Below are a collection of headers and titles from 1910 issues of Men's Wear. They are all very carefully illustrated, but at first glance, they might seem like a rather unusual choice for decorating the articles in a fashion trade journal. You see, despite the title of the publication, there is remarkably little men's wear to be seen in them. Perhaps they are the result of a bold attempt to make the magazine stand out from the rest, as undisputedly artsy. they might also be the sartorial community of 1910's equivalent to decorating the pages of a car magazine with assorted engine parts- a kind of decorative use of the figures that hold up and round out the men's wear.
The title page is decorated with what appears to be Industry, gracefully waving a banner and balancing a globe. He is flanked by two glossy companions, who I'm guessing might be Trade and Agriculture. I keep chuckling, because the title for the semi monthly men's wear industry report is "THE SITUATION."
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The header for the "Selling Ideas" section is a little harder to interpret. Are these fit fellows thinking inside the box? Their boxes do appear to be decked with festive strands of floating ribbon. Are they gifted thinkers?
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The Men's Wear market report header is decorated with a sheet clad horseman, riding into the fray of a fiercely competative market, perhaps.
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Gravity defying ribbons make another appearance in the header for "Stock Taking in a Country Store." The illustrator appears to have been determined to squash his men into one of the most dramatic S curves I've seen in a while. Hogarth would have been proud! I'm pretty uncertain about the objects that the men are carrying. They appear to be mallets of some sort, but might also be a kind of a torch.
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Last, but not least, is one of the least abstract headers in the group. It is made up of two picturesque painters in wind-swept drapery, and they seem right at home above a section of the publication dedicated to ads, signs, illustration and typography.
I truly felt as if I'd stumbled across buried treasure, when I discovered an entire twelve-page picture book, printed in the July 1910 issue of Men's Wear. It is a beautifully illustrated allegorical tale about a rowing match between two different marketing approaches. The whole thing is a delightful treat from start to finish, so I've gone ahead, and posted the entire piece below. Enjoy!
Glancing through old advertisements, I just never know what marvelous and colorful expressions I will stumble across next! Take, for example, this tidbit, tucked away in a rather busy looking ad in a 1910 issue of Men's Wear :
"Ha! Salesclerk at a haberdashery? Naw, I'm an at-home dealer. I give the honey and get the money. See?" The full ad is below.
