Hair and Clothes WW2

[wateroverstone]

 

Question from cefyr:

I'd love to know about what she and her family were wearing, how much of it they made themselves, and how they wore their hair. I'd expect it would be a bit different from people living in cities but I don't know how much!

Hair

Mum, as a child, wore two plaits on top of her head german fashion.  This was because she had a scar from experimental surgery when she was very small which she was embarrassed about. It’s just a patch of skin where her hair doesn’t grow but she’s kept it covered up all her life. She doesn’t mind talking about it at all, though. Plaits were the most common hairstyle for girls, although some favoured the pudding bowl haircut with fringe, a less severe version of the boys’ cut. Haircuts were carried out at home. Mum has no memory of a hairdresser’s being in the village. People experimented with hairstyles with friends. Styles were taken from magazines etc.

Her older sister and her mother both had thick, dark, wavy hair so it was simply trimmed and put into rollers to achieve the desired style. No salon visit!

 

Material

All clothes were handsewn (or with a home sewing machine). There was a shortage of material so people used cloth they already had or altered existing dresses. Girls, especially, were clothed in dresses made from adult dresses which were no longer fit for purpose. A skirt had to be made at school as part of their housewifery training, usually completely handsewn and gingham.  Other housewifery skills taught included how to polish shoes and how to wash glassware. Parachute silk was occasionally obtained at the end of the war (illegally) and used for underwear, especially for brides. Mum doesn’t know if it was a used /found parachute or nicked from a factory. Girls’ knickers were large, navy blue and had a pocket for a handkerchief. I think these were bought, as were vests. Everything had to last and was passed down.

 

New clothes were bought/made for Walking Day if any were available. Walking Day was an annual Church Parade, led by a May Queen. The banners for the Mothers’ Union and similar would be carried round the village by members of these organisations. All the children would walk, as Scouts, Guides etc. Ribbons would be attached to the banners for children to hold onto as a way of keeping everyone in place and tidy. The banners would be stored in the church when not in use. Anyone who didn’t belong to that church, or wasn’t a member of any organisation walking,  would watch.

 

Wool

 

All jumpers and cardigans were hand knitted. My grandmother was an excellent knitter/crocheter. Sometimes new wool was available but often old jumpers were pulled back and re-knitted. Sometimes, unworn garments were pulled back and the wool used for something else.  Patterns were found in magazines. A good knitter would be able to knit / crochet basics without a pattern.