A couple of days ago I looked outside and saw two girls playing. Of course, there are always lots of kids playing outside in my neighbourhood yet something about them registered as strange in my mind. I looked again and realised what it was - both girls wore dresses, one in a bright peach colour, the other one white, and what is more, these were proper dresses with wide skirts and not some tight stretchy stuff.
Sure, little girls will often have dresses on, but those two were tweens. It brought back vague recollections from my childhood when it was considered quite normal for girls to dress like this in summer. I'm not that old, mind you, and yet it felt like a glimpse from a different world.
Yes, for the younger among us it's probably difficult to believe that there was a time when women and girls wore something else daily than boring denim uniforms. And in the current year...one gets shocked by seeing a girl in a bright dress...Sad, really. What do you think?
It is shocking, because it's so unexpected. But perhaps refreshing too. Would that we could see more young girls dressed in feminine, modest dresses!
ReplyDeleteI am surprised when I see things like that too. Sadly surprised. :( I am 71 and until way after I married most of the time I wore dresses or skirts. Slacks were never worn in town or even worse to church. No matter how fancy a 'pants suit' was it was still pants. Slacks were worn for hiking or hard work at home only. Although actually growing up skirts and dresses were always worn even then. We just watched our posture and how we sat or used our body so we still kept modest. Little girls were taught to remember this instinctively. Now most girls wear shorts under their dresses for extra modesty.
ReplyDeleteSadly too I used to see children holding hands walking or playing together..even women would walk down the street holding hands. Not now. It would say more about the two than just happy times with a friend in todays world.
To even see a family without their electronic devices on while eating out together is unusual. My favorite thing while out and about is to still see people bow their heads in prayer or talk about their faith while out. It feels good to witness you are not the only one. Sarah
Rozy, it's probably for us grown-ups to provide a good example, too. I think most girls growing up (at least until teenage rebellion kicks in) want to be like their Mother who is the most beautiful woman for them. I know mine was for me!
ReplyDeleteSarah, when I was a little kid, jeans were still considered "informal". We wore them for playing outside but would change into something better for a birthday party. "Normal" slacks were more or less OK but still not that widely spread. It all started changing rapidly mid-1980s.
ReplyDeleteAbout holding hands, yes, it's a very interesting observation. I wonder if it has something to do with the normalisation of ss relationships. It used to be that girls could hug each other or hold hands or do each other's hair without it being open to nefarious interpretations. Now not so much.
My eyes are so used to people wearing college pants in public that if someone wears pretty skirt, she looks overdressed! It is really sad. Even my mum wears jeans in public nowadays. When I was young, at the 80's, she always had a skirt. I loved those 80's skirts. Especially those that had buttons in front all the way, remember? Like these:
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But I think modern ugly clothes are not the disease itself but a symptom. We have lost something else, and that is why we have started to wear ugly clothes. I mean even Marilyn Monroe wore jeans and she looked wonderfully feminine in them.
I have been thinking about blogging of this subject but haven't yet got the time. I have noticed it takes really long time to write a blog post.
A sign of the dying culture? Yes, blogging kinda takes a lot of time:)
ReplyDeleteMy mom used to wear most beautiful, flowery dresses. Now it's nothing but jeans...I think button front skirts are in fashion again, I'm sure to have seen them somewhere recently.
ReplyDeleteI remember a time in the 1970's when dresses were common. Things were beginning to change. After years in jeans and pants, I've realized my husband prefers me in skirts and dresses, so that's what I wear. In so doing, after nixing pantyhose, I have found it is far more comfortable. I also believe I am treated with more respect by men.
ReplyDeleteOH, I live in Missouri, USA. Right in the middle of the country.
ReplyDeleteWelcome to the blog, Laura!
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