12.00 USD
Beautifully hand-tinted card depicting a woman in a charming gown having a drink and a smoke. We love the carefully decorative application of white paste on the card too!
Contrary to popular belief, women weren't usually restricted by law from smoking, even in public, in the early 20th century. In a rare instance, in 1908, a municipal law was passed in New York city that restricted smoking by women in public places...this lasted a few weeks before it was repealed.
On the other hand, it was definitely an unpopular habit, and women seen smoking tended to be looked down upon. Still, politically, smoking and drinking were seen by many women as expressive of a much sought after status of equality between genders and images like this one were viewed as "thoroughly modern" and were popular with supporters of suffrage.
By the 1920s, cigarette companies were doing their best to encourage women in taking up smoking. It was made to look stylish and sexy. On an ironic note, Marlboros, the cigarette that oldsters like us who remember the TV ads, associate with the "Marlboro Man," a very "male" rugged cowboy-type, were originally (in the mid-1920s) marketed to women as being "Mild as May" and sporting ivory colored tips for that feminine look (thanks Wikipedia!).
One of six lovely vintage postcards in a series that beautifully captures a bit of the 1910s.
Nice unposted condition, but with a tiny crimp in the upper-left corner (all six of the cards we acquired from this series have the same little crimp, probably occurring during decades of long term storage).
Please examine our high res scans for detail.
The item you are considering for purchase is, unless otherwise noted, a vintage postcard of approximately 5 and 1/2, by 3 and 1/2 inches. Postage is for fully-insured, first class shipping in a secure photo mailer (to avoid any damage to your purchase in the mails), and we happily combine shipping on all paper goods. If you purchase two cards, we will not charge for postage on the second card, and when you purchase three or more cards from us at the same time, your shipping will be entirely free, except for international orders which, because of increases in international shipping rates will still be charged one card's shipping fees on orders of three or more. We do not charge for insurance or shipping materials, and as of the date of this listing are still charging below our overall cost on shipping.
And please come visit our blog at:
redpoulaine.blogspot.com
where we post biographical and historical tidbits, images of cards and photographs for sale, some already sold but remembered fondly, related images of historical interest and sometimes even images of items that have not yet arrived in the shop, but that are expected to arrive soon, as well as coupon codes, links to other related sites, and more!