let's bring back
Handkerchiefs
pocket watches
wash basins with matching pitchers in bedrooms
large indoor analog clocks
pipes
hats for men
hats for women
non-ironic suspenders
majestic facial hair (men)
travel by sea and rail
hand mirrors
You see where I'm going with this.
Feel free to add more.
posted by Jenna at 12:13 PM
42 Comments:
This comment has been removed by the author.
I think I just had this same conversation with someone the other day...
Our family already brought back the pipes, facial hair, and handkerchiefs and unfortunately, suspenders... We'll keep working on it. :)
non-synthetic fabrics
fur-felt hats (I guess that is an add on to your hats)
non-mechanical transportation (i.e. horses)
leather shoes
warming pans!
cast-iron cookware
iron bootscrapes
dinner bells
cloth napkins
handwork while visiting (knitting, embroidery, etc.)
pocket watches
3 piece suits
fountain pens
courting
hand held fans when it's hot
i'm sure my mind will be dwelling on this all day, so don't be surprised if I make another post later
> wash basins with matching pitchers in bedrooms
This was my birthday request for something like 10 straight years. I finally gave up asking, but I'm still looking for just the right one every time I venture into a flea market or antique shop.
Oh, and while we're bringing back hand mirrors, can we bring back those hairbrush and mirror sets for women? And shaving kits for men.
Wood stove cooking
Handmade clothing
Real wood furniture
Lunch pails
Handwritten letters
Chivalry
Proper English (Yeah is not a word)
Zippo lighters
Red and black plaid Woolrich hunting coats
Returnable 16oz. Coke bottles
Department store lunch counters with the little circulating coolers for orange drink and that grape stuff...whatever it was.
Basic utilitarian pickup trucks
with vinyl seats, rubber floor mats and AM radios
Bicycles with fenders
Not having to have perfect white teeth.
~sit tall in the seat bicycles with a sturdy basket on the front.
~dropping by someones house unannounced, just to say hi.
~porch sitting
~playing in the street for kids
~front yard gardening
~standing with a gardening impliment in your hand and surveying the terrain.
~clean clothes swaying in the breeze
I could go on... :)
I really like the dinner bell suggestion! And handwork while visiting.
glass milk bottles
corner stores (drug, grocery, candy)
five and dimes
The milk man
Radio dramas
Reading aloud to each other
Board games
Clotheslines
An extensive railway system, both for shipping and travel.
Good manners.
Women being able to stay home to raise their children, cook healthy foods, and bring back family stability.
Personal responsibility.
Old-school bearded carpenters using hand-planes while wearing bibs over a white t-shirt under a red wool jacket with at least one of those pockets containing: a pocket knife for whittling, a handkerchief for wiping sweat off one's brow, and a quarter to loan to some kid that wants to buy a gum ball. That is what I shoot for when I get dressed in the morning.
Proper men's vests
Homegrown food
Pride in what one does
Eating out only for special occasions (Tuesday is not a special occasion)
Real luggage
Dopp kits
hot water bottles
jigsaw puzzles
skating rinks with real live organists
bookmobiles
re-usable dishes
root cellars
chamber music (as in, music meant to be played by small groups consisting of the people it's being played for, at home, in a friendly setting)
Vinyl LP's because they sound so much better.
-families dinners together...every night
-"Sunday" clothes for church
-knowing all your neighbors
-popcorn made on the stove
-kids reading instead of playing video games
-drive-in movies
-manners
-family time in general
I could go on and on.....
Oh, and straight razors to shave with.
I happened to be listening to 'Ashoken Farewell' while reading this post and all the comments. It was downright poetic! Thanks for a great subject.
Well-made handtools
Scythes
Broadforks
Homemade housewarming gifts
Locally ground flour
Barn raisings
Home orchards
Home cider presses
~Peddle (treadle) sewing machines
~children growing up raising animals & knowing how to care for them
~milk in glass bottles (although I can actually still buy that here in PA from a local dairy - yes it does taste better!!)
~five & dime was also on my list. Ours burned back in the 80's & never recovered - it was the neatest store EVER!!!
~letting your kids play flashlight tag all through the neighborhood at night & not having to worry about them
~oil lamps
That's all I can think of right now.
Wendy A
in Pa
kids playing outdoors
riding a bike without a helmet
roller skates with keys
flower power
hippies
love beads
wooden thread spools
Jadite dishes
front porches
sipping pink lemonade on the front porch
saying hi to your neighors from your front porch
clothes made in the USA
anything made in the USA
mending
milkmen
small local businesses
local candy factories (like necco, that made the sky smell like orange conversation hearts one day, and caramello the next)
Common Decency Amongst All. The fine art of being nice has been lost in all this "Get, Do, Get, Do". Great idea for a post :-)
"wash stands with matching pitchers"-
I had one of these in my bedroom growing up (and I'm only 25 now). Still have the antique wash stand, just waiting for the perfect pitcher.
I have to add an abstract one-
Appreciation of homemade gifts
And I have to second the "handwork while visiting"- I do this now, and at work during lunch sometimes. I get a lot of weird looks from my co-workers!
Family sings in 3-part harmony round the piano
macaroni & cheese (made from ingredients that come in separate packages) cooked in the oven creating that wonderful brown crust
the welcome wagon
drive-in movies
being polite
quilting bees
non-instant chocolate pudding
picnics
caroling
Wonderful list, everyone! If only we were in charge of the world. ;)
This is a great list - not just the post but also the comments from your visitors. WOW.
I've noticed that some of these *are* coming back in bits and pieces - just the other day I saw a site where a fellow built a cabin and uses a wash basin and pitcher in his bathroom. Another was a proud father's blog who shared the "old-time" shaving set his teenage son now uses for his beard.
I'm so enjoying this. My step-dad uses handkerchiefs and we use cloth napkins. Here in Japan I see bicycles with wonderful wire baskets as well as racks on the back for loading goodies in the rear too. The best part is they are the equivalent of 100USD.... less than some folks would pay for a fancy dirt bike for their 10 year old.
Wonderful, wonderful post - looks like you got lots of folks THINKING!
guys! i loved this list. Blue gate said they listened to Ashokan Farewell while reading it, and it was a a little special. I love knowing when there is a soundtrack to my blog in the background!
I think you guys are great. To know people are out there on their own small farms, backyard chicken empires or city-apartments and thinking about wash basins and shaving kits makes me swell with pride. And not just in some steampunk revival way - but actual pride in bringing back a little history.
And if we can start bringing back some of the past, and learning about it too, I think we're onto something.
Thanks friends!
Ceiling wax and navigation by astrolabe. And dueling? I'm not sure if our nation has recovered from Alexander Hamilton's death, so maybe we should hold off on the dueling.
Hey Jen! It's Kate! Here is my list:
- Reading
- Good TV (AKA NO REALITY)
- Self-Respect
- Respect in General
- Stopping by for a "Cup of Coffee"
- Lite Brites
- Evening Strolls
- Well made clothing
- Big Wheels
i agree..
i already bring a handkerchief with me that was appropriately used by my five year when we had to take her to the doctor.
i love this entire list and i had to share it on my google reader. thank you for it :)
analog, wind up alarm clocks
non digital themometers
working at home
life without tv
wheel-riding
the kids on the street
homemade jam
nightdresses
sun hats and garden tools
brick walls
peter rabbit
Waxed paper bags, butchers, wind-up watches and clocks...the list goes on.
Not just Big Wheels, but the Big Wheels with the hand brake on one wheel so the kid could get going at almost-out-of-control speeds and then pull the brake and spin it around in a circle! We had one, and we must've put a million miles on it. By the end of its days, the front wheel was split down the middle the whole way around, and the plastic part that held the handle-bar-and-front-wheel assembly was so badly worn that the handlebars rested on the rider's knees.
Billfolds
Change purses
Straight razor shaves at the barber
Warm milk before bedtime
Bourbon on the gums of sick babies
Bow ties, the real ones that you actually have to tie. I have always thought that they just looked more classy than a "regular" tie.
proe5474
pond1579
river4842
spa1885
master1548
Okay, so I know you wrote this post a while ago, but I just read it for the first time. I just have two words: Mutton Chops
Just this past weekend, for Sweetest day, my wifey got me the nicest pocket watch. Glass faces on both the front and the back, so than that 19th century technology can shine through.
Just last night I accidently stepped on it and broke the crystal...
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