It is getting close to holiday time again, and real life is starting to interfere with blogging. It is not so much the being away on holiday which distracts my blogging mind, it is the pre-departure tension I suffer badly from. Instead of musing on the meaning of life I am checking my passport for the tenth time, making sure that all the electricity sockets have their plugs fully withdrawn, and anxiously calculating when will be the optimum time to purchase my handful of Euros. I cannot give these vital issues the full consideration they so obviously require whilst juggling numerous blogs like a third- rate music hall performer. Thus I will close everything down for a week or two with the exception of a single series of image-based posts, which will be called "20 Images". At this stage, I have no idea what these images will be (except, of course for the first one which can be found below) : I will be as interested as anyone in seeing precisely where this project leads me.
20 Images : 1 The Midland Hair Manufacturing Company
This is a scan of an old glass plate negative which, I suspects, dates back to the mid 1920s. From the various clues, the location is fairly easy to pin down - the buildings are on Radford Road in Nottingham. The businesses featured in the photograph provide a good socio-economic feel of the time - and the location. The shop on the left specialises in the sale of sewing machines, whilst next door, there is a stationery and fancy goods shop. I am slightly intrigued by the phrase "High Frequency" which features in the central window - the shop does not appear to sell radios and even if it did would these be described as "high frequency" at the time? The most prominent signage is for the wonderfully named "Midland Hair Manufacturing Company" which had been trading from this address since the 1890s. An advert for the company in a September 1914 issue of Picture Stories Magazine states: "Our transformations, wigs, Empire curls, covered pads, chignons, fringes and switches are famous for their elegance and style ... and are made up in the latest modes from the very finest quality of healthy, human hair."
Running away to the continent again, eh? Have fun! And by the way, I wonder if the Midland Hair Manufacturing Co. is where The Donald gets his head coverings made? Not very good advertising if he does!
ReplyDeleteHair manufacturing? Quite an interesting business!
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a great time on your vacation.
45 could certainly use their services...too bad they aren't around any longer. Enjoy your holiday.
ReplyDelete