, which I found interesting.

 

[Etienne]

A little handkerchief story for you: When I was a little girl in the 1950's, my Mom used to put my milk money for school (eight cents!!) in the center of a pretty little floral hanky. Then she would tie it in a knot and tuck it in the front pocket of my school uniform. It looked so cute! However, on some days she probably got a little too ambitious with the knot because when they came around to collect the milk money, I was often unable to get the knot out of the hanky!! Visions of sweet chocolate milk would become only a dream as the "milk monitor" passed me by while I "fought with the knot"!