Semco presents Crochet Edges of Distinction: Book No. 14; 0.75 mm crochet hook; coats crochet twine

32 pages. Crochet hook and ball of twine. Book has some wear.Semco of Black RockAdvertisement for Girls by Semco 1947. Courtesy: City of Kingston, Kingston Collection.Towards the end of the Second World War E J Trait, the forward-thinking editor of Standard News, then the local newspaper for much of area we now call Kingston, conducted a campaign for decentralisation of industry to suburbs away from the then industrial belt around Richmond, Collingwood and other inner suburbs. As part of this, in 1944, he featured Semco Pty Ltd, a textile firm situated in Black Rock, on the fringe of Sandringham.Semco began in 1907 as a small venture in the Melbourne CBD, where the acumen of businessman, Stanley Mullen, led to the importing of many paper goods such as postcards, paper transfers, cardboard goods and other printed items. In 1911 the city building containing Semco’s works was destroyed by fire. Mullen died not long after this but the new governing director of the firm, C H Mylis, had innovative plans for the business. He wanted the firm to become an exemplary modern enterprise that treated staff with fairness, created healthy and spacious working sites, and located factories in areas with surrounding gardens, recreational facilities and fresh air. His factory would eventually be moved away from the ugly, soul-stifling, foul-smelling city area to an outer suburb with sea breezes and open areas of vegetation. He also added cotton fabric products to the output and they soon became the staple items the firm made. By the early 1920s Semco had moved to Cheltenham Road, not far from Bluff Road, in Black Rock, then considered to be an outer suburb. Mylus also ensured that the firm’s founder would not be forgotten. The first three letters of Semco’s name were the initials of Stanley E Mullen.Semco had a staff that included many young women. Eddie Trait’s article praises the firm for its working conditions and its payment of the correct rates of pay for women in a time of war. Many older women were in the services and Trait appealed to local mothers to get their daughters on to the Semco payroll where they would be safely employed. During World War 2 Manpower Regulations could be used to coerce workers to move into jobs that supported the war effort, but Trait argued that being employed at Semco could make this unlikely as the firm made some goods essential for the war effort. The starting rate for 15-year-olds, mainly girls at Semco, was 25 shillings per week and considered as excellent by Trait.Spinning at Semco’s Black Rock Factory. Courtesy City of Kingston, Leader Collection.Congenial conditions and interesting work made Semco a local asset for workers. Women were creating new designs for the fabrics and paper products which included tablecloths, babies’ bibs, bedspreads, aprons, soft toys, children’s garments and many more. Trait argued that the soothing effect of fancy designs on needlework even played a role in the war effort when troops up north were sent items as presents. Hospitals at home and in the war zones had stocks of Semco products stamped with pictorial designs. These had been applied to fabrics by screen printers, usually males. Face towels, d’oyleys, tray cloths, tea cosies, aprons and thousands of skeins of multi-coloured thread formed Semco’s contribution to hospital stocks.Interior view of Semco’s factory. Courtesy City of Kingston Leader Collection.Standard News pushed the concept of decentralisation relentlessly. There is a long description of the discomfort city workers underwent in getting to and from work in crowded trains. Workers had to mill around on Flinders Street railway station platforms, stand all the way in the trains hanging on to the straps provided in each carriage, and generally join the throng that resembled an ant heap. Trait heaped copious amounts of praise on the Semco workplace. In a long description of the factory’s environment he noted that no Saturday work was the norm, allowing employees t.…