Do you read the Fashion Magazines, or the weekly 'Fashion' day in your newspaper? What about furniture? Do you follow the latest trends - for example it does seem as though'Three Piece Suites' (remember them?) are now more or less de trop.When I was growing up (1940s and 1950s) everyone 'needed' a three piece suite - a settee and two armchairs. My parents had one in their 'front room'. I can see it now - covered in a sort of bronzy-coloured, velvety material- not particularly comfortable. It 'sat' in our front room, along with our 'radiogram' and as far as I can remember the two records they possessed, (One was 'We are the Queen's Navy' - can't remember what the other one was but it was of the same ilk) and my piano. I spent hours playing the piano even though it was always freezing cold in there.
We only went in the Front Room on Christmas Day and New Year's Day and if someone 'special' was paying a visit. The curtains were kept semi-drawn to stop the sun fading the suite. (when I married the farmer in 1993 his parents had the same kind of front room except for piano read china cabinet with glass front and best china only used when 'important people' visited.)
Does anyone live like this any more?
And what about Fashion? My mother favoured what she called the costume. By the time I came along it became 'the suit'. For any special occasion it was necessary to have a new suit. I have photographs of her and my father when they were on a week's holiday - staying in a Boarding House in Llandudno. My mother is sitting in some kind of summer house/hut half way up the Great Orme - she is wearing a suit! And similarly my mother and two of her sisters sitting in deck chairs on the sands - in suits!
I do remember following Fashion when the mini came in for the first time (early seventies for a guess) and I had a gorgeous yellow mini skirt which I wore with a navy blue silk shirt blouse with the top two buttons open and the sleeves rolled up almost to the elbow. (very daring). But compared with today's mini skirts it would have been considered almost long.
Now if I see some chair I like I would buy it - making sure the cover didn't clash fiercely with any other piece of furniture I owned.
But as for clothes - I look (probably with the astonishment - or even horror) at today's fashionistas and think 'never in a million years would I wear that'. Apart from anything else - I used to have good legs - I am 5ft 9in (in old money) and my legs were worth looking at boys. But now my arthritic knees are best kept under wraps, seen only by me and by my carers. It is trousers all the time - I no longer possess a skirt apart from a full length woollen plaid skirt I can't bear to take to the Charity Shop - I love it too much (and yes it would hide my knees but I can no longer fasten it at the waist!)
If you are someone like the gorgeous Dame Judi Dench (almost as old as me) you can develop your own fashion. She cuts a dash in the same kind of clothes always - and I am sure she has many outfits. They always look divine on her.
As a final parting shot - I think the mini had been 'in' earlier than that. My sister who was 22 years older than me (same parents) always liked to dress fashionably. When I was in my early teens and played the organ at the Methodist Chapel my family attended, my sister asked who the preacher was one Sunday morning just as I was setting off to play. When I said his name she gave a roar of laughter - he was by this time a Bank Manager in Lincoln - and she related how once she and her friend were walking down the street in Lincoln (they would be in their mid teens) and he, with a group of young pals, had shouted across the road, "Look at Vera Smithson lads - she's got legs right up to her bum!"
I never saw that preacher in the same light again!
See you tomorrow.
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39 comments:
Another superb posting Pat, so many memories of times that many of us can identify with. Mini skirts were around in the mid 1960's, my first wife to be was wearing them in 1966. Levi jackets and jeans for us lads and mini skirts and bra-less T shirts for the girls.
I do remember being very embarrassed when my mother turned up for the parents' evening at my first year at Grammar school (1968) wearing a very short mini skirt, white knee length boots and a green suede short jacket with white faux fur trim. All the other mothers were wearing "proper" clothes!
I enjoyed reading that. It's strange how things which we once took for granted slip from memory - I'd completely forgotten that women used to talk about "costumes". In the village where I grew up it was not unusual for people to keep their bicycles in the front room during the week; the room only ever being used on Sundays. I suppose it made sense - their bikes were the most valuable things they owned.
I have the same furniture for ages and ages. We don't often use the "living room" (parlor) so that furniture is in fine shape. The "family room" sofa isn't in great condition but my young grandkids might damage new stuff so I keep the old.
Now that I am retired, I dress very casually - sweatpants and sweatshirts to keep cozy or jeans if I'm going out. I wore lots of miniskirts back in the day and I remember dressing in wide ragged bellbottoms when in College. Great post!
My sister was very tall and very slender, so she made most of her own clothes. Late 60s, she had made herself a very cute dress with a short skirt. We'd gone to see my grandmother. Granny was looking at the dress, Ellen thought she checking the craftsmanship (with Ellen it was always excellent). Then Granny tapped farther down Ellen's thigh. She'd been checking the hem, seeing how much longer Ellen could make the skirt!
The use of the word costume went on into the 1950s. I made all my own clothes as a teenager, if I didn't then there would have been nothing to wear it being much cheaper to make ones own clothes than buy them. I kept very up to date with fashion with my mum. I was always taught to go for quality and good design. I still read Vogue. My furniture all comes from the secondhand dealer and is a bit mix and match.
I use to be 5'9-1/2", 130 lbs. and legs up to there, as well. And, with an inseam of 33 inches (and still do), buying slacks was a chore. I ended up making my own and when hot pants outfits were the rage ... I made those, as well.
At 79 now, my legs are just ugly! Ugh!
Time and tide are not always kind!
I remember having a pink tweedy costume with a pleated skirt and I also remember making the skirt into a straight one when pleats beccame unfashionable. I also remember having pink summery gloves which I wore with that costume. They were a see-through gauzy type of material. So many years ago now.
Those were the days. Trying to be respectable in mini skirts and not bend over. We were mostly skinny in those days and the legs benefitted from that.
I used to love wearing short skirts, I had nice legs too. My legs are still slim but it looks like someone has colored on them with blue ink, spider veins. Now it's mostly jeans and sweatpants, very comfortable.
What an interesting walk down memory lane and a great post!
I was 16 in 1966 and petite so of course wore mini skirts but never had the boots as we weren't allowed to wear them at school. Other than that, I've never paid attention to Vogue or other fashion magazines but dressed nicely for outings, white uniform for work, and slacks in the evenings and whenever possible!
Now I dress for warmth as I seem to always be cold. DH told me long ago he knew I wasn't a reptile because I was colder than my environment. That's still true. It's usually jeans or sweatpants and layers and I think I no longer have a skirt or dress that fits.
Never heard the term "costume" used for an outfit except for those early wool bathing "costumes" or garments worn on stage.
Hugs!
Some lovely memories again. I remember Mum having Costumes and Twin sets and awful crimplene dresses.
I've never had any interest in clothes at all, hate shopping for them.
Keep those memories coming dear readers - it is so lovely for me to read them.
The 60s fashions were late coming to West Wales! My big sister bought me a paid of hotpants, but as soon as I was able to spend my free time in jeans, that was it. I'm more interested in how my home looks, but our Chesterfield setees, bought new from Habitat, are now 40 years old, re-upholstered about 15yrs ago. Curtains are mostly on their third house, after being made by me in the first place, and quite a few pieces of furniture have come from previous houses where they had been left by past owners. Somehow it all works nicely though!
Wow! Good on her. embarrassing though.
As a teenager I was very fashion conscious but now it is smart casual for 'best', otherwise trousers and sweaters for winter, and trousers and t-shirt or blouse the rest of the year. Hpweer for last year's heat wave i did buy three long summer dresses, to hide my horrid fat legs as I suffer from lymphodeama.
Love that last story of yours.
It sounds like you have always enjoyed fashion and putting together a stylish outfit. My mother was fashion minded in a very conservative, high quality mindset. Trends meant nothing to her but she always looked lovely. That said, to me, she seemed a bit overdressed but still styled. Mini skirts were off limits for my sister and I. Our closets were full of quality made pieces. I do remember my sister and I leaving our home for school and rolling our skirts up at the waist to create a shorter skirt above the knee. We made sure to lower the skirt before coming home. To this day, I dress conservatively.
One of your best pat xxx
I was ever into fashion. I couldn’t afford it.
I did go to the op shops and buy clothes to remake into more fashionable items.
But this all stopped when I got married and had kids. It was definitely a buy as well made as you can afford and keep it for years
As for furniture. Nope, i applied the same credo. Buy as well made as I could afford and kept it until it fell apart
It was only about six years ago I finally got rid of all the second had stuff and bought fur internet that matched.
Until I had to replace the old sofa. Now it doesn’t match the two single seaters. But they’re perfectly fine. So they’re staying
Until they’re not
I cannot believe that preacher is still a preacher, though he's probably sill preaching about legs and such.
Oh, mini skirts, yes. My wedding dress which my mother made was about 3 inches above my knees. I didn't want one of those long, draggy, princess-bride things. That was in 1969.
The thing that really puzzles me with the get-ups you see young girls wearing is how unattractive they can make girls look, depending on their body shape. It's as if none of them have full length mirrors or else they don't seem to consider whether the dress, skirt, top etc. enhances them or otherwise. It's what everyone else is wearing and so must they.
I see this all the time since I live in a University town filled with 18 to 24 year olds.
I was recently listening to a replay of Molly Parkin on Desert Island Discs. I remember seeing her around in London. She took no notice of 'fashion' as such; just made sure that she stood out from the crowd. And she always did.
Being the youngest in a tall and cost-conscious family, I was always given my brother's cast-offs. To this day I am horrified at seeing trousers an inch too short on men - even when it is deliberate.
I really enjoyed reading this. I'm not 'trendy' but was when I younger. I followed many fashion trends including, punk, modern romantic, Teddy Girl (even though I am not of that era) and was a soul head for a time! Now I prefer timeless classical fashion made with good quality fabric.
Another great post.
You're really pulling out the memories at the moment and setting everyone else's off as well.
Aged 20 in 1968 so all of this rings bells.
The big change in downstairs rooms I think has been bringing the act of cooking into the heart of the house; cooking and eating together is seen as a pleasurable way to end the working day so the "front room" has knocked through into what was once the back room and the scullery so that the cook can take part in the conversation.
I grew up in a house where my mother ( it was always my mother ) did the cooking. She would have much preferred to be gardening but twice a day she came indoors, shut herself in the kitchen and produced a meal which was then brought into the dining room to eat. She didn't pass on any cooking skisll; fortunately my husband has done that over the last 50 years!
My brother just sent me a few old family photos I hadn't seen before. In one, I'm sprawled on a chair in our living room. The room is cluttered with books, magazines, abandoned sweaters, a stray dish from a half eaten snack...essentially a mess! It was taken in the 70s when my siblings and I were teenagers. We were a family of six with multiple cats and dogs. My mother had no time or money for decorating. Just trying to contain our mess consumed all her energy. I remember my mother complaining back then about no one picking up after themselves. After looking at that old picture, I know why!
I don't follow fashion Pat. Never have.. not even while growing up... I live in jeans. If you see me in something other than jeans it must be a special event indeed or someone died.. and even then i might still be in a nice dark pair of jeans.
Nope my Mother nor i have ever had a front sitting room.. Well i take that back.. When i lived three years in California that was the style in all the new houses.. I hated it.. what a useless room at the front of the house .. I could have used the space elsewhere in the house.. I turned it into a library of sorts.. I can remember my Mother often had a couch and a loveseat in her living room.. My hubby and i have a huge L shaped couch.. Hugs!debs
Back in the 'costume' era of womens clothing I remember that on our first flight for a holiday the whole family had on our best clothes. It must have been some time later that a straight skirt and heeled shoes were ditched for loose comfortable clothing.
My grandparents also had a front room which was never used until my parents married and moved in with them. It became their living room and they had one of the bedrooms and shared the kitchen. They did not manage to get their own place until I was 2. Luckily, we were a very close, loving family. The house also had a pantry room with a thrawl. When Mum was young, the kitchen had a huge old fashioned copper boiler. (For boiling water not policemen!)
Loved mini skirts, dresses and hot pants. Hated crimplene and ski pants. Pollie.
Thank you to all of you who have combed through your memories and come up with such an assortment. It does our brains good to have a rake through sometimes.
Late sixties seem right for mini-skirts in the US. My school (all girl, public, no uniforms) rules were that skirts could be no more than two inches above the knee. The math teachers got to do the measuring. If the skirts were too short you were given scissors and had to take out the hem. Dangling hems got to be a badge or honor.
Having had a brother=in=law pastor...watching him grow up from age 8 or nine...they are normal...lol\Skirts below the knees in school...I never minded...I did not like the mini...
i have been following your blog and others for a while this was a great post you have bought some lovely memories back. I have just been looking to replace my 3 piece suite it appears most people have 2 sofas nowadays but my room is quite small so not sure what I will d0
I remember the club lounge chairs in front rooms when I was a child. In the hippies 60's era they were popular vintage things for those moving out of home to have. Very Bo-Ho.
I remember selling our two club chairs and a sofa about 40 years ago to two young women regretfully, as the furniture was heavy and husband and I moved houses a lot.
Searching the internet, I see such furniture can now fetch between $7,000 and $23,000 on 1stdibs.com.
Our set was in Autumn tones, soft material in excellent condition, with a small wooden section at the end of the arms to place drinks.
I loved the time of the mini-skirt. There was a certain etiquette at work, the way you bent down, and when you turned around on the office swivel-chairs, you placed you hands firmly in your lap, legs together, though we could do nothing about the open stairs which we girls had to use constantly.- Pam.
I have had two chairs for over 50 years, and still like them. My home is eclectic, lots of antiques/ vintage and not one piece bought new, I'm afraid. I love it this way. And fashion? Not connected with my name since I was a teen. And even then I often made my own clothes, or bought them in clearance sales.
I remember my mother dressing up in her full skirt, long skirt, nylons with the seam up the back, and white gloves. This to push the baby buggy through the park! I also have a picture of a man holding the bridle of a very tall work horse. He is wearing a button down shirt, sleeves rolled up for work, a fedora on his head.
I rarely dress up. I'm afraid I'm not at all stylish. I'm neat, kempt. My house? Not stylish either, although it is filled with the things that we love.
Thanks again - glad I have stirred up memories
Fabulous post on favorite subjects - just a bit late getting here, sorry!
Mum made my clothes being a dressmaker - I learned later and sewed myself for many years. Was always 5'8" - but when having my bone density test last week I noticed I've lost an inch! Was in proportion most of my life - except when pregnant - with good legs, so mini skirts and hot pants were quite becoming in the 1960's!!! Today the fashions shown on the runways are often ridiculous and would never be worn for every day - they are beautiful however in their design, fabrication. . . . . and on those what seem like 6 ft. tall models!
Furniture is whole other game! Much is poorly made in countries I won't name, not real wood and cheap fabrics. Styles are good, you can find just about anything - but prices are high. Best built furniture is still antique or vintage and worth hunting for.
What a thought-provoking post, Weaver. Thank you.
I'm about forty years younger than you are and I actually had a friend, my age, grow up with such a front room. One walked right past and into either the den or the kitchen when visiting.
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