clothes

No, I don't have Betty Grable legs, nor do I ever go bare-legged. Actually, I can't remember the last time I wore a dress or skirt, but I don't remember tights being so bad when I wore them.

I apologise if my previous post was insensitive.

When Mary Quant launched the mini skirt on us there was a mass ditching of suspenders and stockings - for obvious reasons. Tights seemed like a liberation but in fact they were no such thing, we were even more confined, with a waist band that at times felt as if you had a boa constrictor round your middle, and depending on the make and size (which varied wiidly) the gusset was either round your knees or up round your boobs. And they have been found to be the harbingers of all sorts of itchy problems.

Hold -ups seemed like the answer to a maiden's prayer ... they weren't.

I wish I could go bare -legged with a pretty frock, but I don't possess a pair of Betty Grables ... perhaps Ana does, so doesn't feel the need to worry. Me? I'd opt for a leg transplant any day. I loved to flash a pair of tanned,toned pins but it ain't gonna happen, so it's pants/jeans... and confession time now ......in the winter worn with knee-highs. Not when I visit my doctor... she'd give me one of her severe lectures on the vascular system.

Ana - I have a neurological movement disorder and cannot bear the feeling of being constricted. That's why tights don't work for me and if I needed hosiery the hold ups worked great.
A reason for no longer having any dresses is so that hosiery isn't necessary.

One hold-up up and one hold-up down: I was changing trains at Waverley Station, bent double trying to pull up the errant stocking, towing the suitcase with the other hand. Must have been a bonny sight!

I've never worn hold-ups in my life! Why would you? If you don't want to go bare-legged, wear tights...

(I think I'm beginning to agree with ethel a bit, now! )

I don't even own a dress any more but when I did, up until about 4 years ago, I would on occasion, when dressing up - wear my hold ups. Loved them with lacy tops from M & S. Fortunately I've got slim-ish thighs. Wish the rest of me was in proportion to them.

What a vile invention those hold ups were - made my legs look like bursting sausages and left angry red rings on my thighs. As regards silk underwear, I swear by my silk thermals bought from Landsend many years ago. The quality of their stuff used to be excellent when most of it was manufactured in the US, but has gone downhill now it is made all over the place.

I remember a friend telling me never to use body lotion on legs before wearing hold ups.

I justify my shoe collection by recalling my MIL's advice. She told me you can lose a pint of sweat from your feet in a day so you should always let shoes "rest" and dry out for a day between wearings.

Having read these last two posts I am soo glad that my hefty legs and lofty height meant that I never tried holdups. Stockings were bad enough when the reinforced top appeared below your skirt.

I remember both of them once descending right down to my ankles when I was running for a bus!

OMG I'd forgotten about the hold-up! Or non-hold-ups as they should have been called. I can still recall the dreaded moment one felt them creeping down ones thighs... and you just knew you weren't going to make it to the 'ladies' without them slithering down to your ankles!

Oh how I sympathise absentg!!! Itchy lace and scanties up my bum- yes I can relate to that. Add in silk stockings or hold ups which either rip the skin off your thighs or descend Nora Batty style!

DH used to buy me lovely cami knickers back in the day when M&S actually made nice lingerie. French knickers too. I didn't like to tell him but they killed me...kept disappearing up my bum! On the rare occasions I wore them I spent the entire evening trying to haul them out. He had a thing about M&S lacey bras too.... when I wore them I spent the evening scratching! There's a lot to be said for 'buckets' and 'support' bras, one of the few advantages of being older, less frivolous.... and built for comfort.

Patra has silk undies.

Yes - what happened to silk camiknickers and vest tops? They were lovely sets to wear. I once had a silk bra, but it didn't last long, sadly, so never again.

I suppose it's a form of hobby really. You read, or don't, you wear nice clothes or don't, or maybe you just dip into a nice new magazine from time to time.

If you buy good quality items they should last. Clothes from the likes of Primark or Zara, or even M and S these days are not made to last more than a season. However, fine fabrics like silk or chiffon, do not wear well and have to be treated with care, that's why they are for special occasions. They fell fabulous when you wear them though. I do like silk lingerie but it tears easily.

I have clothes just to walk the dog in , including boots and shoes. But otherwise I mix and match what I have for work and whatever occasion comes along

When you are really broke, you don't tend to go out as much, and I think that is when your wardrobe shrinks. I have had years when things were extremely tough, and didn't buy a single thing and even mended bras and darned knickers! I did thank heavens for my sewing skills. I used to have to refuse all social invitations, because I couldn't afford to reciprocate and certainly couldn't be a 'Lady who Lunched'. Even coffees out were stretching it a bit. But things are a bit easier now, I love nice things and beautiful fabrics, and this year alone half a dozen pairs of shoes have died on me. I was livid until I realised that I had had one pair for 25 years! As I only wore them to parties they had lasted for perhaps an average of three a year over those years, being winter black satin and velvet ones.

I sat down on a beautiful white carpet at the end of this January and when I got up there was a heap of what looked like ash on the floor. We couldn't think how it got there.

The next day I had to phone and apologise - the velvet section of my shoe had picked that evening to moult! It wasn't velvet at all, it was a sort of flock and the glue had finally expired. M&S, 25 years ago. I'm still in mourning for them.

on the fence here
I have 'lots' of jeans, t-shirts and jumpers (thick and thin) as I live rurally and layer them up depending on the weather
so have wellie boots / warm snow boots/ decent boots / indoor boots (£5 from ideal world and wonderful on cold floors and NOT slippers)
have going out shoes, shoes for the summer and comfy walking shoes
confess to 2 handbags (one large and one small)
the only criteria I have re what I wear is that I must change (and therefore wash) everything that I have worn for a day or even half a day -( it was hell when my washing machine broke down)
most of my clothes come from the sales, or ebay or charity shops- can't remember the last time I bought anything full price/new.

I don't think it's sinful to buy something for an occasion and wear it just the once, though I don't think I've ever done it. Not even my wedding dress - I hired that for the day and never regretted it. I tend to keep clothes forever anyway, but if I do get rid of them they go to a charity shop. I do have occasion dresses I've only worn two or three times, but I'm sure they'll come in somewhere along the line. I suppose I might get into cruising as I get older! I'm keeping my eye out now for something to wear at my 60th party in January - my OH is 65 the same week so we're having a big celebration. I wouldn't wear something to that that I've worn at a previous do. Surely I'm not unusual in that?

And I agree petra - a black bag most certainly does not go with everything!

I agree that looking good, even if no-one else is gping to see you, is a self-esteem thing. I've been retired for over 10 years... I had to dress smartly then, and I still do smart-casual at home... unless I'm doing some DIY!

I'm very observant on personal hygiene, and even tho' some of my neighbours happily wander outside in their dressing gowns until mid-morning I wouldn't be seen dead in my dressing gown after 8.30a.m and never outside! My neighbours, I might add, are the self-proclaimed 'Tres Chic' French .Don't you believe it... it's a myth! I think the dressing gown hang-up comes from my dear old mum... she was mortified if anyone even caught her in her rollers and hairnet! She called it 'having standards.' I think her naighbours called it being 'stuck up' but.........

As I said before I buy a lot of my clothes second-hand, so I like to thnk I'm doing my bit for re-cycling.

And no... I don't get a reaction from my DH when we go out, but I do dress to compliment him, and also because I feel good when I know I've done as much as I can with the basic provisions nature gave me!

This morning, for example, to go into town (not a smart cosmopolitan place at all) I wore chambray cut-offs, a bright blue t shirt with a baggy white overshirt to disguise the lumpy bits, and moccasins instead of the leather mules I'd worn all summer. Thought it was time I re-introduced my feet to 'proper' shoes. Unfortunately by the time I got home my feet were killing me! Oh well! They obviously need re-training before winter sets in.

Do your friends dress like you, ethel ?

Well, etheltbags, I fully understand how you feel, but for me dressing well is about self-respect.

What you wear always says something about you as a person. It has to, because the person putting the clothes on has decided to be a careful, dresser, or, like you, someone who just puts the nearest garment on, but even then the wearer will have chosen to buy/accept that garment into their wardrobe so that it is available for wear and other people seeing them will reach conclusions about who and what they are from their appearance. You cannot avoid it.

As far as I am concerned I love dressing and looking nice. It is a sure sign that I am unwell or very tired if I am wandering round the house in a tracksuit looking unkempt. It is probably no co-incidence that I also like my house to look nice. I choose my soft furnishings, paint/wallpaper and everything in each room with care. In clothes I think make me look pleasant and sitting in a living room where everything around me is chosen with care in colours and patterns I like and complement each other I feel relaxed and happy, in a dingy old room with dingy clothes, I become equally dingy and withdrawn.

I have had a delightful morning. Since last winter I have lost nearly 2 stone. This morning I got my winter clothes out and tried them all on. They are all far, far too big for me and will need replacing. Yippee, I am so going to enjoy going out to buy a whole lot of new clothes.

I see no reason whatsoever for having to be apologetic for enjoying having a wardrobe of clothes, chosen with care, which I delight to wear. Its my money I can spend it on what I like - and I like clothes.

I agree that it's a crime to wear something for just one occasion. When I was young, my mother told me to remember how much it cost. Then every time I wore it after that, I should halve it as it lost its value. To keep on doing that until it got down to 50p and only then to start thinking of getting rid of it. So despite all the fashion advice to get rid of things if you haven't worn them for two years, what I tend to do is buy good-quality clothes that are classics and won't date. Nowadays most of my clothes are second-hand from eBay anyway, apart from good basics.

I dress according to my mood, as much as anything. Some days I want navy wool jumper and jeans, other days I want floral floaty and a cardigan.

Your clothes sound like a work-mindset self-imposed uniform. Very easy to wear, but not something that is going to make you feel happier as you put it on. I have clothes that definitely brighten my day and make me feel better when I wear them.