How OS was your mum?

dandy-candy

Tesuhoha I wish I could thank your post twice it was so lovely!

Please keep the replies coming, I'm really enjoying everyone's stories.

BitterAndTwisted

I think Tesuhoha's Mum and mine may have been related. Mine (born in 1929) came from an extremely poorly-off family. German granny was in service from the age of 13, worked herself up to becoming a housekeeper before marriage at 40 and learned most of whatever it is necessary to know and taught it all to my mother.

All meals were cooked from scratch, Mum did all of the weekly wash with a boiler and mangle which took almost a full week to get dried and ironed, and them Monday rolled around again. It must have felt like the Forth Road Bridge. Mind you, we had very few actual clothes in those days: tatty worn-out stuff for playing in, slightly better older things for school and one outfit for "best" which was usually for out visiting or for church. No days out or holidays then other than staying with relatives once in a blue moon.

Milk delivered every day and no fridge. so bottles of milk were stored in a bucket of water in the pantry.

Mum sewed our dresses, knitted woolens, crocheted, baked twice a week and also kept a kitchen garden. She also did any decorating single-handedly because my Dad was an idle twit who seemed to prefer the company other males down the pub.

I have no idea what she did in her spare time because I fear she never had any. I think she may have mended or knitted in her sleep.

tesuhoha

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I think Tesuhoha's Mum and mine may have been related. Mine (born in 1929) came from an extremely poorly-off family. German granny was in service from the age of 13, worked herself up to becoming a housekeeper before marriage at 40 and learned most of whatever it is necessary to know and taught it all to my mother.

All meals were cooked from scratch, Mum did all of the weekly wash with a boiler and mangle which took almost a full week to get dried and ironed, and them Monday rolled around again. It must have felt like the Forth Road Bridge. Mind you, we had very few actual clothes in those days: tatty worn-out stuff for playing in, slightly better older things for school and one outfit for "best" which was usually for out visiting or for church. No days out or holidays then other than staying with relatives once in a blue moon.

Milk delivered every day and no fridge. so bottles of milk were stored in a bucket of water in the pantry.

Mum sewed our dresses, knitted woolens, crocheted, baked twice a week and also kept a kitchen garden. She also did any decorating single-handedly because my Dad was an idle twit who seemed to prefer the company other males down the pub.

I have no idea what she did in her spare time because I fear she never had any. I think she may have mended or knitted in her sleep.

Yes, we had the weekly business with the boiler and the mangle. She used to beat our rugs on the line to get rid of the dust. Also the bottles of milk in a bucket of water. I also forgot about her preserves. She made all kinds of jams and pickles from the fruits of the garden, even pickled onions. She too didn't have spare time, except when she got older when she liked watching Coronation Street.

tesuhoha

tesuhoha wrote: »

Yes, we had the weekly business with the boiler and the mangle. She used to beat our rugs on the line to get rid of the dust. Also the bottles of milk in a bucket of water. I also forgot about her preserves. She made all kinds of jams and pickles from the fruits of the garden, even pickled onions. She too didn't have spare time, except when she got older when she liked watching Coronation Street.

My mum was born in 1910 and had me at a late age and my brother even later.

sillyvixen

my mum was not at all os, both my parents worked full time and for most of my childhood thee only meals my mum cooked from scratch was the occasional curry (perfected in her student days) a a weekly roast (rarely on a sunday as she was a nurse and did most weekends as my dad was off work to look after us. other food was quick and convient. Mum was in her element when she discovered microwave ready meals - although she cooks more now she is retired i cant believe how much she spends on food shopping for the 2 of them.

someone at work recently asked me how i learned to cook and bake, and if my mum taught me. i learned from my grandmothers, one who cooked everything from scratch she taught me to make bread, pastry and that if anything needed using up to chuck it in the pot of whatever you were making on make soup and freeze - she did not make cakes as such except occasionally getting out all the ingredients for rock cakes and supervising me to keep me busy. the other grandmother was country born and bread, she skinned rabits etc and grew most of their own veg. she taught me to make cakes and pastry (for sweet things like fruit pies and jam tarts, my other grandmother only used pastry for savory things).

one grandmother tried and failed to teach me to knit, so taught me cross stitch and when i was older to make simple things with a sewing machine, the other had a button pot and taught me to sew buttons on to a spare piece of fabric - i would spend hours sewing loads of buttons on - she tried to teach me to darn socks i learned life is too short!!

skitler

my mum was very frugal. she was a house wife, dad worked but only skilled labourer he would have been classed as. six kids. so not much cash about, at the best of times.
when we had squash she could put the double concentrate bottles of today to shame, I think it was a cap full, jam on toast, the knife was plunged into the jar and sharply out what stuck is what you got, but the knife was always slipery with having just buttered the toast. not the such as ready meals it was all home made. I cant remember ever going without, and hope she didn't go without to achieve that as mums do. she would buy the comic book anuals in the jan sales for next xmas so they where always a year behind, but we all got loads a xmas so I can only imagine she was very os. i now enjoy the squash as per the label, and lashing of jam on my toast. but no regrets on my upbringing whatever.
thanks mum and dad.

regards:beer:

tiny_courageous

My mum is pretty old style and always was while I was growing up - I learned to sew, knit, cook (of a fashion, we weren't adventurous), grow stuff in the garden, foraging, and entertaining ourselves. She learned it from her parents who were very much almost self sufficient - grandad was financially astute and wouldn't spend money if something could be made or grown instead. We had no central heating and had coal fires and I can probably still make fire logs out of newspaper and build a fire if I had to.
Nowadays, mum will still knit, sew etc but does make the most of being more financially secure, eg using tumble dryer, having the heating on. She's embraced other old style things though, like the slow cooker and halogen oven, and everything is still cooked at home from scratch.

donny-gal

My Mum 1919, was very OS. She was the youngest of 9, and her Dad had lost his leg in a pit accident. She was not allowed to go out to work when she lgft school but had to stay and look after them, as they were obviously older, though all her siblings escaped! Grandad demanded her bottle of beer a day regardless, which she had to fetch, she did not like alcohol, and while never stopped anyone else having one, lemonade shandy was her strongest drink. She had to make clothes out of old ones, and unpick knitted jumpers to make new ones, as she had no income. Once married, she did not need to be OS, but she could not change, yes we had a fixed diet, and they're was plenty of food, but Dad had a good job, but still grew ve. And kept chickens, as his own Dad did, he had an allotment too. His Mum sold pop & crisps from her kitchen, again not from real need feel sure.

My Mum's Mum lived with us until I was 8 which meant I was in their bedroom until then. I learnt to crochet before she died, then Mum reminded me again as I got a little older. Mum could sew, knit, crochet, embroider, cook from scratch with veggies from the garden and Grandad's allotment, decorated, both for us, and would regularly go and "whitewash" a couple of elderly neighbours ceilings for them FOC. As a result, I can do all those things, though don't do decorating. I worked full time, and while not overdoing the cooking from scratch, did use real & frozen veg. Would even do some frozen veg myself, I.e. Peas & runner beans at glut times, before DS came along and before my career took off, I still did dressmaking, and made all Nursery curtains, quilt cover, bumper, recovered one of those springy seats, and made Moses Basket covers, together with repairing clothes which was needed. While working FT I did use a tumble drier, though now retired, wash on dry days.

Until I was 16 M&D lived in a "pit house", coal fires, no CH, kitchen fire lit in the morning, but the lounge one not lit until tea time. Baths were once or twice a week, Mum, followed by me, followed by my brother, with Dad getting the left overs, as he had showers at the pit, as did my brother who also worked there. Dad was a brilliant engineer, and climbed the ladder, giving us a good live style, but holidays were still in a caravan, usually at the East Coast. Brother had to do apprentice training, so he became a fitter, I also had to "learn a trade", so learnt Shorthand & Typing. No fancy careers choice, you will learn a trade, didn't hurt us.
DG

elaine373

This thread is fantastic and I have enjoyed reading about how people's mums and lives were. My mum had very little to manage on, as she brought 6 of us up without the support of a husband. She shopped daily and looked for the cheaper options. We got our clothes from the regular Saturday jumble sale and this habit has stayed with me, because I love looking for bargains at the charity shops. Money never lasted all week and Sunday nights were spent looking for pennies, to make 10p, to put in the leccy meter.main bath night was Sunday and we shared bath water and used sheets to be dried in:eek: . Washing was done on a Monday and I remember helping my mum put it through the mangle which was attached to the back of the electric washing section. I can't remember going without food but was aware of being from 'the poor family'. I also remember plucking pigeons and assume we had them in our meals. Life was harder but communities were closer, and to me the good old days really were better.(I was born in 1964)

maman

My nana was unbelievably OS. It was a result of really hard times, particularly in the depression of the 30s. Even when money was a little more plentiful, the frugality to the point of meanness stuck. She never got out of the habit of feeding everyone else and having next to nothing herself.

My mother knew how to be OS and when we were younger she practised it. She cooked from scratch and made most of my clothes and some of my brothers. Gradually, over the years as my dad got further promotions money wasn't tight any more so she relaxed her spending. She died some years ago but in her later years (living alone) bought most of her food from M&S. I think she thought she deserved it.