My 50's era Shop

My latest acquisition this week; a Fosteria Steam Iron! $5.
It's odd how happy I am about finding this old beast and it's kind of funny thinking about how horrified my grandmother would be about me getting all of this "old" equipment on purpose. All I can say is they don't make things the way they used to. You may or may not know that I personally own three sewing machines; two Singers made in 1950 and 1951 (you can look this information up if you have the serial number HERE) and a Kenmore, probably made in the mid-1970's.

This iron needed a little cleaning on the front but it's a gem. You plug it in and it's hot within seconds. If you drop it, it does not shatter into tiny plastic pieces. The steam comes pouring out almost imediatley, and although it lacks a steam on demand button, such a feature isn't really missed when you have an iron that just Works!
The only down side to this old beast; takes a long time to cool down and won't automatically shut off when not in use.
The disposable culture that we've developed is horrid when you look at these old machines built over 60 years ago that work better than any top of the line equivalents made in 2009. This is the reason that we're drowning in landfills and consumerism. I for one would gladly pay extra to get an iron like the one I just bought for $5 if I thought it would last for another 60 years! However that is not where we are right now and I will just have to revel in good fortunes like this finding me at the "junk" store.