history of candles

Candle making was developed independently in many countries throughout history. The earliest known candles were made from whale fat by the Chinese, during the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC). In early China and Japan, tapers were made with wax from insects and seeds, wrapped in paper. In India, wax from boiling cinnamon was used for temple candles. During the 1st century AD, indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest fused oil from the eulachon, or "candlefish", for illumination.
In Europe, the Middle-East and Africa, where lamp oil made from olives was readily available, candle making remained unknown until the early middle-ages.
Qin Shi Huang (259–210 BC) was the first emperor of the Chinese Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC). His mausoleum, which was rediscovered in the 1990s, twenty-two miles east of Xi'an, contained candles made from whale fat.The word zhú 燭 in Chinese originally meant torch and could have the Warring States Period (403–221 BC); some excavated bronzewares from that era feature a pricket thought to hold a candle.The Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) Jizhupian dictionary of about 40 BC hints at candles being made of beeswax, while the Book of Jin (compiled in 648) covering the Jin Dynasty (265–420) makes a solid reference to the beeswax candle in regards to its use by the statesman Zhou Yi (d. 322). An excavated earthenware bowl from the 4th century AD, located at the Luoyang Museum, has a hollowed socket where traces of wax were found.
Wax from boiling cinnamon was used for temple candles in India.
Generally these Chinese candles were molded in paper tubes, using rolled rice paper for the wick, and wax from an indigenous insect that was combined with seeds.
Japanese candles were made from wax extracted from squirrels.

There is a fish called the eulachon or "candlefish", a type of smelt which is found from Oregon to Alaska. During the 1st century AD, indigenous people from this region used oil from this fish for illumination.  A simple candle could be made by putting the dried fish on a forked stick and then lighting it. The first candles to appear in Europe were made by nomadic tribes in the late Roman era, but are thought to have been in use much earlier in the colder climates of Northern Europe, where olive oil was scarce. These early candles were made from tallow, or animal fat. The tallow was put into the melting pot, then poured into molds made of bronze. A trough underneath would catch the excess wax and return it to the melting pot. For the wick, a cord, usually made from the pith of rushes, was suspended from a horizontal rod over the mold when the tallow was poured in. After the fall of the Roman Empire, when olive oil became increasingly scarce, and therefore expensive, the use of tallow candles spread across Western Europe. Later wax candles made from various plant extracts replaced tallow as the preferred source of illumination.
In Africa and the Middle East, candle-making remained relatively unknown due to the availability of olive oil for burning in lamps.
Yak butter was used for candles in Tibet

 Making candles for timekeeping

Although candles could not be used to find a specific time they were instrumental in able to indicate passage of predetermined periods of time. For example the Anglo-Saxon king Alfred the Great (c. 849 - 899) used graduated candles also known as candle-clocks. He used this candle to divide up his day into equal periods of study and prayer, royal duties, and rest. There were lines around the side to show the passing of each hour.Later, 24-hour candles were invented based on the same concept.During the Sung dynasty in China (960–1279) calibrated candles and sticks of incense measured time. The concept of this clock utilized six different threads with weights on the end. These were draped over an incense stick at regular intervals and as the incense burned, the threads simultaneously burned one by one and the weights dropped onto a sounding plate below. Sometimes the sticks of incense had varying scents so that hours were marked by a change in fragrance.
The first use of calibrated candles for time keeping in England was 870.
The candle clock was also used as a timer. A heavy nail inserted onto the candle at the indicated mark would fall down onto a hard surface after the wax surrounding the nail melted.

Profession of Candle Making

Candles were also commonplace in many households scattered throughout Europe. In England and France candle making had become a guild graft by the 13th century. These candle makers (chandlers) went from house to house making candles from fats saved from the kitchen or sold their own candles from within their shops.
During the Middle Ages in Europe, the popularity of candles is shown by their use in Candlemas and on Saint Lucy festivities. Tallow, fat from cows or sheep, became the standard material used in candles in Europe. The Tallow Chandlers Company of London was formed in about 1300 in London, and in 1456 was granted a coat of arms. Dating from about 1330, the Wax Chandlers Company acquired its charter in 1484. By 1415, tallow candles were used in street lighting. The trade of the chandler is also recorded by the more picturesque name of "smeremongere", since they oversaw the manufacture of sauces, vinegar, soap and cheese. The unpleasant smell of tallow candles is due to the glycerine they contain. For churches and royal events, candles from beeswax were used, as the smell was usually less unpleasant. The smell of the manufacturing process was so unpleasant that it was banned by ordinance in several cities. The first candle mould comes from 15th century Paris.
The first American colonists discovered that bayberries could be used to make candles, but the yield was very poor. Fifteen pounds of boiled bayberries would provide only one pound of wax.
By the 18th century, the Chinese designed weights into the sides of candles; as such a candle melted, the weights fell off and made a noise as they landed in a bowl.
The growth of the whaling industry in the late 18th century brought about Spermaceti, oil that comes from sperm whale. This was the first major change in candle making since the Middle Ages. Spermaceti was a wax obtained by crystallizing the oil of a sperm whale. It became available in mass quantities. Like beeswax, the spermaceti wax did not elicit a repugnant odor when burned, and produced a significantly brighter light. It also was harder than either tallow or beeswax, so it wouldn't soften or bend in the summer heat. Historians note that the first "standard candles" were made from spermaceti wax. By 1800, a much cheaper alternative was discovered. Colza oil, derived from Brassica campestris, and a similar oil derived from rape seed, yielded candles that produce clear, smokeless flames. The French chemists Michel Eugène Chevreul (1786–1889) and Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac (1778–1850) patented stearin, in 1811. Like tallow, this was derived from animals, but had no glycerine content.

Manufacturing of candles

Joseph Sampson was granted a United States patent for a new method of candle making in 1790 (this was the second patent ever granted by the US).
In 1834, Joseph Morgan began to industrialise the production of candles. He created a machine that allowed for continuous production of molded candles by using a cylinder with a moveable piston to eject candles as they solidified. This more efficient mechanized production produced about 1,500 candles per hour which allowed candles to become an easily affordable commodity for the masses.
A chemist called Laurent distilled Paraffin from schist in 1830. Another chemist, Dumas, obtained paraffin from coal-tar in 1835. Not until 1850 did paraffin become commercially viable, when James Young filed a patent to produce it from coal.  Paraffin could be used to make inexpensive candles of high quality. Paraffin was also processed by distilling residue left after crude petroleum was refined. It was a bluish-white wax, which was able to burn cleanly, and leave no unpleasant odor, something the predecessor could not achieve like the tallow candles. Although paraffin had a low melting point the discovery of stearic acid solved this problem. Stearic acid was hard and very durable which helped elevate the melting point of paraffin. It was being produced in mass quantity at the end of the 19th century. By this period, most candles being manufactured consisted of paraffin and stearic acid.

Decline of Candles

Despite advances in candle making, the candle industry was devastated soon after by the distillation of kerosene (a fuel used in lamps) and the 1879 invention of the Light bulb. From this point, candles became more of a decorative item.
In 1829, William Wilson of Price's Candles invested in 1,000 acres (4 km²) of coconut plantation in Sri Lanka.His aim was to make candles from coconut oil.Later he tried palm oil from palm trees. An accidental discovery swept all his ambitions aside when his brother George Wilson distilled the first petroleum oil in 1854. In 1919, Lever Brothers purchased Price's Candles and in 1922, a joint-owned company called "Candles Ltd" was created. By 1991, the last remaining owner of "Candles Ltd" was Shell Oil Company, who sold off the candle-making part of business.

Candles for timekeeping

A form of candle-clock was used in coal-mining until the 20th century.
As candles started to wane as the major light source due to the introduction of the light bulb, they became a more decorative item. Candles were suddenly available in a broad array of sizes, shapes and colors, and consumer interest in scented candles began to escalate. During the 1990s, new types of candle waxes were being developed due to an unusually high demand for candles. In the U.S., agricultural chemists began to develop soybean wax which was a softer and slower burning wax than paraffin. On the other side of the globe, efforts were underway to develop palm wax for use in candles.

history of the soap

Myth has it that in 1,000 B.C. soap was discovered on Sappo Hill in Rome by a group of women rinsing their clothes in the river at the base of a hill, below a higher elevation where animal sacrifice had taken place.  They noticed the clothes coming clean as they came in contact with the soapy clay oozing down the hill and into the water. They later discovered that this same cleansing substance was formed when animal fat was soaked down through the wood ashes and into the clay soil.
Factually, we know that soap has been around for about 2,800 years.  The earliest known evidence of soap use are Babylonian clay cylinders dating from 2800 BC containing a soap-like substance. A formula for soap consisting of water, alkali and cassia oil was written on a Babylonian clay tablet around 2200 BC.
The Ebers papyrus (Egypt, 1550 BC) indicates that ancient Egyptians bathed regularly and combined animal and vegetable oils with alkaline salts to create a soap-like substance. Egyptian documents mention that a soap-like substance was used in the preparation of wool for weaving.
According to Pliny the Elder, the Phoenicians prepared it from goat's tallow and wood ashes in 600 BC and sometimes used it as an article of barter with the Gauls.   The word "soap" appears first in a European language in Pliny the Elder's Historia Naturalis, which discusses the manufacture of soap from tallow and ashes, but the only use he mentions for it is as a pomade for hair; he mentions rather disapprovingly that among the Gauls and Germans, men are likelier to use it than women
Soap was widely known in the Roman Empire; whether the Romans learned its use and manufacture from ancient Mediterranean peoples or from the Celts, inhabitants of Britannia, is not known.  Early Romans made soaps in the first century A.D. from urine to make a soaplike substance.  The urine contained ammonium carbonate which reacted with the oils and fat in wool for a partial saponification.  People called fullones walked the city streets collecting urine to sell to the soapmakers.
The Celts, who produced their soap from animal fats and plant ashes, named the product saipo, from which the word soap is derived. The importance of soap for washing and cleaning was apparently not recognized until the 2nd century A.D. ; the Greek physician Galen mentions it as a medicament and as a means of cleansing the body. Previously soap had been used as medicine.
The writings attributed to the 8th-century Arab savant Jabir ibn Hayyan (Geber) repeatedly mention soap as a cleansing agent. The Arabs made the soap from vegetable oil as olive oil or some aromatic oils such as thyme oil. Sodium Lye (Al-Soda Al-Kawia) NaOH was used for the first time and the formula hasn't changed from the current soap sold in the market. From the beginning of the 7th century soap was produced in Nablus (Palestine), Kufa (Iraq) and Basra (Iraq). Arabian Soap was perfumed and colored, some of the soaps were liquid and others were hard. They also had special soap for shaving. It was commercially sold for 3 Dirhams (0.3 Dinars) a piece in 981 AD.
Historically, soap was made by mixing animal fats with lye. Because of the caustic lye, this was a dangerous procedure (perhaps more dangerous than any present-day home activities) which could result in serious chemical burns or even blindness. Before commercially-produced lye was commonplace, it was produced at home for soap making from the ashes of a wood fire.
In Europe, soap production in the Middle Ages centered first at Marseilles, later at Genoa, then at Venice. Although some soap manufacture developed in Germany, the substance was so little used in central Europe that a box of soap presented to the Duchess of Juelich in 1549 caused a sensation. As late as 1672, when a German, A. Leo, sent Lady von Schleinitz a parcel containing soap from Italy, he accompanied it with a detailed description of how to use the mysterious product.
Castile soap, made entirely from olive oil, was produced in the Kingdom of Castile in Europe as early as the 16th century (about 1616).   Fine sifted alkaline ash of the Salsola species of thistle, called barilla, was boiled with locally available olive oil, instead of tallow. By adding salty brine to the boiled liquor, the soap was made to float to the surface, where it could be skimmed off by the soap-boiler, leaving the excess lye and impurities to settle out.  This produced what was probably the first white hard soap, which hardened further as it was aged, without losing its whiteness, forming jabon de Castila, which eventually became the generic name.
The first English soapmakers appeared at the end of the 12th century in Bristol. In the 13th and 14th centuries, a small community of them grew up in the neighborhood of Cheapside in London. In those days soapmakers had to pay a tax on all the soap they produced. After the Napoleonic Wars this tax rose as high as three pence per pound; soap-boiling pans were fitted with lids that could be locked every night by the tax collector in order to prevent production under cover of darkness. Not until 1853 was this high tax finally abolished, at a sacrifice to the state of over £1,000,000. Before this because of the high cost of soap, ordinary households made do without soap until about 1880, when cheap factory-made soap began to flood the market.  Soap came into such common use in the 19th century that Justus von Liebig, a German chemist, declared that the quantity of soap consumed by a nation was an accurate measure of its wealth and civilization.
Soap was certainly known in England in the sixteenth century but as it was made of fat, and fat was needed for making candles and rushlights, it was always a prerogative of the rich.  When soap was used it was primarily used for cleaning linens and clothes rather than the human body.  Since little emphasis was placed on using soap for bodily cleanliness, people (shall we say) had an "air" about them that they tried to overcome by wearing sachets of herbs around their necks or carrying these sachets in their pockets.  When baths were taken, whether soap was used or not, the bath water was traditionally shared among the family members with the small children being bathed last.  The end result was water so dirty and murky, that a small child could literally be lost in the water - hence the saying "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water".

     Early soapmakers probably used ashes and animal fats. Simple wood or plant ashes containing potassium carbonate were dispersed in water, and fat was added to the solution. This mixture was then boiled; ashes were added again and again as the water evaporated. During this process a slow chemical splitting of the neutral fat took place; the fatty acids could then react with the alkali carbonates of the plant ash to form soap (this reaction is called saponification).

Animal fats containing a percentage of free fatty acids were used by the Celts. The presence of free fatty acids certainly helped to get the process started. This method probably prevailed until the end of the Middle Ages, when slaked lime came to be used to causticize the alkali carbonate. Through this process, chemically neutral fats could be saponified easily with the caustic lye. The production of soap from a handicraft to an industry was helped by the introduction of the Leblanc process for the production of soda ash from brine (about 1790) and by the work of a French chemist, Michel Eugène Chevreul, who in 1823 showed that the process of saponification is the chemical process of splitting fat into the alkali salt of fatty acids (that is, soap) and glycerin.

     The method of producing soap by boiling with open steam, introduced at the end of the 19th century, was another step toward industrialization.   The industrialization of soap making though tended to use more chemically produced ingredients and less natural ingredients, and produced in essence a detergent rather than a soap such as our ancestors used.

     With World War I and the shortages of fats and oils that occurred, people felt compelled to look for a replacement for soap, leading to the invention of synthetic detergents.  These detergents, while being able to clean our clothes effectively, are comprised of harsh chemicals that clean, scent, and coat our clothes.  Unfortunately, many of these synthetic detergents have found their way into our skin care products.  This has caused in some people super sensitivity to these "soaps", rashes, skin irritations, and allergies plus a general drying out of the skin. Increasingly, we are required to use hand creams and lotions to prevent or reduce the dryness and roughness arising from exposure to household detergents, wind, sun, and dry atmospheres. Like facial creams, they act largely by replacing lost water and laying down an oil film to reduce subsequent moisture loss while the body's natural processes repair the damage.

     In modern times, the use of soap has become universal in industrialized nations due to a better understanding of the role of hygiene in reducing the population size of pathogenic microorganisms. Manufactured bar soaps first became available in the late nineteenth century, and advertising campaigns in Europe and the United States helped to increase popular awareness of the relationship between cleanliness and health. By the 1950s, soap had gained public acceptance as an instrument of personal hygiene.

     In recent years, there has been a grassroots return to making "natural" soap in the home.  These cottage industries make soap from ingredients found in nature for its skin care qualities rather than a synthetic soap which relies upon laboratory-made chemicals to make the soap look and feel and act in a certain way.  It is tempting for soap manufacturers to lean toward synthetics and away from natural materials. Synthetics are more stable in more situations and less expensive in the long run unlike the fats and oils which differ slightly from tree to tree and region to region.

     As Susan Miller Cavitch states in her book The Natural Soap Book: Making Herbal and Vegetable Based Soaps,

"As we become more and more comfortable with synthetics in all areas of our lives, we run the risk of losing natural defenses and continually needed greater synthetic intervention.  Skin care is but one facet of this phenomenon.  Our skin is remarkably capable of functioning on its own to protect us, but, as we use more and more harsh, foreign substances, we alter the body's chemical makeup and leave our skin without its natural defenses.  We risk becoming dependent on stronger and stronger synthetics to take the place of the body's natural systems.  We must each, as individuals, decide which route to go - the way of nature or the way of the lab."

Some individuals have chosen not to use the commercial "soaps" and continue to make soap in the home. The traditional name "soaper", for a soapmaker, is still used by those who make soap as a hobby. Those who make their own soaps are also known as soapcrafters.  Many of these soapcrafters have expanded their soap making from a hobby basis to a business basis to make natural soap more available to the public at large.  Many come up with their own recipes using different butters and essential oils to help those with sensitive skin or who just want to pamper their skin so that it retains its elasticity, moisture, and smoothness.
The most popular soap making processes today is the cold process method, where fats such as olive oil react with lye. Soapmakers sometimes use the melt and pour process, where a premade soap base is melted and poured in individual molds. Some soapers also practice other processes, such as the historical hot process, and make special soaps such as clear soap (aka glycerin soap).
Handmade soap differs from industrial soap in that, usually, an excess of fat is used to consume the alkali (superfatting), and in that the glycerin is not removed. Superfatted soap, soap which contains excess fat, is more skin-friendly than industrial soap; though, if not properly formulated, it can leave users with a "greasy" feel to their skin. Often, emollients such as jojoba oil or shea butter are added 'at trace' (the point at which the saponification process is sufficiently advanced that the soap has begun to thicken), after most of the oils have saponified, so that they remain unreacted in the finished soap.

     Natural soapcrafters today have many different ingredients to select from to produce wonderful and varied soap bars.  These ingredients consist of:

• base oils available in today's market such as coconut oil, jojoba oil, avocado oil, castor oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, peanut oil and soybean oil
• various butters like shea butter, mango butter, and cocoa butter for extra moisturizing capabilities
• other nutrients such as sweet almond oil, avocado oil, aloe vera, calendula oil, carrot root oil, various clays, and seaweed
• essential oils including peppermint, eucalyptus, spearmint, chamomile, geranium, rosemary, lavender, etc for scenting and therapeutic effects
• and various herbs and spices for color

Soapmakers today can produce artistic therapeutic soap bars high in moisturizers for the discerning soap shopper.

history of duct tape

Duct tape was invented over sixty years ago and nowadays, has an almost cult like following of users from housewives to soldiers. There are thousands of things you can fix with duct tape. It is strong, sturdy and durable.
It was developed for the military during World War as a way to keep moisture out of ammunition boxes and, some say, was originally called “duck tape” because of its moisture resisting properties. Others claim its name relates to the cotton duck from which it was made. As were soldiers tarpaulins, tents, ponchos and other equipment at this time. Whatever the origin of its name, soldiers soon started using it for a variety of purposes other than on ammo boxes such as quickly repairing military equipment like guns, jeeps, and even aircraft.
The name duct tape came to be used after the war at which time its color was also changed from army green to silver and nowadays, you can buy it in a variety of colors. During the housing boom people started using duct tape for many purposes including using to seal heating and air conditioning ducts during construction. Hence the new name “duct tape”.
Duct tape consists of 3 layers. The top layer is a resilient plastic (Polyethylene). The middle layer is a fabric mesh, which facilitates tearing. And the bottom layer is a rubber-based adhesive. The 3 layers are pressed together during manufacture.
Duct tape is commonly used in situations where a strong, flexible adhesive is required, especially where exposure to the elements is a concern. But over the years it has been used for a multitude of more zany situations including:
- repairing flat tires- making women’s dresses, pants, shoes and hats- restraining unruly prisoners- making Christmas decorations- making tennis balls behave like cricket balls- as a temporary bandage- temporarily repairing spacecraft
The number of uses to which duct tape can be put is often a source of humor. Many are described by the Duct Tape Guys (Jim Berg and Tim Nyberg) who, as of 2005, have written 7 books about duct tape. Such is the cult following of duct tape fans that their books have sold over 1.5 million copies.
Interestingly, duct tape is not actually very good in the situation after which it has been named. In fact, its use in ducts has been prohibited by the state of California and by building codes in most other places in the U.S.
Duct tape’s widespread popularity and multitude of uses has earned it a strong place in popular culture and there are now festivals and contests dedicated to it.
Duck Products sponsors an annual competition that offers a college scholarship to the person who creates the most stylish prom formal wear made from duct tape. This has led to increasing interest in creating novelty and fashion pieces such as designer duct tape handbags, wallets, belts and related items. Various companies, like Duct Bills and Duct Tape Revolution now make wallets, bags and other accessories from the tape.
Its strength, low cost, and remarkable versatility make duck tape a household staple throughout the USA for temporary repairs and general-purpose use. That, alongside it’s rabid fan base means it’s set to be around for at least another 60 years.

history of paperclip

The modern paper clip was patented on November 9, 1899 to William D. Middlebrook of Waterbury, Connecticut. Middlebrook invented not just the paper clip but he also invented a machine to produce the paper clip. Cushman and Denison  purchased the Middlebrook patent in 1899. That same year Cushman and Denison also trademarked the name "GEM" for their new paper clip.

1867 Samuel Fay invents and patents a Ticket Fastener that also can be used to hold paper
1899 William D. Middlebrook invents and patents paper clip and production machine
1899 Middlebrook sells patent to Cushman & Denison
1899 Cushman & Denison trademark the name GEM for their paper clip
1901 Johan Vaaler patents paper clip
1903 George McGill patents a paper clip that looks very similar to today's version
The Story:
Consider the humble paper clip: It’s just a thin piece of steel wire bent into a double-oval shape, but over the past century, no one has invented a better method of holding loose sheets of paper together.
The common paper clip is a wonder of simplicity and function, so it seems puzzling that it wasn’t invented earlier. For centuries, straight pins, string and other materials were used as fasteners, but they punctured or damaged the papers. While the paper clip seems like such an obvious solution, its success had to wait for the invention of steel wire, which was "elastic" enough to be stretched, bent and twisted.
The first paper clip was invented in 1867 by Samuel Fay. The patent (#64,088) was issued on April 23, 1867 for a Ticket Fastener. Fay specified in the description that in addition to attaching tickets to garments it could be used to hold papers together. Fay's design along with the 50 other designs patented prior to 1899 are not even close to the modern design we know today.
But the modern paper clip existed on paper as early as April 27, 1899. It appears on a patent (#636,272) issued November 9, 1899 to William D. Middlebrook of Waterbury, Connecticut. Middlebrook invented not just the paper clip but he also invented a machine to produce the paper clip. The patent drawings clearly show the final product, the common paper clip. In his description he makes reference that both the machine and the paper clip design are to be covered by the patent.
Cushman and Denison a manufacturing company already in the paper clip and office supply buisness purchased the Middlebrook patent in 1899. That same year Cushman and Denison also trademarked the name "GEM" for their new paper clip. The design was perfected further by rounding the sharp points of the wire so they wouldn’t catch, scratch or tear the papers. By 1907, the Gem brand rose to prominence as the perfect paper clip that "will hold securely your letters, documents, or memoranda without perforation or mutilation until you wish to release them." Since then, literally zillions of paper clips have been sold.
Over the years, many different inventors have been credited with the invention of the paper clip. First because so many patents were issued and second because their are so many design possibilities. One of the most prolific inventors was George McGill who patent under his name or in conjunction with other inventors over 15 different designs from 1888 to 1903. His 1903 patent (#742,893) even shows a design that looks like Middlebrook's. But the inventor who is named the most often as the inventor is Johan Vaaler. He properly is named most often because the story surrounding his paper clip makes for good reading.
In 1899 a Norwegian named Johan Vaaler, patented the paper clip in Germany because Norway had no patent law at the time. Vaaler's device received an American patent (#675,761) in 1901. Vaaler's American patent drawing shows several kinds of paper clips, from square to triangular to one that looks a lot like the elliptical ones in wide use today. But the wire does not form the familiar loop within a loop. However Vaaler did nothing with his invention.
Norwegians have proudly embraced their countryman, Johan Vaaler, as the true inventor. During the Nazi occupation of Norway in World War II, Norwegians made the paper clip a symbol of national unity. Prohibited from wearing buttons imprinted with the Norwegian king’s initials, they fastened paper clips to their lapels in a show of solidarity and opposition to the occupation. Wearing a paper clip was often reason enough for arrest.
One clear challenge to the Gem was patented (#1,985,866) in 1934 and has come to be known as the Gothic clip, because its loops are pointed more to resemble Gothic arches than the rounded Romanesque ones of the Gem. Henry Lankenau's patent application for the "perfect Gem" also listed ease of applying to papers as one of the invention's advantages. Although colorful plastic materials and new shapes have challenged the double-oval steel-wire paper clip over the years, none has proven superior. The traditional paper clip is the essence of form follows function. After a century, it still works.

history of the hair comb

Combs have been on the scene ever since humans had hair on his head. Which is quite sometime? The date perhaps goes beyond the time of the Old Stone Age. Man being man and not a lion would not be content to let his mane run wild and free. So he had to find some ways to tame it. First on the list of combing operations must have been the use of fingers. So in a way the fingers are the first combs of history.
A comb is a solid tool, usually flat and always with teeth. It is used for caring for human hair and cleaning other fluffy stuff like fiber. The etymology goes back to ancient Greece and Sanskrit meaning tooth or to bite. Among tools perhaps it is the oldest. Exquisite combs have been found digging up the ancient Persian Empire going back about 5000 years and at the time of the first Indo-European migrations. Many of the historical combs can be seen in museums. In the Hermitage Museum there is an exquisitely carved comb belonging to the Scythian period cca. 400 BC termed the Salokha comb. On the head are depicted three human figures, one being on horseback, about to kill an animal.
Combs were not always used for cosmetic purpose. It was used to comb out hair parasites like lice that took shelter in human hair. The fact is that as yet, no traditional civilization has yet been found that did not use combs! If you share combs then you have to share parasites also. Parasites love traveling from scalp to scalp via the comb route. Parasites travel in groups with families and eggs. Thus a comb is extremely popular with lice, fleas, mites and fungus. Sometimes the matter becomes serious because the comb is said to have been a carrier for the Black Plague, that finished off nearly one third of Europe in the Middle Ages. There are special nit combs and flea combs to tackle the menace of macroscopic vermin.
The comb may be turned into a musical instrument by stringing across its teeth the leaf of a plant or a thin piece of paper. Humming on it with cropped lips produce a heavenly ethereal sound. This principle is used in a musical instrument called the kazoo. The shape, material and length of the teeth determine the harmonic qualities of the comb.
Police investigators love combs. This is the first item they will seek in the crime scene. From the comb they will carefully collect samples of hair and dandruff for clues. The latest DNA testing procedure makes the hair on the comb an important item for proving or disproving accusations.
Some experts on hair care are of the opinion at it is best to use combs with wide teeth instead of hairbrushes and plastic combs having fine teeth. Wooden combs are supposed to anti-static without sharp seams. This prevents snapping and tangling of hair. The hairbrush continues to be popular. It is bigger than the usual comb and is used for managing and styling hair.
Combs have been frequently mentioned in many religious books. Among Hindus, during the period of mourning the family is not supposed to brush, comb or oil the hair. For some groups this continues for a fortnight. After the last rites the men shave off their hair while the women get back to the earnest job of combing the tangled mass. Indian mendicants take the vow of not combing their matted locks. It dangles in knotty splendour and revered by all. In mythology the River Ganga splashed on to the matted locks of Lord Shiva to find shelter and support.
Combs are universal and no corner of the globe is without it. But each has its own style and use of special material. Wooden combs are still quite common in village fairs in Asia. Usually these are made of boxwood and wood of cherry and pine trees. The best wooden combs are made by hand and polished. Some combs are made from the horns of buffalos. The early ones were made from ivory and bones. Silver, gold, tin and brass were also used. Tortoise shell and horn combs were more pliable and soft than other ones as these could be easily moulded. Generally combs are shaped from the raw material specific to the locality. It has its down side. The Chinese Kingfishers exquisite turquoise feathers were used to make classy combs and led to the near extinction of the species. The collector of African combs will be able to identify the locale from the wood used in each specific comb.
When the sentiments for ivory was getting too strong and supply becoming low, two brothers, Isaiah and John Hyatt in 1869 after playing around in the laboratory for some time discovered celluloid.  The first plastic consisted of nitrocellulose and camphor. A revolution was kicked off in the world of combs. They became cheaper and faster to make while keeping up the appearances of ivory and tortoise shell. It meant good news to the animals that got a breather to comb the nature reserves without fear.
In USA one Enoch Noyes opened a mini shop selling combs made from cattle horns. A German named Cleland joined him with technical know how and tools. Within few years a number of skilled horn smiths found employment under them. Leominster in Massachusetts came to be known since then as the Comb Capital of the country.
Combs are no longer the prerogative of humans. All one has to do is to pay a visit to the pet shop. There are various types of combs and brushes for cats, dogs and horses. There are different varieties specific to each family of dogs and cats.
Combing has an acupuncture effect. The nerves get stimulated. Holistic medicine practitioners strongly advise the use of combs to get over a feeling of depression. To come back to a feeling of well being with a bounce just vigorously comb your hair. For the best effect keep changing the comb so that the teeth are sharp and pointed for the required results. To avoid infection it is best to observe comb hygiene. Like the toothbrush there should be a separate comb for each individual.
Collectors can share interesting experiences. One collected a delicate honey-amber coloured piece with 21 teeth still intact, from an African flea market! A woman's crowning glory is her cascade of long tresses. The comb not only smoothes it out but also can be used to keep it in place. Some were carved and decorated with rhinestones. In yesteryears men fell in love with the rippling long tresses of women. Another big sized comb with its back broken off had its top made of rhinestone. It came from a church white elephant sale.
Research in combs is still relatively new but efforts are on to rope in enthusiasts and scholars to find out more about the oldest tool in the history of mankind. This led to the formation of a club in 1993, The Antique Comb Collectors Club. It is a non-profit organization intense in its search to comb the past for information and antique pieces.

history of scissors

Scissors are hand-operated cutting instruments. They consist of a pair of metal blades pivoted so that the sharpened edges slide against each other when the handles (bows) opposite to the pivot are closed. Scissors are used for cutting various thin materials, such as paper, cardboard, metal foil, thin plastic, cloth, rope and wire. Scissors can also be used to cut hair and food. Scissors and shears are functionally equivalent, but larger implements tend to be called shears.
There are many types of scissors and shears for different purposes. For example, children's scissors, used only on paper, have dull blades and rounded corners to ensure safety. Scissors used to cut hair or fabric must be much sharper. The largest shears used to cut metal or to trim shrubs must have very strong, sharp blades.
Specialized scissors include sewing scissors, which often have one sharp point and one blunt point for intricate cutting of fabric, and nail scissors, which sometimes have curved blades for cutting fingernails and toenails.
Special kinds of shears include pinking shears, which have notched blades that cut cloth to give it a wavy edge, and thinning shears, which have teeth that cut every second hair strand, rather than every strand giving the illusion of thinner hair.
The noun "scissors" is treated as a plural noun, and therefore takes a plural verb ("these scissors are"). Alternatively, this tool is also referred to as "a pair of scissors", in which case it (a pair) is singular and therefore takes a singular verb ("this pair of scissors is").
The word shears is used to describe similar instruments that are larger in size and for heavier cutting. Geographical opinions vary as to the size at which 'scissors' become 'shears', but this is often at between six to eight inches in length.
It is most likely that scissors were invented around 1500 BC in ancient Egypt.The earliest known scissors appeared in Mesopotamia 3,000 to 4,000 years ago. These were of the 'spring scissor' type comprising two bronze blades connected at the handles by a thin, flexible strip of curved bronze which served to hold the blades in alignment, to allow them to be squeezed together, and to pull them apart when released.
Spring scissors continued to be used in Europe until the sixteenth century. However, pivoted scissors of bronze or iron, in which the blades were pivoted at a point between the tips and the handles, the direct ancestor of modern scissors, were invented by the Romans around AD 100. They entered common use not only in ancient Rome, but also in China, Japan, and Korea, and the idea is still used in almost all modern scissors.
During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, spring scissors were made by heating a bar of iron or steel, then flattening and shaping its ends into blades on an anvil. The center of the bar was heated, bent to form the spring, then cooled and reheated to make it flexible.
William Whiteley & Sons (Sheffield) Ltd. is officially recognized as first starting the manufacture of scissors in the year 1760, although it is believed the business began trading even earlier. The first trade-mark, 332, was granted in 1791.

Pivoted scissors were not manufactured in large numbers until 1761, when Robert Hinchliffe produced the first pair of modern-day scissors made of hardened and polished cast steel. He lived in Cheney Square, London and was reputed to be the first person who put out a signboard proclaiming himself "fine scissor manufacturer".
During the nineteenth century, scissors were hand-forged with elaborately decorated handles. They were made by hammering steel on indented surfaces known as bosses to form the blades. The rings in the handles, known as bows, were made by punching a hole in the steel and enlarging it with the pointed end of an anvil.
In 1649, in a part of Sweden that is now in Finland, an ironworks was founded in the "Fiskars" hamlet between Helsinki and Turku. In 1830, a new owner started the first cutlery works in Finland, making, among other items, scissors with the Fiskars trademark. In 1967, Fiskars Corporation introduced new methods to scissors manufacturing.
A pair of scissors consists of two pivoted blades. In lower quality scissors the cutting edges are not particularly sharp; it is primarily the shearing action between the two blades that cuts the material. In high quality scissors the blades can be both extremely sharp, and tension sprung - to increase the cutting and shearing tension only at the exact point where the blades meet. The hand movement (pushing with the thumb, pulling with the fingers in right handed use) can add to this tension. An ideal example is in high quality tailors scissors or shears, which need to be able perfectly cut (and not simply tear apart) delicate cloths such as chiffon and silk.
Children's scissors are usually not particularly sharp, and the tips of the blades are often blunted or 'rounded' for safety.
Mechanically, scissors are a first-class double-lever with the pivot acting as the fulcrum. For cutting thick or heavy material, the mechanical advantage of a lever can be exploited by placing the material to be cut as close to the fulcrum as possible. For example, if the applied force (i.e., the hand) is twice as far away from the fulcrum as the cutting location (e.g., piece of paper), the force at the cutting location is twice that of the applied force at the handles. Scissors cut material by applying a local shear stress at the cutting location which exceeds the material's shear strength.
Specialized scissors, such as bolt cutters, exploit leverage by having a long handle but placing the material to be cut close to the fulcrum.
For people who do not have the use of their hands, there are specially designed foot operated scissors. Some quadriplegics can use a motorized mouth-operated style of scissor.
Kitchen scissors, also known as kitchen shears, are traditionally used in the kitchen for food preparation, although due to their tough nature they can serve many other purposes. In modern times they are often made from stainless steel (for food hygiene and oxidization-resistance reasons). They often have kitchen functionality (other than cutting) incorporated, such as bottle-cap and bottle-openers built into the handles.
Most scissors are best-suited for use with the right hand, but left-handed scissors are designed for use with the left hand. Because scissors have overlapping blades, they are not symmetric. This asymmetry is true regardless of the orientation and shape of the handles: the blade that is on top always forms the same diagonal regardless of orientation. Human hands are also asymmetric, and when closing, the thumb and fingers do not close vertically, but have a lateral component to the motion. Specifically, the thumb pushes out and fingers pull inwards. For right-handed scissors held in the right hand, the thumb blade is further from the user's body, so that the natural tendency of the right hand is to force the cutting blades together. Conversely, if right-handed scissors are held in the left hand, the natural tendency of the left hand would be to force the cutting blades laterally apart. Furthermore, with right-handed scissors held by the right-hand, the shearing edge is visible, but when used with the left hand the cutting edge of the scissors is behind the top blade, and one cannot see what is being cut.
Some scissors are marketed as ambidextrous. These have symmetric handles so there is no distinction between the thumb and finger handles, and have very strong pivots so that the blades simply rotate and do not have any lateral give. However, most "ambidextrous" scissors are in fact still right-handed in that the upper blade is on the right, and hence is on the outside when held in the right hand. Even if they successfully cut, the blade orientation will block the view of the cutting line for a left-handed person. True ambidextrous scissors are possible if the blades are double-edged and one handle is swung all the way around (to almost 360 degrees) so that the back of the blades become the new cutting edges. Patents have been awarded for true ambidextrous scissors.

history of clothes ironing

    
Thehistory of clothes iron can be traced back to as early as the 400 B.C. The Greeks were considered to be the first to use a roller iron to create pleats on linen robes. Even the Romans used a hand mangle which is quite similar to the modern day iron to beat the clothes. Through the beating and hitting, wrinkles are removed from the clothes. Then, there was prelum which was made of wood that looked quite similar to a winepress. Thus, the Romans had many tools that were used for pressing the fabric to get rid of the wrinkles.
In the first century B.C. the Chinese used a metal pan filled with burning charcoal to press the clothes. Later on, the 17th Century was recognized as the era when cloth iron came in to the picture. This was when the sad irons or sadirons appeared. In ancient times, the word sad referred to something solid. And this is from where it got its name as sad iron. It was also known as flat irons, as it had a thick metal slab with a handle. Sometime later this model was perfected to a metal box which could hold hot coals.
Flattish hand-size stones could be rubbed over woven cloth to smooth it, polish it, or to press in pleated folds. Simple round linen smoothers made of dark glass have been found in many Viking women's graves, and are believed to have been used with smoothing boards. Archaeologists know there were plenty of these across medieval Europe, but they aren't completely sure how they were used. Water may have been used to dampen linen, but it is unlikely the smoothers were heated.
More recent glass smoothers often had handles, like these from Wales, or the English one in the picture (left). They were also called slickers, slickstones, sleekstones, or slickenstones. Decorative 18th and 19th century glass smoothers in "inverted mushroom" shape may turn up at antiques auctions. Occasionally they are made of marble or hard wood.
Slickstones were standard pieces of laundering equipment in the late Middle Ages, in England and elsewhere, and went on being used up to the 19th century, long after the introduction of metal irons. They were convenient for small jobs when you didn't want to heat up irons, lay out ironing blankets on boards, and so on.
Other methods were available to the rich. Medieval launderers preparing big sheets, tablecloths etc. for a large household may have used frames to stretch damp cloth smooth, or passed it between "calenders" (rollers). They could also flatten and smooth linen in screw-presses of the kind known in Europe since the Romans had used them for smoothing cloth. Later presses (see right) sometimes doubled as storage furniture, with linen left folded flat under the board after pressing even when there were no drawers.
Even in modest homes with no presses, large items needed to be tackled with something bigger than a slickstone. They could be smoothed with a mangle board and rolling pincombination; many wonderfully carved antique Scandinavian or Dutch mangle boards have been preserved by collectors. The board, often carved by a young man for his bride-to-be, was pressed back and forth across cloth wound on the roller.
In England boards, paddles or bats like these were called battledores, battels, beatels, beetles, or other "beating" names. In Yorkshire a bittle and pin was used in the same way as the Scandinavian mangle board and roller. The earlier mechanical mangles copied this method of pressing a flat surface across rollers. The box mangle was a heavy box weighted with stones functioning as the "mangle board", with linen wound on cylinders underneath, or spread under the rollers. The boards/bats used for smoothing were similar to wooden implements used in washing: washing beetles used to beat clothes clean, perhaps in a stream. Sometimes they were cylindrical like the mangle rollers, sometimes flat. Instead of pressing you could simply whack your household linen with a bat/paddle against a flat surface, as witnessed in the Scottish Borders in 1803 by Dorothy Wordsworth.
Early box mangles (see left-hand column), like Baker's Patent Mangle, were devised for pressing and smoothing. Mangles with two rollers (above left) could also be used for wringing water out of fabric. Many Victorian households would complete the "ironing" of sheets and table-linen with a mangle, using hot irons just for clothing. In the UK laundry could be sent for smoothing to a mangle-woman, working at home, often a widow earning pennies with a mangle bought by well-wishers after her husband's death. In the late 19th/early 20th century US commercial laundries described the mangling or pressing of large items as "flatwork" to distinguish it from the detailed ironing given to shaped clothing.
Blacksmiths started forging simple flat irons in the late Middle Ages. Plain metal irons were heated by a fire or on a stove. Some were made of stone, like these soapstone irons from Italy. Earthenware and terracotta were also used, from the Middle East to Franceand the Netherlands.
Flat irons were also called sad irons or smoothing irons. Metal handles had to be gripped in a pad or thick rag. Some irons had cool wooden handles and in 1870 a detachable handle was patented in the US. This stayed cool while the metal bases were heated and the idea was widely imitated. (See these irons from Central Europe.) The sad in sad iron (or sadiron) is an old word for solid, and in some contexts this name suggests something bigger and heavier than a flat iron. Goose or tailor's goose was another iron name, and this came from the goose-neck curve in some handles. In Scotland people spoke of gusing (goosing) irons.
You'd need at least two irons on the go together for an effective system: one in use, and one re-heating. Large households with servants had a special ironing-stove for this purpose. Some were fitted with slots for several irons, and a water-jug on top.
At home, ironing traditional fabrics without the benefit of electricity was a hot, arduous job. Irons had to be kept immaculately clean, sand-papered and polished. They must be kept away from burning fuel, and be regularly but lightly greased to avoid rusting. Beeswax prevented irons sticking to starched cloth. Constant care was needed over temperature. Experience would help decide when the iron was hot enough, but not so hot that it would scorch the cloth. A well-known test was spitting on the hot metal, but Charles Dickens describes someone with a more genteel technique in The Old Curiosity Shop. She held "the iron at an alarmingly short distance from her cheek, to test its temperature..."
The same straightforward "press with hot metal" technique can be seen in Egypt where a few traditional "ironing men" (makwagi) still use long, heavy pieces of iron, pressed across the cloth with their feet. Berber people in Algeria traditionally use heated metal ovals on long handles, called fers kabyles (Kabyle irons) in France, where they were adopted for intricate ironing tasks.
If you make the base of your iron into a container you can put glowing coals inside it and keep it hot a bit longer. This is a charcoal iron, and the photograph (right) shows one being used in India, where it's not unusual to have your ironing done by a "press wallah" at a stall with a brazier nearby. Notice the hinged lid and the air holes to allow the charcoal to keep smouldering. These are sometimes called ironing boxes, or charcoal box irons, and may come with their own stand.
For centuries charcoal irons have been used in many different countries. When they have a funnel to keep smokey smells away from the cloth, they may be called chimney irons. Antique charcoal irons are attractive to many collectors, while modern charcoal irons are manufactured in Asia and also used in much of Africa. Some of these are sold to Westerners as reproductions or replica "antiques".
Some irons were shallower boxes and had fitted "slugs" or "heaters" - slabs of metal - which were heated in the fire and inserted into the base instead of charcoal. It was easier to keep the ironing surface spotlessly clean, away from the fuel, than with flatirons or charcoal irons. Brick inserts could be used for a longer-lasting, less intense heat. These are box or slug irons, once known as ironing boxes too. In some countries they are called ox-tongue irons after a particular shape of insert.
Late 19th century iron designs experimented with heat-retaining fillings. Designs of this period became more and more ingenious and complicated, with reversible bases, gas jets and other innovations. See some inventive US models here. By 1900 there were electric irons in use on both sides of the Atlantic.
Ironing continued to be done with hot coals in open metal pans in China, the basic principles no different from an enclosed charcoal iron. Pan irons could be simple or highly decorative. Further west, clay smoothers were sometimes used. Solid ones could be heated for pressing. Others were designed to hold hot embers like the North African terracotta iron on this page. The ladies preparing newly-woven silk in a 12th century Chinese painting are using a pan iron, in the same way as the ironers in the 19th century drawing at the top of this page. Although that drawing comes from Korea, Koreans were traditionally known for smoothing their clothes with pairs of ironing sticks, beating cloth rhythmically on a stone support. A single club for beating clothes smooth was used in Japan, on a stand called a kinuta. In many parts of the world similar techniques were used in both cloth manufacturing and laundering: in Senegal, for example.
The first electric iron is believed to have been invented by Henry W. Seely in the year 1882 and was formerly known as electric flat iron. This iron was heated by a detachable wire. The iron took longer to heat up and cooled down faster while using it. By the year 1892, brands like Crompton and Co. and General Electrics invented handheld electric resistant irons. As the years passed by the technology of iron also advanced.
There were many inventors such as Earl Richardson and Joseph Meyers, who contributed towards the improvement of electric iron. Finally in the year 1926, steam iron came in to existence. The first company to introduce a steam iron is the Eldec Company. Steam irons made it easier to flatten and smoothen wrinkled fabrics. Though, the steam iron came into existence quite early, it became popular only in the 1940’s. To reach such a stage the electric have had to travel a long way leaving behind a remarkable history.

history of toothbrush

The Chinese were believed to create the first real toothbrush, or a device that was used to clean teeth, but it was much different than the ones that we are used to today. These first toothbrushes, crafted in the 1400s, did not use nylon for bristles, or plastic for the handles. They were crafted from bamboo, one of the most common plants from that area. The bamboo formed the handle for people to hold on to. Attached to this handle was a set of bristles, which were crafted from the tough hair of the Siberian wild boar. The hairs used came from the back of the neck of this animal. This is the toothbrush associated with having been the ancestor of the one that we use today.
However, there is evidence that there was another form of the toothbrush dating up to 3000 years before the birth of Christ. Due to this, the history of the toothbrush proves that this device is one of the oldest still used by man, only truly outdated by the wheel. This form of the toothbrush was found within pyramids of the Egyptians. These toothbrushes were crafted from a stick. Unlike the Chinese version of the toothbrush, the end of the stick was flayed so that the fibers of the wood were more soft. This stick was then rubbed against the teeth to serve as a form of oral hygiene. This form of the toothbrush did not become far spread as the Chinese version.
The Chinese version of the toothbrush spread to Europe, where the Siberian wild boar took the brunt of the growing popularity of the invention. The only downside to the hairs of the Siberian wild boar was the fact that it was very rough on the gums. On account of this, some people began to use the hairs found on the backs of horses to craft the bristles on their brushes, as this was much easier on their gums and teeth. Despite the added softness of the horse hair bristles, the boar hairs were more commonly used, as horses were too valuable to Europeans during this period of time.
The boar hair toothbrush continued to be used until the early 1900s. In 1937, nylon was created in the Du Pont laboratories by Wallace H. Carothers. This invention forever changed the history of the toothbrush, as well as every other device that required a fibrous material, including ropes. In 1938, Nylon became the sign of modernization, from the creation of nylon stockings to Dr. West's first nylon toothbrush. This brush was called Dr. West's Miracle Toothbrush. Even with this breakthrough in the toothbrush, it wasn't until World War II that Americans began to take oral hygiene more seriously. This was a direct result of the war. This influence spurred on the development of better toothbrushes.
Toothpaste & Whiteners
Another aspect of toothbrush history that should be taken into account is toothpaste and other whiteners. These are usually used with the toothbrush in order to make certain that the teeth and breath were acceptable. The concept of toothpaste and mouth washes is pretty old - almost as old as the Egyptians toothbrush. The earliest known toothpaste was created by the Egyptians. It was said to contain a drachma of rock salt, two drachmas of mint, one drachma of dried iris flowers and 20 grains of pepper. This was then crushed and mixed together to form a powder. When mixed with saliva and applied to the teeth, it would help whiten and clean your teeth. When experimented with by an Australian dentist, the mixture worked far better than anything else created until the twenty first century. The only downside was the fact that it caused his gums to bleed.
In the 18th Century, the next recorded version of toothpaste occurred. This mixture called for dragon's blood, cinnamon and burn alum. This mixture tends to be more of an amusement for many scientists, as there is no proof that 'dragon's' existed. What may have really been considered to be dragon's blood is unknown.
The 19th Century saw a lot of innovations to toothpaste, although many of them would be repulsive compared to what we are used to today. Charcoal, for example, was used to clean teeth. Most of the toothpastes of this time were powders that became a paste when introduced to saliva. A lot of these different toothpastes were designed to both clean teeth and give the user better breath. This is where the modern idea for toothpaste came of, and one of the turn points in the history of toothpaste. The combination of these pastes and the toothbrush worked to ensure that there was a higher chance of cleaner and healthier teeth and gums.
It wasn't until the 1900s that toothpastes evolved to be more modern. Colgate, and many other toothpaste companies, worked to design toothpastes that tasted good while providing the means to clean teeth while not causing gums to bleed. Many ingredients are now used in toothpastes, with Fluoride being one of the most common. There are a wide variety of 'herbal' toothpastes as well, which do not contain this component. Each of these types are designed to fit the needs and wants of every type of person out there. This high level of choice is the primary evolution of toothpastes. While only a few were available as early as the Egyptian days, now there is something for everyone.
The combination of the toothpaste and modern toothbrush gives everyone the oral hygiene and dental health that they need to be able to have the sparkling teeth that is desired by so many. This combination also helps prevent the loss of your teeth later in life, so that dentures are not required as early. The history of the toothbrush and toothpaste shouldn't be looked down upon, as the options used back then were no where near as pleasant as the types available today.

history of wallet

The Wallet is a tiny, often pocket sized tool for storing cash, and other small articles such as credit cards, bank cards, drivers licenses, identification cards, and other valuables such as these . Usually it is made from fabrics such as leather, or synthetic plastics.
Typically, wallets are associated with men, as most women carry a similar object known as a purse. However, in modern day society, many women now also carry wallets as they are smaller and often, more convenient. Some women carry purses with wallets tucked inside of them.
Wallets were invented in the late 1600's, almost immediately after paper currency was introduced. Paper currency was invented in Massachusetts in 1690. Prior to this, simple purses were used to carry around metal coins. These purses resembled small, drawstring bags. The first wallets were generally made from cow or horse leather, and had one small pouch for where people would place their identification cards (know then as calling cards).
Today's modern wallet, which has many different slots for our many cards was invented in the 1950's, because of the invention of the first credit card. Wallets virtually remained the same throughout the 20th century, with the exception of the Velcro wallet which was introduced in the 1970's. Late in the 20th century, in 1996, what is known as the All-ett billfold wallet was invented. This type of wallet reduced the bulkiness of the original wallet by nearly half. In the 21st century, wallets have evolved in many ways including numerous shapes, sizes and color, all mostly for stylistic purposes rather than function.
Wallets are a huge hit among pit-pockets, who target people carrying wallets in the pockets of their pants. To avoid this, some wallet owners have chains connecting their wallets to their pants. Other wallet owners have inside pockets on their coats, so that they can not be pit-pocketed without noticing.
Although the wallet was originally designed to carry around cash, in modern society they are more often used for carrying credit cards. With the advanced systems of banks and other money institutes, people feel that carrying around cash is often unnecessary and a hassle. Some people still like to carry around change purses, which can be convenient for small purchases where using a credit card or bank card would be silly and wasteful.
A funny little story about a wallet:  http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2011/02/wallet-found-and-returned-after-40-years/

history of dolls

Dolls have been a part of humankind since prehistoric times. Used to depict religious figures or used as playthings, early dolls were probably made from primitive materials such as clay, fur, or wood. No dolls have survived from prehistoric times, although a fragment of an alabaster doll with movable arms from the Babylonian period was recovered.
Dolls constructed of flat pieces of wood, painted with various designs and with "hair" made of strings of clay or wooden beads, have often been found in Egyptian graves dating back to 2000 BC. Egyptian tombs of wealthy families have included pottery dolls. Dolls placed in these graves leads some to believe that they were cherished possessions.
Dolls were also buried in Greek and Roman children's graves. Girls from Greece and Rome dedicated their wooden dolls to goddesses after they were too "grown-up" to play with dolls.
Most ancient dolls that were found in children's tombs were very simple creations, often made from such materials as clay, rags, wood, or bone. Some of the more unique dolls were made with ivory or wax. The main goal was to make the doll as "lifelike" as possible. That ideal lead to the creation of dolls with movable limbs and removable garments, dating back to 600 B.C.
Following the era of the ancient dolls, Europe became a major hub for doll production. These dolls were primarily made of wood. Primitive wooden stump dolls from 16th and 17th century England number less than 30 today. The Grodnertal area of Germany produced many peg wooden dolls, a type of doll that has very simple peg joints and resembles a clothespin.
An alternative to wood was developed in the 1800s. Composition is a collective term for mixtures of pulped wood or paper that were used to make doll heads and bodies. These mixtures were molded under pressure, creating a durable doll that could be mass produced. Manufacturers closely guarded the recipes for their mixtures, sometimes using strange ingredients like ash or eggshells. Papier-mache, a type of composition, was one of the most popular mixtures.
In addition to wooden dolls, wax dolls were popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. Munich was a major manufacturing center for wax dolls, but some of the most distinctive wax dolls were created in England between 1850 and 1930. Wax modelers would model a doll head in wax or clay, and then use plaster to create a mold from the head. Then they would pour melted wax into the cast. The wax for the head would be very thin, no more than 3 mm. One of the first dolls that portrayed a baby was made in England from wax at the beginning of the 19th century.
Porcelain became popular at the beginning of the 19th century. Porcelain is made by firing special clays in a kiln at more than 2372 degrees Fahrenheit. Only a few clays can withstand firing at such high temperatures. Porcelain is used generically to refer to both china and bisque dolls. China is glazed, whereas bisque is unglazed. Germany, France, and Denmark started creating china heads for dolls in the 1840s. China heads were replaced by heads made of bisque in the 1860s. Bisque, which is fired twice with color added to it after the first firing, looked more like skin than china did.
The French "bebe" was popular in the 1880s, and it has become a highly sought after doll today. The bebe, first made in the 1850s, was unique from its predecessors because it depicted a younger girl. Until then, most dolls were representations of adults. Although the French dolls were unrivaled in their artistry, German bisque dolls became quite popular because they were not as expensive. Kammer & Reinhardt introduced a bisque character doll in the 1900s, starting a trend of creating realistic dolls.
For centuries, rag dolls were made by mothers for their children. Rag dolls refer generically to dolls made of any fabric. Cloth dolls refer to a subset of rag dolls made of linen or cotton. Commercially produced rag dolls were first introduced in the 1850s by English and American manufacturers. Although not as sophisticated as dolls made from other materials, rag dolls were well-loved, often as a child's first toy.
Dollmaking did not become an industry in the United States until after the Civil War in the 1860s. Doll production was concentrated in New England, with dolls made from a variety of materials such as leather, rubber, papier-mache, and cloth. Celluloid was developed in New Jersey in the late 1860s and was used to manufacture dolls until the mid-1950s. German, French, American, and Japanese factories churned out cheaply produced celluloid dolls in mass quantities. However, celluloid fell out of favor because of its extreme flammability and propensity to fade in bright light.
After World War II, doll makers experimented with plastics. Hard plastic dolls were manufactured in the 1940s. They resembled composition dolls, but they were much more durable. Other materials used in doll manufacturing included rubber, foam rubber, and vinyl in the 1950s and 1960s. Vinyl changed doll making, allowing doll makers to root hair into the head, rather than using wigs or painting the hair. Although most dolls are now mass-manufactured using these modern materials, many modern doll makers are using the traditional materials of the past to make collectible dolls
Barbie
The Barbie doll was invented in 1959 by Ruth Handler (co-founder of Mattel), whose own daughter was called Barbara. Barbie was introduced to the world at the American Toy Fair in New York City. Barbie's job was teenage fashion doll. The Ken doll was named after Ruth's son and was introduced two years after Barbie in 1961.
he full name of the first doll was Barbie Millicent Roberts, from Willows, Wisconsin. Barbie's job was that of teenage fashion model. However, the doll has been made in versions connected to over 125 different careers.
She came as either a brunette or blond, and in 1961 red hair was added. In 1980, the first African American Barbie and Hispanic Barbie were introduced, however, Barbie did have a black friend named Christie who was introduced in 1969.
The first Barbie was sold for $3. Additional clothing based on the latest runway trends from Paris were sold, costing from $1 to $5. In the first year (1959), 300,000 Barbie dolls were sold. Today, a mint condition "#1" (1959 Barbie doll) can fetch as much as $27,450. To date, over 70 fashion designers have made clothes for Mattel, using over 105 million yards of fabric.
There has been some controversy over Barbie Doll's figure when it was realized that if Barbie was a real person her measurements would be an impossible 36-18-38. Barbie's "real" measurements are 5 inches (bust), 3 ¼ inches (waist), 5 3/16 inches (hips). Her weight is 7 ¼ ounces, and her height is 11.5 inches tall.
In 1965, Barbie first had bendable legs, and eyes that open and shut. In 1967, a Twist 'N Turn Barbie was released that had a moveable body that twisted at the waist.
The best-selling Barbie doll ever was 1992 Totally Hair Barbie, with hair from the top of her head to her toes.

history of rock hand sign

Seeing as the infamous rock hand (or rock fist, devil horns, devil sign, metal horns, maloik, corna, or whatever you may prefer to call it) is part of our Rock World logo, it seemed only fitting to tell you a little bit about it.  It’s important to understand the symbol’s derivations to trace how it made its way into contemporary rock culture.
Its Mediterranean heritage points to the gesture as being a superstitious protection against evil or bad luck.  The horns were traditionally pointed down, and the gesture could be thought of as a slightly more vulgar equivalent to knocking on wood, or crossing your fingers behind your back.  The very earliest depiction of it is in an ancient Greek painting.  It appears to have been passed into ancient Roman culture, where it was also used to symbolized a curse.  The term “corna” is Italian for “horns.”
Interestingly, an entirely unrelated use of the sign has an intrinsically musical background.  As far back as the early 1600s, it was used as a crude measurement, ranking up there with the cubit in its antiquity.  The distance between the pointer and pinky fingers was meant to gauge the distance the slide on a tenor trombone must move between “Choire tone (Chorton)” and “Chamber tone (Kammerton).”  This was representative of one-half-step.
The sign is also similar to a mudra (hand symbol) in Eastern religions.  The Karana mudr? is meant to expel demons and remove obstacles like sickness or negative thought, and can be seen in many statues and paintings of Buddha.  The two middle fingers form a pinch with the thumb, instead of being tucked under it.
In sign language, the symbol for love is also similar to the “rock hand,” save for the thumb being held out rather than folded in.
So with all these eclectic origins, how did this two-fingered symbol find its way into rock music?  The earliest appearance arose with the psychedelic-occult rock band Coven in the late 1960s. Beginning in 1968, the band would open and close their shows by giving the sign onstage.  Their 1969 back album cover for Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls pictured the band giving the “sign of the horns.”  An included poster also showed the band members making the sign at a ritual Black Mass.  Coincidentally, the band’s bass player was named Oz Osborne, and they recorded a song called “Black Sabbath.”
Also in 1969, and far on the other side of the rock spectrum, The Beatles released Yellow Submarine, with a cartoon of John Lennon making the sign.  Photographs of Lennon show him gesturing with the thumb extended, indicating he may have in fact been signing “love” (which seems to be more fitting) and the artist of the cartoon misrepresented it.
Gene Simmons of KISS has been cited as saying he adopted the sign from a performance of Sister he watched in 1977 (featuring Blackie Lawless, formerly of the New York Dolls and later of W.A.S.P., and Nikki Sixx, later of Mötley Crüe).  Blackie had discovered the corna salute in an occult book and began using it in his live shows.
When Ronnie James Dio joined Black Sabbath in 1979, he wanted his own hand gesture he could use to connect with his fans, as original singer Ozzie Osbourne had done using the peace sign.  Dio picked up the corna gesture from his Italian grandmother, who used it as the traditional protection against the evil eye, or “malocchio.”  This is how the name “maloik,” a corruption of the original term, came about.  He has clarified that the sign was never meant to be interpreted as “the devil’s sign.”  Rather, it is a symbol representing “magical incantations and attitudes,” which he thought was reflective of what the band was supposed to be all about.
There have been many variations developed involving both hands, and even a sort of handshake that has come to be known as the “rock lock.”  But in the end, no matter what the origins or “proper” use of the sign may be, in modern popular culture it’s universally recognized as a simple sign of downright enthusiasm for our common love—ROCK  ‘N ROLL!  Which is, basically, what we’re all about.

history of handshake

Over the many centuries of human existence, many social customs have emerged out of both necessity and leisure. The handshake is one custom that encompasses both of those origins. The handshake may appear little more than a formality to some, but to others it is a complete view into the personality of the person on the other end of the handshake. The handshake has also created nations and bought homesteads. However, in all cases it still requires two people to be executed correctly, thus causing an interaction to take place.
The actual beginning of the handshake is as difficult to specifically determine as most events that happened before written history. However, there are many accounts that provide both comedy and insight. One origin offered by Herbert Spencer, in his book THE PRINCIPLES OF SOCIOLOGY, is that of two Arabs meting in a desert. They each reach for the others hand to kiss it in greeting. However, it is an insult to have your hand kissed by another individual, so both men try to withdraw from the lips of the other man. The end result of this meeting is the acceptance by both men that they wouldnt kiss the others hand, and thus they ended up only clasping the hand of the other, and the handshake was born. The mutual acceptance by the two men that the hands wouldnt be kissed shows the equality between the two individuals.
Perhaps a more practical origin of the handshake comes from medieval Europe, where kings and knights would extend their hands to each other, and [grasp the] others hand as a demonstration that each did not possess concealed weapons and intended no harm to the other (Hall). I say this is a more practical origin of the handshake, because it more closely resembles our current use of the handshake as a way to introduce ourselves to a person and open ourselves up to them for the purpose of interacting. Interestingly enough, the ancient Greeks used it similarly. It was a welcoming sign of friendliness, hospitality, and trust (Schriffin).
Still, despite the various possible and plausible origins that the handshake sprung from, the handshake has taken many diverse and, at times, conflicting meanings. The question as to the meaning of the handshake is what the next section of this page will address.
The Various Meanings of the Handshake
Why is the handshake so important in the business world? Why are most meetings between diplomats ended with a handshake? Why do secret orders, fraternities, and sororities include handshakes among their secret rituals? I believe Hall and Hall put it best when they wrote, The handshake represents an expression of equality.
Take, for example, the meeting of diplomats to discuss a peace initiative for two warring countries. With the handshake giving a sense of equality to the meeting, the playing field is leveled and the proceedings can occur, unhindered by feelings of inequality. Admittedly, most diplomatic meetings occur in times when one side has a dramatic diplomatic advantage over the other, however, the handshake can often serve to equalize the two diplomats with each other, rather than equalize the parties they are representing.
Another example of political use of the handshake to imply equality is in the Presidential debates, where the candidates face off in a discussion of current events and personal policy beliefs. At the beginning of the debates, the candidates shake hands, much like in boxing matches when opponents touch gloves before the first bell rings, and then again at the end, which Hall and Hall describe as a handshake of reconciliation, in which participants reestablish a sense of solidarity. However, in politics, the meaning of the handshake has been cheapened by politicians preying on peoples beliefs on the meanings of the handshake to help further their own political interests.
Politics isn’t the only place in which the importance of the handshake has been made lesser in value. Over the course of the past two centuries of American existence, the importance of the handshake in the business world has declined from a once binding contract that pledged both your wealth and your honor, to little more than a business formality and tactical action. At one point in the banking industry, a person could lend and borrow money based on the palm-to-palm contact called a handshake.
Looking through the eyes of a symbolic interactionist, you could argue that the handshake is a binding agreement because it allows for the tangibility of feeling the other persons hand in yours and that contact and interaction is symbolic of the trust and reliance the two people are exchanging with each other. Because people develop a sense of personal space around them, physical contact between two people requires that this invisible barrier be suspended for the duration of the contact. Because the lowering of such a barrier requires trust in the person with which the interaction is taking place, the symbolic interactionist would say that the act of the handshake incorporates all those feelings into that one action.
A Goffmanesque Approach to the Handshake
The act of shaking hands requires what Goffman calls focused interaction. This is where a person interacts with another person directly and pays attention to the responses and social cues given by that person. Instances of focused interaction are called encounters. As Goffman also states, encounters require openers, in order to show that both parties recognize the encounter that is now taking place, as well as closers, to signify the end of the encounter. The handshake serves both the purposes with little modification. Specifically in the business world, handshakes are often used at the beginning and end of business meeting, interviews, and whenever else people want to show that they have entered into the interaction (encounter) and are ready to listen and respond to what the other person has to say.
Another one of Erving Goffmans major theoretical concepts was that of the Dramaturgical Approach to interaction. Applying this theory to the act of the handshake can provide some interesting insights into the importance of the handshake in the modern business world. For instance, in an interview, there is a very set pattern of events that is to occur in order for the interaction to be perceived as normal. The interview begins and ends with a handshake, displaying the equality of the two people. This is a very important line in the script that guides this reaction. A weak handshake can often be seen as a departure from the script because it can signify inattentiveness, weakness, insecurity, or rudeness. After the interview has been concluded, the handshake is once again needed as if it were the finale of the play. This time the handshake is not that of introduction, but that of closure.
Conclusion
Another theory, although not one of Goffmans, that applies to the handshake and too business in general is that of the compulsion of proximity. This theory is credited to Deirde Boden and Harvey Molotch. The compulsion of proximity refers to humans need for face-to-face interaction. I attribute this to the compulsion of proximity and to the importance of the handshake in the business world. Obviously there is still a high value placed on the value of the personal focused interaction and encounters that are enclosed by handshakes everyday. Many business coaches and personal behavioral books attribute to the handshake the role of encompassing your personality into a single action. This interaction cannot occur except in person. So, the price of this interaction is obviously worth the time and money it takes for these people to complete the interaction.
As you have read, the handshake is a very important part of the business world. A person would be foolish to overlook the importance of the handshake. So, to all those business students, professors, and anyone else interested in the importance of the handshake, remember that you are being judged on your handshake whether consciously or subconsciously, so make it count. Since starting my research, I have paid a lot of attention to how people shake hands and there is a lot to be learned through paying a little more attention every time you shake hands. So, remember this the next time you shake a hand and pay attention, it means more than you think.

history of umbrella

It is believed that the first umbrellas were made of silk and that they originated in China more than two thousand years ago. They may even be older than that (at least as parasols) as there is evidence of their presence in the art and artifacts of ancient Egypt, Assyria and Greece. Artistic depictions at Nineveh reveal that the umbrella was generally carried over the king, but it is always shown open. It was often edged with tassels and adorned by a flower or some other ornament at its top. On several bas-reliefs at Persepolis, the king is represented under an umbrella, which a female slave holds over his head. Their primary purpose (both slaves and parasols) was to provide shade from the sun. The Chinese were the first to waterproof their "parasols" in order to use them as protection against the rain.
The ancient Greeks and Romans regarded the umbrella (skiadeion, a word meaning "day shade") as an item of luxury. It was carried over the head of the effigy of Bacchus, and Athenian daughters were required to bear parasols over the heads of maidens at the festival of the Panathenea. At the British Museum, Hamilton vases bear the image of a princess holding a parasol. In Rome, when the veil could not be spread over the roof of a theater, it was customary for both women and effeminate men to defend themselves against the sun with the umbrella of the period known as an umbraculum. They were made either of skin or leather and could be raised or lowered as circumstances might require. (Perhaps it was a way to avoid the direct viewing of Christians being eaten by lions or maybe, after that happened a few times too many, the other way around.)
Although the practice of using an umbrella in Renaissance Italy was probably a vestige of the Roman influence, as late as 1608 Thomas Coryat speaks of the invention after the description of Italian fans. "Many…do carry other fine things, of a far greater price…which they commonly call umbrellaces; that is, things that minister shadow unto them, for shelter against the scorching heat of the sun. These are made of leather, sometimes answerable to the form of a little canopy, and hooped in the inside with…wooden hoopes, that extend the umbrella into a pretty large compasse. They are used especially by horsemen, who carry them in their hands when they ride, fastening the end of the handle upon one of their thighs; and they impart so long a shadow unto them, for shelter of the sun from the upper part of their bodies."
It is possible that umbrellas existed at the very same time in Spain and Portugal, from where they spread to the New World. Daniel De Foe makes mention of an umbrella in Robinson Crusoe. Without his faithful friend, Friday, Crusoe describes umbrellas that he has seen in the Brazils, and he constructs one of his own in imitation of them. Subsequently, one type of very heavy umbrella became known as "The Robinson."
Crusoe goes on to say: "I covered it with skins, the hair outward, so that it cast off the rain like a penthouse, and off the sun so effectually that I could walk out in the hottest of weather with greater advantage than I could before in the coolest."
The word "umbrella" comes from the Latin word "ombra," meaning shade or shadow. Sixteenth century Europe, particularly the rainy northern regions, saw the introduction of the umbrella primarily as an accessory for women. The literature of the time indicates that the exteriors of umbrellas were composed entirely of feathers, in imitation of the plumage of water birds. (Afterwards, oiled silk was commonly used.)
The future of the umbrella as strictly a female thing all changed when Jonas Hanway (1712-86) came upon the English scene. The Persian writer and traveler carried and used an umbrella publicly in England for thirty years. His claims of being in delicate health seemed to justify his crossing of the barrier. He popularized its use among men (who before that got very wet, even though they remained in vogue whenever it rained). Before his time, only those men known as "Macaronies" dared to carry an umbrella (before going into evolution to become noodles popularly used with most cheeses). For years, English gentlemen referred to their umbrellas as "Hanways."
Resistance to the umbrella was not only a matter of sexual preference, but economics as well. Many coachmen regarded rainy weather as something designed to their advantage and from which the public was entitled to no other protection than what their vehicles could offer. One John MacDonald, a footman who wrote a memoir dated about 1790, claimed that upon appearing with a fine silk umbrella which he had brought from Spain, he was saluted with the cry of "Frenchman, why don’t you get a coach?" There was a kind of transition period shortly after this time, during which umbrellas were kept at coffeehouses, liable to be used by gentlemen on special occasions (wet ones, no doubt) under cover of darkness (and possibly masks). It was still, however, stubbornly considered an effeminate accessory.
Early English umbrellas were made of oiled silk and when wet, were particularly difficult to open or close. They were very expensive, heavy and inconvenient until silk and gingham replaced oiled silk. The umbrellas of this time had a ring at the top by which they were usually carried on the finger when unopened and by which, when not in use, they could be hung on the back of a door. A wooden handle came to a rounded point to rest on the ground. These umbrellas were very popular with older women up until around 1810.
The first umbrella shop of record, which opened in 1830, is still today at its original address, 53 New Oxford Street in London. James Smith and Sons sold umbrellas that were works of art; many made of wood and whalebone and covered with alpaca or an oiled canvas. Artisans were employed and paid handsomely to design decorative, curved handles out of hard and precious woods like ebony.
In 1852, Samuel Fox invented the steel ribbed umbrella design, claiming it to be most practical as it was a way to use up excess stocks of farthingale stays, which were used in women’s corsets. Fox also founded the English Steel Company. In 1885, African-American inventor, William C. Carter, patented the very first umbrella stand.
The parasol is most associated with Victorian society. Its popularity may well be ascribed to the Victorian woman’s obsession with maintaining a fair complexion. More than a trademark of beauty, pale skin was a reflection of class, indicating to the world that the woman did not have to work outdoors and was a lady of refinement. Parasols were as much a part of a lady’s wardrobe as her gloves, shoes, hats, fans and stockings. Each outfit a fashionable woman owned had its very own accompanying parasol. They were also popular gifts, and, like the fan and lacy handkerchief, parasols were flirting aids with their own secret language. They were very popular well into the Edwardian era of the early 1900s.
Out of vogue for almost a century, the parasol returned to the fashion scene around 1990, making a comeback like an aging but still beautiful movie queen. This was due largely to an increased awareness of skin cancer and the fact that it was no longer considered healthy or wise to remain in the sun for too long. Parasols are seen with more and more regularity in the streets of Great Britain, France and especially Japan. New materials are being employed that have ultra-violet protection and filter out 97% of dangerous ultra-violet rays.
The most beautiful parasols in the world come from the land of their origin, China. Here they have taken on their own unique persona, even becoming common paraphernalia for artists of the stage. High wire performers use parasols to balance themselves on the high wires. They are made from a variety of materials, (umbrellas, not wirewalkers) including oilpaper, cotton, silk, plastic film and nylon. The best oilpaper umbrellas are thought to be those from Fujan and Hunan provinces. Their bamboo frames are specially treated against mould and worms. The paper covers are hand-painted with flowers, birds, figures and landscapes and then coated with oil so that they are not only practical but pretty and durable as well. They may be used either in rain or sunshine.
The prettiest Chinese umbrellas are those covered with silk, and the silk parasols of Hangzhou are both practical and breathtaking works of art. The very thin silk is printed with landscapes and fixed onto a bamboo frame. Usually weighing a little over eight ounces and about twenty inches long, they are popular gifts for tourists as well. Local girls carry them as part of their everyday attire for protection against the hot and unforgiving sun.
The next time it rains, think about all the years gone by when people got, among other things, very wet. It will endear you to every umbrella you have ever owned, as we all tend to take familiar things for granted. So say hello and thank you to your practical accessory as you raise it to venture out in the wet and the cold. Think about Gene Kelly and his incomparable solo, which he did with an umbrella too (not to mention golden dancing feet and a brilliant choreographic score). The image will not get you wet, for your head is properly covered, but if all goes well, as you walk down the street, it’s sure to make you smile.