My Grandma, to this day, still knits beanies, gloves, hats and scarves. I have a whole box at home of the crazy creations she's made for my sister and I over the years: pom-pomed hats, knitted bags, butterfly fridge magnets and tonnes of those 'feather wool' scarved that were all the rage a few years ago.
So, for my final 50s challenge, I decided to ask my own mother ( who Grandma taught to knit when she was a little girl) to test her patience and teach me how to knit a single square. Doesn't sound too difficult really... have a look at what happened.
THE FINAL PRODUCT: This challenge gave a new meaning to the phrase "cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye"! I was terrible at knitting and stuffed up more times than I'm willing to mention. My square took about 5 hours to produce and was still full of holes. I have a new appreciation of the skills and patience of the 1950s housewife because if my children relied on my skills they would be going to school either freezing cold from the holes in their gloves or completely naked!
For fun in the 50s my family and I would go on picnics to the Royal National Park where lots of men would go rowing on a Sunday. Women would play tennis with friends at local clubs or go to the weekly movie show with their friends or husbands.
There were no coffee shops or cafes like there are today either- we used to buy drinks and treats for our children from ‘milk bars’.
At the 'Rainbow Club' dance- 1952.
Weekend football games and the beach were also popular places to go on the weekends.In the afternoon I would always listen to ‘The Hit Parade’ on the ‘wireless’ or radio. We didn’t have a TV so quiz shows and serials on the radio were a must.
When the men went out, women weren’t allowed in the bars and had to sit in separate sections called ‘saloons’ to have a drink. Because of this, lots of the wives would host ‘street parties’ where we each contributed some food and drink and had neighbours over at one of the houses.
Card nights at friend’s homes were also popular. The hosts always provided supper but no money was used to gamble.
Television ( if your family had one) was one of the biggest sources of entertainment during the 1950s. Variety shows were popular in the early years of TV, as were 'I Love Lucy' and 'Gunsmoke'. Have a look at this clip from 'I Love Lucy', which ran for six seasons.
Going to the movie theatre was another popular pastime in the 50s, with drive-ins or 'passion pits' reaching their peak. The drive in was designed to compliment the windshield of cars ( which were just starting to become affordable for the average family) and provided the ideal setting for families to look after babies while watching a movie and for teenagers and young couples to have some privacy on dates. Popular films included Alfred Hitchcock's 'Rear Window', 'A Streetcar Named Desire' ( starring the delicious Marlon Brando) and 'Ben Hur'.
Oh Marlon, you could scream outside my 1950s balcony any day!
Dance nights were also popular ( particularly for young couples) and would be held each Saturday night at a local hall. Rock n Roll music was just beginning and women the world over were going weak at the knees for Elvis Presley. Other popular musicians included Chuck Berry, Bill Haley and Fats Domino. Though women didn't play competitive sport, going to the beach and playing tennis at local clubs were popular active past-times. They would ride bicycles and walk for fitness but were yet to be accepted into public gymnasiums as they are today.
Sewing, cross-stitch and knitting were common craft activities. Items such as jumpers, hats, gloves and blankets were often made while women did other things such as look after children, ride public buses or listen to the radio ( even in the 50s, multi-tasking was a major part of being a woman). Have a look at some of the swell hats you could make from this 50s pattern book!
With my grandma's memories of the 1950s in mind, I decided to challenge myself to create an authentic 50s outfit from the clothes in my own wardrobe. The fact that I already owned all of the items used for the costume really proved that 50s fashion has managed to inspire several trends even in today's world of short skirts and pantihose.
Here's what I managed to find in my cupboard:
Waist-length bra, suspenders and stockings: Yes, ok the bra purchase was inspired by Lady Gaga rather than Marilyn Monroe but the stockings and suspenders are very 1950s. I've only worn them a few times as today's outfits are too short to cover the leg bands- but they are very sexy and I imagine women would have felt that way wearing them during the decade.
Petticoat, Step In and New Look dress: Look what I found!!! A petticoat and a little gem I like to call The Fat Sucker. My Fat Sucker is a modern-day alternative to the elastic Step Ins Grandma told me about: designed to make the waist appear thinner. Guess women's body hang-ups haven't changed much after all! Also in my cupboard was this red, very 5os, very New Look dress purchased from Portmans only a few years ago.
Gloves, shoes and accessories: I have a bit of a thing for gloves, so I own a few. Except, when I wear them out to nightclubs I get asked " are you a Michael Jackson fan?" as no one appreciates their gorgeousness anymore. However, during the 50s gloves were the height of fashion so I was in luck finding these. I also own far too many shoes and accessories and came across this cute pair of peep toes along with a black hair piece, stud earrings and a pearl necklace that Grandma gave me for my 18th birthday which was hers in the 1950s!
Putting it all together: It took three petticoats, lots of eyeliner and a slick of red lipstick ( which I love to wear everyday anyway) to create my 1950s outfit. I tried to remember Grandma's reflections about nipped in waist and full skirts as well as the focus on femininity and 'prettiness' of the period.
The final result: I felt very womanly and dainty in my 5os outfit. It was definitely very hot ( why did I choose to dress up on a 30 degree day?) and a little restrictive, but overall it made me feel more special and girly than my every-day clothes. What do you think?
Grandma Dot had a lot of interesting things to say about fashion in the 1950s. I thought her memories of the beach were most interesting- the 'beach robes' and 'sand shoes' the women wore were certainly very different from the skimpy bikinis of today. Check it out!
There were morning and afternoon papers in the 50s and the ‘social pages’ were a great source of entertainment for us ordinary girls as we dreamt of wearing the glamorous outfits of movie stars.
I liked to wear ‘New Look’ dresses with long full skirts and nipped in waists. ‘Rope petticoats’ were in fashion to make skirts look fuller. We used to starch them to make them go stiff. They were nice to wear but took forever and a day to iron.
Ladies shopped at big department stores like David Jones and wore stockings held up by suspenders rather than pantyhose. ‘Step-Ins’ were worn by lots of women and were elasticgarments you wore under your clothes to pull your tummy in and make you look slimmer. Torture!!!!
‘Slacks’ or long pants were coming into fashion but lots of people thought they were ‘un-ladylike’. Millinery or hat making was a strong industry as most occasions required ladies to wear hats and gloves. A lot of my friends worked as hat makers.
All dressed up- 1952.
Bras were heavily boned and were long to the waist- they were horrid things! There were no bikini pants either and instead women wore cotton knickers with bands around the legs. Satin was reserved for your ‘sexy undies’.
There were many awful trends such as mink coats ( which most women couldn’t afford) and crocodile skin handbags and shoes.
Two piece swimwear was not allowed at the beach until the late 50s. If you wore a two piece the ‘beach inspector’ would ask you to leave! Every woman had a ‘beach robe’ made of towelling to cover up when she left the water. You didn’t wear thongs, only lace up canvas ‘sand shoes’.
The beauty regime of the fifties was simple as shampoo and conditioner were not yet available. Instead we used plain soap and rinsed with vinegar diluted in water to make hair shine. You used a mixture of sugar and water to keep your hair in place because there wasn’t any hairspray.
Most ladies used face powder, though ‘cake’ foundation was just beginning to appear. You wore ‘rouge’ (cream on your cheeks) and lined eyes with kohl eyeliner.
It was a woman’s weekly job to polish the family’s shoes to preserve their leather. For evening wear women wore ‘ball gowns’ of rich velvet or delicate lace with elbow gloves.
I think the styles in the 50s were more elegant and ‘dressed up’ than they are today.
The fashion of the 1950s was heavily influenced by Christian Dior's 'New Look' style: nipped in waists, full skirts and an emphasis on the feminine silhouette. After the rations of the war, many women embraced this pretty, lavish style. Have a look at some of the 'New Look' inspired fashions below.
Skirts and blouses were also in fashion but pants were still considered most unlady-like.
Popular accessories included rhinestone-embellished glasses, Bakelite purses, novelty brooches and umbrellas. On formal occasions women were expected to wear hats and gloves.
. The 'Bullet Bra' was a popular undergarment, adding to the feminine shape favoured at the time. The 50s mantra was 'I must I must increase my bust' and it is rumoured that Marilyn Monroe wore her Bullet Bra to bed every night until the day she died to stop her breasts from sagging!
Pantyhose wasn't available in the 1950s so women wore stockings held up by suspenders. Stilettos, kitten heels and Cuban heel shoes were fashionable, as were fur stoles ( only affordable for the rich).
In the 1950s, colour films made an enormous impact on cosmetics. The huge cinema screens illuminated the unblemished appearance of stars and led the make up artist Max Factor to invent an everyday version of the foundation he used called Pan Cake, a makeup to gloss over skin's imperfections. He also brought out a range of eye shadows and lipsticks. Later in the 50s titanium was added to tone down the brightness of products and this resulted in lips with a pale, shimmering gleam. The idea was extended to create frosted nail varnishes of pink, silver and a host of other colours.
In the early 50s the ponytail was a popular youthful hairstyle and it matured into the French Pleat. For the more sophisticated, a permanent wave in the styles then favoured by Elizabeth Taylor and the young Queen Elizabeth II were universally worn.
As products such as hair lacquer sprays came into general use, it was easily possible for ordinary women to create more and more complex hairstyles of height. By the late 50s,outrageous backcombed bouffants, beehives, and French Pleats led the way for the intricate coiled hairstyles of the 1960s.
Have a look at the great tutorials for vintage hair and makeup from Super Kawaii Mama. The blog is a great example of the ways in which 1950s fashion is still admired my today's young women and features some great retro-inspired style ideas from model Candice DeVille. Below is a tutorial on the popular 50s pin curl style.
I am the most hopeless cook in the world: I burn meat, create cupcakes that resemble boulders and can't use a rolling pin to save my life! With this in mind, I chose to bake a 1950s favourite: Apple Pie, for my housework challenge.
Here is the recipe I was given by Grandma:
INGREDIENTS: 2 quantities of pie dough. 150g unsalted butter. 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon. 1.5kg cored and peeled green apples. 200g caster sugar. 1 egg mixed with a little milk.
a 23 cm pie dish- greased.
METHOD:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees. 2. Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll on quantity of dough. Line the pie dish, trimming the edges. 3. Melt butter and cinnamon in a large saucepan. 4. Add apples and stir until well coated in butter. 5. Add the sugar and mix until apples are softened but not completely cooked. Cool mixture completely. 6. Pour mixture into pie dish, covering with rolled dough. Put three slits through pie lid. 7. Make decorative leaf shapes from pastry trimming and decorate pie. Brush with egg and milk wash and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden brown.
Doesn't sound too difficult does it? Watch me attempting the challenge below:
THE FINISHED PRODUCT:
Overall, I was pretty impressed with my pie making skills. This was definitely one of my most successful cooking attempts- and I only set the smoke alarm off twice!
When I compare my life in the 50s to the lives of young people today, the two are very different. For my generation there were more restrictions, less entertainment and travel and more ‘do it yourself’ type fun than there is today.
Almost all girls left school around 15 or 16 and were married between 20 and 23 years of age. You stayed at home until you were married and then went on to look after your husband and children (though women were just starting to re-enter the workforce as secretaries and factory workers).
I began a checkout job in Woolworths when I was 15 for the school holidays and eventually worked my way up to working in their offices ( where I met my husband). We started going out and I was so besotted with him I never went back to school ( which my father was furious about) and got married at 21. I look back at it now and think how bloody stupid I was, but that was just how things were back then.
My grandparent's wedding- 1951.
Not many families had cars in the 50s, so young people either walked,rode bicycles or relied on public transport. There were no traffic jams like there are today . I remember there was no public transport on Sundays and the shops would close on Saturday at 12 noon and stay that way until Monday morning.
Shopping was so different back then!Rather than big centres- each city had a main shopping street. You couldn’t go to a food store and serve yourself- all the items were displayed and an assistant behind the counter got the items for you. You had to trudge from the butchers to the bakers to the deli to the fruit shop.... there were no supermarkets like today.
The only takeaway around was the local fish and chip shop.
For housewives like myself life was much less hectic but more labour intensive than it is today. Things were certainly very different!
