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Discovering House Dresses

Jun26

Swelter-Free Fashion for Warm-Weather Days

Vintage House Dresses

House dresses have been around for generations. They are typically very practical dresses made of easy care fabrics. They are comfortable, no frill dresses intended for doing chores or quick errands.

When I was growing up in the 50s and 60s in Southern California, all the moms (including mine) wore house dresses…often called muumuus in this part of the country. So in my mind, I have always associated house dresses with older ladies and certainly not a cool thing to wear.

These days, I receive a few clothing catalogs in the mail that devote a page or two to house dresses. I quickly turn the page…NO muumuus for this lady!! Nope not interested in those frumpy dresses!! Those are for the older generation and even though I am now officially a member of the older generation, nope, not going to wear a muumuu!!

A CHANGE IN ATTITUDE

A couple of weeks ago, after taking my morning shower, I searched my closet for something casual and loose to pop on until it was time to get properly dressed. I pulled out my bathrobe and decided it was really too heavy for this time of year. My mind wandered to those house dresses in the catalog. Hmm, actually that might be kind of ideal for wearing when just out of the shower. Maybe I should reconsider…so I got out the catalog and ordered one.

Here’s the house dress I ordered from the Vermont Country Store catalog.

Now that the ordering was done, I had the anticipation of waiting for it to arrive. Every time I took a shower I thought of the house dress that I didn’t have yet. It was a long week before the package was delivered. When it finally arrived, I eagerly opened the box and pulled out my new house dress/muumuu.

The first thing I discovered was the quality of the cotton fabric. This dress was actually made really well, even with French seams! This dress will be able to take a ‘beating and keep on…’well, dresses don’t tick, but you get what I’m trying to say. This dress is made to last!! I held it up and decided it didn’t even look frumpy…well, not too much anyway. I pulled it over my head…and it fits perfectly, even the shoulder seams. And what a huge surprise….this dress is COMFY! There is nothing snug or binding…just all around comfort! So much more comfortable than jeans or leggings or shorts and a t-shirt. What a discovery! This dress is a keeper!

I decided to Google house dresses to see if anyone else has been enlightened to the comforts of house dresses. And sure enough, it seems that house dresses and muumuus made a comeback during the pandemic lockdown. Ladies looking for comfortable clothing that is also Zoom meeting appropriate, have turned to house dresses! Its a THING!! Who knew?? House dresses are back!!

I found these interesting blogs. They are much better at articulating about house dresses than I am, so I hope you will check them out.

https://lifewithdee.com/house-dress-2/

https://fashion-incubator.com/homage-to-the-humble-house-dress/

https://www.antiquetrader.com/collectibles/the-pandemic-is-making-house-dresses-hot-again

Armed with this new appreciation of house dresses/muumuus, I’ve decided I want to get a couple more. Now where is that catalog?

Or better yet, maybe I should be SEWING some!

The Problem With People

Mar15

This blog came across my feed today and I wanted to share it. I think it contains thoughts that we all KNOW to be true (or funny). But I also think sometimes a reminder can be like a kick-in-the-pants…it can get your attention when you most need it. Enjoy…and thank you to Mitch Teemley for this blog post!

Mitch Teemley

'Dinosaur'.jpg - photo by Vitor Fontes (unsplash)Photo by Vitor Fontes

Thought for the Week

The best way to deal with people is to remember they’re just people. Forgive them that (and yourself in the bargain) and you’ll at least be headed in the right direction. Oh, and one other thing: you’ll need to do it over and over again for the rest of your life. Because people will just be people for as long as you live. And probably even after that.

“I love mankind…it’s people I can’t stand!!” ~Charles M. Schulz

“Crocodiles are easy. They try to kill and eat you. People are harder. Sometimes they pretend to be your friend first.” ~Steve Irwin

“The reason there are so many stupid people is it’s illegal to kill them.” ~John Wayne

“I do not want people to be very agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them.” ~Jane Austen

“The more…

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The Field – A Childhood Memory

Dec23
Grass Field At Sunset by spc01 | VideoHive

During a recent move to a new home, I found a handwritten assignment I wrote for a college English class from MANY years ago. At a friend’s request, I share it now.

The tall supple green blades of wild grass waved beckoningly. How I longed to run recklessly through the field and forge paths though the three-foot high weeds! Such were my thoughts as I passed the field while walking to elementary school.

My family lived on a dead-end street. The twelve homes on our block housed an abundance of kids. Most of us were only three years difference in age. And all of us thoroughly enjoyed romping through the field that lay invitingly at the end of our street. We would descend on the field in great numbers in hope some magical metamorphosis would take place. We believed we owned this field…it was our private oasis in suburbia.

On this particular day as I trudged reluctantly to school, I thought back to the previous day’s adventures in the field.

I was in the field with my two younger brothers. We stood amid the tall wild grass to behold our wonderous field. It measured two blocks across by six blocks long. To our inexperienced eyes, it was the singular most significant piece of real estate anywhere and was obviously created just for our enjoyment!

As we scanned our field, we had an important decision to make. How would we best use our time and our field on this day? Should we fly a kite or play ball? Or perhaps we could play tag or maybe climb the only tree in the field and be spies in the treehouse. No, none of those diversions was just right this time. What then? A-ha!!

Today we would become trail blazers and fashion complex trails through the weeds!!

With excitement and no concern about grass stains, I got down on my hands and knees. The weeds become trees, great tall obstacles I couldn’t see over. I inched forward and the first pliant blades easily bent forward. I moved on and tamped down clump after clump. As I looked behind, I could see that I was blazing a fine trail that zig zagged across the field. My two brothers were busy blazing their trails too. We continued on our hands and knees going one way, then another, tamping down the grass in front of us. When we finished, we stood and surveyed our handiwork. We had created a maze of trails in the tall grassy weeds! We felt the pride of a project engineer who has just completed a complex paving project. With delight, we tromped through the trails we had made. We felt like pioneers who had just found the way through a vast wasteland. It was pure bliss!

My mind drifted back. I was almost to school now. Just seven more hours and I could be back in my green field planning my next adventure. I could hardly wait!!

(As I read this story now, I recall that day so many years ago. Although its a simple tale, it is still vivid in my mind and it truly was blissful. This is just one memory from a very happy childhood. It really doesn’t take much to make an ordinary day turn into a joy to recall. Its the little things in life that mean the most. I’ve been blessed with so many happy memories! And yes, the field still exists!)

Stitches

Aug20

Hi there! Its been awhile!Avatar Hi

I’ve been in stitches lately!! No, not the kind a doctor performs on you when you have an injury. I mean the kind that go on fabric!

I’ve been embroidering some kitchen towels for friends who have recently (pre-covid!) moved to Arizona. Hand embroidery is a slow process. You have slow down, consider each and every stitch to make sure it is in the position and the length that you want. It is deliberate, not random. You get into a rhythm and it becomes calming. I tend to think alot when I’m embroidering. In this case, I spent a lot of time thinking about the friends I was stitching this for. And then I began to think about other stitching projects I have made as gifts over the years and was surprised that there were quite a few I could remember. Most (not all) were happily accepted by the recipients.

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Embroidered gift for some friends

I thought a lot about my love of stitching. Stitching is actually a very broad term. In my definition, I would include: knitting, crocheting, needlepoint, crewel, embroidery, cross stitch, hand sewing, hand quilting, and even machine sewing and quilting. If it involves needle and thread (or yarn), then to me its a type of ‘stitching’.  Over the years, I have dabbled in all of those types, some more successfully than others. And today my love for stitching continues as I seek new ways to use needle and thread.

I first learned to stitch by my Aunt when I was about 10 years old. My mother wasn’t much into any kind of sewing or stitchery, but my Aunt certainly was. She was especially good at sewing and made me many dresses. She taught me how to sew and how to knit and thus began my love of stitching. I’ve tried to instill this same love of sewing in my own nieces.

As I was thinking about the broader sense of stitching, I also reflected on how each day of life is stitched to the next, resulting in a cloth (or tapestry) of our lives. Remember the song “Tapestry” by Carole King?

Tapestry by Carole King

 

My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue,
An everlasting vision of the ever-changing view
A wondrous woven magic in bits of blue and gold
A tapestry to feel and see, impossible to hold

 

 

Along those lines, I came across a book called “Threads of Life” by Clare Hunter. I just purchased it and am eager to get started reading!

Amazon describes the book this way:Threads of Life Book

“A globe-spanning history of sewing, embroidery, and the people who have used a needle and thread to make their voices heard

In 1970s Argentina, mothers marched in headscarves embroidered with the names of their “disappeared” children. In Tudor, England, when Mary, Queen of Scots, was under house arrest, her needlework carried her messages to the outside world. From the political propaganda of the Bayeux Tapestry, World War I soldiers coping with PTSD, and the maps sewn by schoolgirls in the New World, to the AIDS quilt, Hmong story clothes, and pink pussyhats, women and men have used the language of sewing to make their voices heard, even in the most desperate of circumstances.”

 

Imagine that! Over the centuries people like me have taken to stitching and used it for both practical purposes and as a way to tell their stories, even in the most difficult of times. It makes me feel like I am in good company when I am stitching!

I believe that stitching is not just a hobby. Its not just a craft. Its not only a creative outlet, but its an important way to communicate the stories of our lives, and in many cases to be handed down from generation to generation.

I recently saw a video by a black male Marine who is also a quilter! This guy is very macho and manly and certainly not a wimpy type. And he was proudly showing off some quilts he had stitched together! Stitching is for everyone!

I believe the world would be a better place if everyone was stitching!

Living in a Box

Feb28

I was thinking about how I live my life mostly inside a building…a box! As I pondered that, I came to the conclusion that is not how God, our Creator, intended life to be.

I sit inside and gaze out the window enjoying the view of the pretty backyard. I enjoy seeing the greenery, the trees, the flowers, the birds and butterflies. I enjoy watching the feral cat making his rounds and eating the food we provide for him. Each day, I watch one of the birds steal a morsel of cat food. I’ve noticed the monarch butterflies are back. The citrus trees have buds on them.

But just perhaps I was created to not just be an observer from looking through a window. It’s almost the same as looking at a tv screen…just watching. I think I am meant to be out there experiencing all this wonderfulness first hand. To feel the breeze on my skin. To get my hands into the dirt. To look up to the sky and feel the warm of the sun on my face. To kick off my shoes and feel the cool green grass on my bare feet and let them bond with the earth. I think they call this ‘earthing’. And yes, its a THING!

So here I am living in a house…which is a box. I think God meant for us to have shelter, of course. But not to spend the majority of our life stuck inside and peering out.

And that’s not the only box I live in! As humans, we tend to categorize people…its our way of defining each other.

The biggest box I am in besides the house is “the old lady” box. I look the part. And although I try not to, I suppose I act the part too! I have physical limitations now that I didn’t have when I was younger. Some things are just not as easy to do as they used to be. That’s part of being in the old lady box. Being invisible is another part. What I mean is that old people are often just not noticed….not noticeable. The only people I see taking notice of me these days are other old people who are probably making comparisons to see if they look better than I do. Hey, I do that too, so I know!!

I imagine I’m in a bunch of other boxes too. But that’s a thought for another day.

Right now I’m wondering how hard it is to break out of these boxes. Before its too late and I end up in the final box.

I’m sitting at the kitchen table and looking out the window. I just saw that bird steal some cat food. I think I better go outside and do some earthing while I still can!

Choices in 2019

Jan1

Image result for choices

 

Its been quite awhile since I’ve written here. Someone mentioned to me today that they missed my writing. Imagine that! So here I am, writing to see what comes out of my head, because I have no plan. So lets see what words come tumbling out and see if they end up making any sense.

Its January 1, 2019. The old calendars have been removed and new ones are now in their places. January 1 represents a fresh start – a clean slate – a new beginning to make each day as good as it can be. It represents hopes and dreams for the days ahead and I enter 2019 with optimism. I realize that each and every moment of my life is filled with a choice!  I can do this – or I can do that. I can think this way – or I can think that way. I can eat this food – or I can eat that food. I have choices and each choice carries my life in the direction chosen.

For 2019 I am not making any resolutions because I never can keep them. But if I can just do one thing, it would be to take each moment and THINK about the choice I have to make right then and there. And if I make the better choices, then my life will be better for it.

And that’s what I’m thinking on this first day of January 2019. I hope to make the best choice in each moment.

—

A Visit to Wales

Jun14

The following is taken mostly as I recorded it in my journal. I hope it makes sense!

 

Wales! Wales is so different from England. It is hilly and rocky with trees and sheep. It looks wild and wonderful. Lots of wonderful walking and hiking opportunities.

Where do I start? We stopped in Llangollen (  http://www.new.llangollen.org.uk/) for lunch and a brief look around the town and shops. At the very last minute before boarding the tour bus, I found a quilt shop! So I purchased some fabric with the Welsh flag and another piece with images of London. I hope I can find something from Scotland when we get there so I can make some kind of memory quilt.

We passed through Snowdonia National Park and the scenery was spectacular! Rough terrain, high hills (or mountains), and rocks. Everywhere rocks. I guess a glacier passed through this area eons ago and deposited the rocks. (You can learn more about this stunning place at this link: http://www.eryri-npa.gov.uk/home )

snowdonia

Tonight we go to a home-hosted dinner with a Welsh family in Caernarfon. We are taking a set of corked back wooden coasters from home as a hostess gift.

The Welsh in-home dinner experience…..

The tour company we are traveling with (Grand Circle) has a tradition that somewhere on each trip the traveler will be invited into a local home for a lite meal or a traditional dinner. It’s a wonderful way to meet some local people and find out about their life and culture.

On this trip, our home visit was in the town of Caernarfon, Wales.  http://www.caernarfononline.co.uk/

A friendly Welsh driver took us six of us in a passenger van and delivered us to Bryn Carrog, the home of our hosts for the evening.

photo 2 (1)

I’ve been on these home hosted visits before and you never know what to expect. Sometimes the hosting family does not speak English, sometimes, the food is of poor or questionable quality, or sometimes it just doesn’t work…for any number of reasons.

So when we were delivered to Bryn Carrog, I held my breath.

We were warmly greeted by our hosts. They were smiling and seemed genuinely happy to greet us to their home. They live in a house that was originally built in the 1860s. The house has been well maintained and updated, with some modern rooms added on. The house and décor matched the owner’s personality perfectly…a very inviting, warm and cozy atmosphere. The house was decorated with cheerful colors, artwork, and other treasures collected from all over Europe. I noticed a lot of hearts, which I think also reflects the personality of the owners.

photo 1 (1)

What down to earth people! They immediately made us all feel comfortable and at home. They wanted to know about us and how we live as much as we wanted to know about them and their culture. I just loved to hear them talk. They spoke very good English, of course, but it was so charming to hear their Welsh accent and especially the way they roll their ‘rrr’s’.

Let me introduce the family as best I can. The husband and wife have been married for 24 years. He works for the county making sure that the over 150 county buildings are well maintained and secure.

The wife is a fantastic cook, who also has a great ability to make the home warm and welcoming. She works part-time for the local school and tutors a child.

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(Note: The green stuff in the picture above is mashed peas. They were very tasty!)

They have two sons. The 19 year old is studying geography in his first year at the local university. The studies are all done in the Welsh language. He works part time in the local 5-star hotel. The other son is 16 years old and he is a singer. He takes voice lessons and sings in two choirs.

Most years, the family takes a four-week vacation to continental Europe. They have a motor home and enjoy traveling around the various European countries. They are not sure how much longer they will do this, since their sons are old enough to make other plans during vacation season.

photo 2 (2)

The visit with them is a trip highlight for me! Good food, good conversation, and laughter. And the grand finale was the younger son singing a Welsh folk-song to us. We were captivated by his voice and his willingness to entertain six strangers from the United States.

photo 5

What a charming family. What a wonderful evening!

Of England and Tea

Jun12

I’ve been remiss in writing about my recent trip to Great Britain. Gone for three weeks, we visited England, Scotland, and Wales. This was our fourth European trip in two years and for me, it was by far the most enjoyable. I will write more posts about what we saw and my thoughts, but this post is about tea!

loose tea background

I’ve never been a coffee drinker. I just never acquired the taste for coffee, although the smell is certainly warm and welcoming. But for taste…ugh. I grew up in Southern California where the need for a hot drink to warm you up just wasn’t necessary. But when I moved to the eastern US and the cold winters, I soon learned that I wanted something to warm me up besides hot chocolate.

So I learned to drink tea. Weak tea. That is where you drop the tea bag in hot water and immediately pull it out again. Barely any color in the water. In fact, sometimes, I would just drink hot water.

A few years ago, a friend introduced me to Chai Tea Lattes at Starbucks. From the first taste, I was hooked. This was no barely colored, weak tea. This was tea with many flavors including peppercorn, cardamom, ginger, cloves, cinnamon and star anise. These spices balance with the milk and a sweetener like sugar, honey or brown sugar, and then strengthened with a strong black tea. It is absolutely delicious and very addictive. Not to mention high in calories.

And so it has been for me for quite awhile. Either the weak tea with a barely dunked tea bag, or the very flavorful chai tea (often made at home with a pre-made syrup).

But that’s all changed. Now I know better.

While in England, we had high tea at a place in York called Betty’s Tea Room. This is how tea is meant to be! A stainless steel teapot for the tea and a second teapot for hot water only, sugar lumps with silver tongs, milk in a cute little pitcher, small cups and saucers, and a tiered plate stand with various scones and clotted cream. I learned how to make tea properly. Just for effect, I stuck my little finger out when I held the small teacup. Ah, yes, this is TEA!

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I collected teabags and loose tea from various stops during our travels in Great Britain. I bought tea bag tongs and a strainer. I bought cute little dishes to put the used tea bags in. I brought home all my goodies and spread them all out in satisfaction. Then I realized that I did not own a TEAPOT! I had gotten rid of it when we moved back to California because it was never used.

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Well, things are different now! I purchased not one, but TWO teapots over the past couple of weeks. One is larger to make several cups, and one is small, just enough for two cups of tea. I have learned to make my tea strong and I brew it in my teapot, using the strainer for the loose tea. I take my tea now with a bit of honey or sugar and I pour my milk from a small pitcher (certainly NOT from the huge milk carton anymore. I’m much too refined for that nowadays!)

photo 1

Once I had tea pots, I realized I needed a tea cozy to put over them to help keep the tea nice and hot. I love to sew and so I made one out of some quilted fabric. Actually, I made it out of a quilt that I never quite finished. But don’t tell anyone…if they knew I cut up that quilt to make a tea cozy, they might think I need my head examined.

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It is truly amazing the amount of STUFF you need to make proper tea. But I’ve got it all now. Including some of Oprah’s Chai Tea from Teavana, which is a loose tea. (And by the way, that tea is WAY better than Starbucks!)

Now I go through the morning ritual of boiling a pot of water and then brewing the tea in one of my teapots. I pour it into my cup and flavor it appropriately. I take a sip and say “Ahhh, this is how a cuppa tea is MEANT to be.” And I smile.

Maybe I should invite some people over for a tea party. Mad Hatter, anyone?

mad_hatter_partyBW

“I love this place so much”

May4

We are not all fortunate enough to live in places that we love. I am not talking about the actual apartment or house or dwelling, but the place itself. I am referring to the surroundings and the general area.

I started thinking about this topic this morning when I read a comment about my England post. One of my readers (http://creativityinthebox.com/) wrote that she loves living in England. That made me think about where I live and that I love it here too. And what a blessing it is to live in a place that you really love. It makes life exciting and joyful when you can look at your overall surroundings and that it brings a sense of contentment to your heart.

I realize that we are the fortunate few. I suppose that the majority of the world’s population cannot say they live in a place that they love. Those living in war torn areas, or ghettos, or other ugly or violent places may not love where they live.  Some may have been forced to relocate to places that feel foreign to them and they long to leave.

I guess there are as many reasons to hate the place where you live as there are to love it.

love where you live

But my focus right now is on places to love. And I wonder why it is that we come to love them and why they give us a sense of happiness and peace.

I can’t speak for others. I have moved around quite a bit in my lifetime. And I can say that I have generally loved all the different places I have lived and all for different reasons.

Washington State was my first venture away from where I grew up. It was exciting to experience the beauty there. I could sum it up in water and green. Puget Sound and Mount Rainer provided the backdrop for a stunning landscape. And the rain provided the source to keep the trees and flowers and ferns a luscious green. I loved it there because of the natural beauty, which calms the spirit.

Connecticut is a place I will always hold dear to my heart. Living in the woods, surrounded by trees inhabited by a myriad of birds was a blessing I will never forget. I felt I was living close to the land and in tune with the seasons. The towns were quaint and charming. I felt a sense of history and pride that this was where I called home.

New Jersey had an abundance of natural beauty too. I enjoyed living there for several years. I had my birds and gardens to tend to and it was peaceful.

I lived in Pennsylvania two different times. And I consider it my second home. I loved it there for so many reasons: experiencing the seasons change year after year unfailingly, the wildlife we had in our backyard, the charm of the Amish county just a short drive away, the history related to the struggle for American independence, and the friendships that I hope will now withstand the distance. Yes, it is my second home there.

Saddleback Mountain

Saddleback Mountain

But my first home and the place I love best is Southern California. This is where I was born and raised. This is where my family lives. This is where I live now and will stay for the rest of my life. I love seeing Saddleback Mountain tall and unchanging and keeping sentinel over the area.  From where I live, I can look down the street and see it and it always brings a smile because it is part of my remembrances from a child growing up here. I love being near the beach for there is a sense of peace and calmness in watching the sea. There are so many other reasons by I love living here, but the main reason can be summed up in family. Family has drawn me back and that is why I love it the most and will stay.

 

And so I wonder, why do you love where you live?

Integrity

May2

integrity

This is a topic that hits home. Years ago, when I worked as a church secretary, I was given a book by Chuck Swindoll called “Quest for Character”. I recall it was a very good book, but the chapter that stuck with me was on integrity.

I had never really thought about integrity before then. It was a term I was familiar with, of course, but had never thought about much in relation to my own life. Reading the chapter on integrity did make an impact on me. It has stuck with me 20+ years later.

Over the years since then, the word integrity has popped up from time to time in reading or in conversations or in my own thoughts. And when it does, I often stop and ponder it.

I think to be a person of integrity is one of highest goals of achievement. It doesn’t matter if I am wealthy or successful or have a lot of influence or a lot of friends. To me, the most important attribute I can have is integrity.

Just what is integrity? How do I know if I have it? Well, I’m no expert, but to me it means being totally honest in every facet of life. It means living out your principles whether in business, family, friends, or community. It means being steadfast in what you believe and acting it out in how you behave.

Politicians do not have integrity. Perhaps that is too harsh. There may be some who do, but we all know of politicians who say whatever they think will get themselves elected. Then they do whatever they think will keep them in office and bow to the influential people around them.

I fall short of integrity many times. I’m far from being the kind of person I wish I was. But stopping to consider my life and gauging it against the ideals that are important to me, is one way to get myself back on track.

We all should do that periodically. That is, stop and spend some time alone reflecting on your life and actions. Be willing to readjust if necessary to get yourself moving in the direction you want to go.

Have the courage to admit the truth about yourself, to acknowledge when you’ve failed, or should ask for forgiveness.

We all fall short, but we can all strive for integrity.