Anne Adams Dress Mail Order Pattern
Anne Adams patterns were sold via newspapers and were delivered by mail. This company seems to have been one of the last to convert to a printed tissue pattern. Several early 1960s designs have been found with the cut-to-size tissues.
When I searched for company history I found only one reference, from Barbara Brackman’s book Women of Design
Quilt Historian Wilene Smith has determined that Nathan Kogan, Max Levine and Anne Bourne formed a business called Needlecraft Service, Inc in 1932. As yet pattern historians know nothing about the actual designers who created the innovative patterns and drawings. To add to confusion about company history,Smith found that Needlecraft Service set up two competing branches to make the most of cities with competing newspapers. Laura Wheeler might offer patterns in one newspaper and Alice Brooks in another. Each “designer” had a different New York city address, which Smith thinks were mail drops to distinguish the bylines. The company also used regional names such as Carol Curtis in the Midwest and Mary Cullen in the Northwest. Marian Martin and Ann Adams were additional bylines, primary for clothing patterns.
Anne Adams Pattern
I found two websites that have libraries of pattern images.
