There was no such thing as credit cards. Most people didn't even have a bank account. They were paid on Friday's in cash. My Mum put money aside every week in an old tea caddy. This paid for Christmas. Dad was a keen gardener and he would swop his produce for eggs etc. I'm not saying they were the good old days, they weren't but we didn't have debt or demanding children. The kids knew the score.
It was a different era, but I can't say that it was either better or worse than now, just too different to compare.
My Dad made our things too - go carts, dolls houses, games, refurbished bicycles, all manner of stuff. He even made our first cars out of two old ones. But he wouldn't be able to turn his hand to making us a laptop in this day and age and he wouldn't know 10gb from 10 green bottles. Its different and that's that.
we were better off, if you couldnt afford then you couldnt have, no worry about having to pay the credit catd bills, people were content with their lot.
Once at a palls as a kid the tally man knocked we were told to answer the door and say her mum was out and her mum went half way up the stairs to listen, I was fascinated as we didnt have a tally man, pal said her piece to which he replied - if your mums not home who do those legs belong to half way up the stairs then ? she got a clump round the ear for opening the door too wide.