Poland

On November 6, 1917, Jadwiga Kuczynska of Hooversville, Pennsylvania, patented a novel coin bank for holding coins of a single denomination. It displayed the total amount saved at a glance and could only be opened automatically once completely filled.

On October 13, 1937, Jadwiga Stankiewicz of Poland patented a novel umbrella whose shaft could be offset from the centre of the canopy rather than placed centrally. By giving the rear portion of the canopy a larger span than the front, it could better protect the user’s back from rain while remaining simple to construct.

On April 10, 1916, Zofia Szuman of Posen, Poland, patented a pattern template designed to simplify tailoring garments for non-standard body shapes. The flexible paper or canvas template featured pre-drawn fold lines that could be adjusted to fit a person’s exact measurements, allowing accurate seam placement for waists, blouses, jackets, and sleeves.