I was the only one in the family who got my hair cut in the hairdressers—because I was a girl. Throughout the mid to late 70’s I had the pageboy haircut. Easy to comb, wash and style. Not like the long waves I had for years before that.
The pageboy hairstyle was inspired by the medieval page boy. It was a common style in the 20’s and became popular again in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.
There are some variations to the cut but precise and even lines are essential…or it’s just not the page boy.
Which brings me to my brothers. Mam cut their hair. She gave them a shorter version of my pageboy—also known as the bowl haircut. I have to say, never did she put a bowl on their heads and cut round it.
Terry’s First CommunionDay Let’s talk about the clothes another time.
She had quite a good eye though. Her precise and even lines were quite good, for an amateur hairdresser. The scissors she used though; big silver industrial scissors that came from a local factory (Wellman). Everyone on our terrace had a pair. They were so versatile!
The same scissors I used to butcher my new jeans. Read about that HERE.
It doesn’t always take a photo to remind me of the past. Certain images pop into my head at the slightest prompt. I’m sure everyone is the same.
I remember a lot of shoes I had. As clear as if I wore them yesterday.
The oldest shoe memory I have is of my little white leather T-bar shoes. And the whitener my mam used to put on them. I would have been just a toddler, but I remember them so well. They’ve never gone out of fashion. It’s not that long ago since I bought a pair for Little Miss Ten, and recently I saw a little girl wearing a pink pair. So cute!
Toddler T-bar Shoes by Lucy McBreen
My first communion shoes were also T-bar; black patent. That was in 1974. I wasn’t too happy with them because all the other girls wore white shoes.
The day my mam bought me my first pair of clunky clogs was the same day I got my first gypsy skirt. My clogs were brown and my skirt was red with flowers dotted all over it. Well, I thought I was the bees knees clunking around in my lovely new clogs. Definitely my favourite shoe memory!
I desperately wanted a pair of Scholls after that but Mam said I’d likely break my neck in them, so I gave up asking.
In the early 80’s I had a pair of moccasins. They were light brown. I don’t remember loving them…I only had them because they were in fashion.
Then I wore loafers. They were square and heavy; like what the boys wore. They weren’t noisy enough for the extrovert 14-year-old me, because I had metals tips/taps fitted to the soles of them. My parents had no problem with this because the tips saved the soles. Less frequent trips to the cobbler.
As I got older I got more daring. Stilettos! I had red ones, blue ones, white ones, black ones, pink ones. I even remember dying white shoes because I couldn’t always afford a new pair.
My favourite shoes from the 90’s are my red platforms. I bought them to wear to my friend Roisin’s wedding. Not with the black tights I have to add. I took this photo recently when I came across the shoes during a clear out!
What your favourite shoe memory? Let me know in the comments. Thank you for reading and for following our #100DaysOfOldDays.
This photo of my mother with four out of her five children was taken in 1970. (My youngest brother wasn’t born until a couple of years later)
Terry in the pram, Mam, Gloria, PJ, and Bernard.
Some things strike me about this photo. The first thing I see is my mother’s youth. She’s only about 23 years of age and already she has four children. She’s beautiful and vibrant looking. I remember that dress she’s wearing. It’s red; her favourite colour then and her favourite colour today.
This photo radiates happiness. We were happy children. Far from spoilt and didn’t have everything we wanted but we certainly had everything we needed.
I’d love to know what my brother PJ said that made me giggle…when we should have been looking at the camera.
This photo reminds me how Mam got the balance right in certain aspects of her parenting ways. I notice how clean and tidy we all are. Bright clothes and shiny hair. She took pride in her family’s appearance. Yet she allowed us to be dirty when we needed to be. I have many happy memories of running around the fields in mucky wellies. Coming in at supper time to get washed at the sink. A bath was once a week. No bubbles, just soap!
Look at the pram. No bells and whistles on the prams back then. But that pram would have done all five of us. People took very good care of their things in those days because they had to last for a long time. Broken things got mended, not thrown away. And when you did get new things, you passed your old stuff on to someone else.
There’s one thing about this photo that makes me laugh; the length of my dress. Sure it is no length! But I can bet you it was the fashion back then.
I know that it was my late dad who took this photo with their big black box camera. It doesn’t make me sad to think of it. It makes me smile and makes me feel warm inside. We had many family days out. Simple outings but memorable.
I’m killing two birds with the one stone today. Esme Salon’s Picture Prompt #7 and my first day of #The100DayProject. Read on!
Old doors intrigue me. A lot of questions whirl around my head when I see one—whether it be in a photo or in real life. I wonder what went on behind that door. I think about the woman who used to polish it. Was it her own or someone she worked for? If only I could step back in time just by opening the door.
But all I can do is wonder and imagine. Was she happy? Did she have a good life? Did she marry and have children? Maybe she married but wasn’t blessed with a family. Was her husband a hard working man who provided for them, or was he a man who earned little and drank that little in his local bar?
Maybe she had a large family, the older ones taking care of the younger ones while she went out to work. How long did she live? What challenges did she face in her life? Was she strong? Did she have support from family and friends? Did she even have any family and friends?
I look at the house that owns the door. It might be a well-built house with thick walls and solid windows owned by people who were well-off. Or a small shack; a home to paupers. Which family was the happiest? The rich or the poor. Their front door doesn’t tell us that.
~~~~~~~~~~
I had to do a lot of research when I was writing my novel, which spans over three decades beginning in 1958. Of course, I got carried away too many times and ended up reading much more than I needed. I do intend on making good use of my research though.
Little Miss Ten and I are taking part in #The100DayProject this year. I heard about it from one of my blogging friends Peabody Amelia and I thought it would be fun to do.
Our #100DayProject will be #100DaysofOldDays. I will write about something from the old days and my artist, Little Miss Ten, will draw a picture of my daily old thing/place/tale.
The main character in my novel is Flossie Lynch. She’s very superstitious, as were many people back in the 50’s/60’s. (Some people still are.) I learned a lot about superstitions when writing about Flossie.
One old belief is that if you hear three knocks on the front door, but there’s nobody there, it’s the sign of a death.
It’s considered bad luck to leave a house by the back door if you came in by the front door and vice versa.
Another old superstition is to never enter your new home by the back door on the day that you’re moving in. Yep…bad luck!
Old Door by Lucy McBreen
Are you superstitious? Do you know of any door superstitions? Please let me know.
And do let me know if you’re taking part in #The100DaysOfProject. Leave a link to your blog or social media so I can support you.
Gloria McBreen 