2024 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

PollyWollyDoodle

Welcome, Mrs Mavis - pull up a chair and we’ll find you a cup of (rationed) tea.  We have some supplies tucked away, and the biscuit tin has been filled up.  

Laura over there (with the plaits and the lovely skirt) is quite an expert on fabric and repairs.  And Pip on your other side, wearing that stunning jumper, is our knitting specialist, although several of us are keen yarn enthusiasts.  We can help with most cleaning and mending enquiries, and we do like a good chat.  

Oh, and mind the dog.  I think he’s been in the village pond this morning, judging by that odour. 

PipneyJane

Welcome @Mrs_Mavis. That dress is beautifully cut - it must have looked lovely on you.  Have a piece of flapjack.  It’s still July, so you’re entitled to 33 coupons.

@Nelliegrace and @Cherryfudge - I’m not surprised that Britain consumes 5 million pounds of tea a week.  I wonder how many ships that would require?  (Tea and sugar were the big drivers of the expansion of the Empire, after all.).

Update on MIL:  she was discharged from hospital yesterday evening.  Since she lives in warden controlled housing, hopefully she’ll apply common sense this time and wear the damn emergency call button.  (She never does.). We’ll see her next weekend.

Update on me:  my first admission for prophylactic chemo will be on 5th August.  I have to be at the hospital before 9am, so that they can put the PICC line back in my arm.  I’ve decided to re-read all my Mary Stewart books (Madam will you talk?, My Brother Michael, etc), and I’ll have both the Olympics and The Hundred to watch.  Not certain about the knitting.  I think I need to take something that requires less concentration than the current jumper.

- Pip (excuse me while I give Scruffy-dog a wash to get rid of that smell)

Cherryfudge

It's good to hear your MIL is well enough to be home, @PipneyJane, but a relief that there will be a warden to keep an eye on her. I hope she wears that call button!

We will be thinking of you back on the ward: how long do you stay for each session of treatment? As for the knitting, perhaps there are oddments you could make into a baby blanket for the maternity ward, or knitwear for premmies? That's if the hospital accepts them - I know our grandchildren had a few items given while they were in the hospital.

Thank you for washing the dog! 

Laura_Elsewhere

I don't drink tea, nor does Mr E, so don't tell anyone but I've left our ration in a screw of paper tucked behind the clock on the kitchen shelf... help yourselves! 

PipneyJane

Laura_Elsewhere said:

I don't drink tea, nor does Mr E, so don't tell anyone but I've left our ration in a screw of paper tucked behind the clock on the kitchen shelf... help yourselves! 

@Laura_Elsewhere, you are a star!  Hopefully we can keep you in coffee.

Cherryfudge said:

…..

Thank you for washing the dog! 

The cricket club won’t thank me, @Cherryfudge.  I used their washroom, downstairs.

We will be thinking of you back on the ward: how long do you stay for each session of treatment? As for the knitting, perhaps there are oddments you could make into a baby blanket for the maternity ward, or knitwear for premmies? That's if the hospital accepts them - I know our grandchildren had a few items given while they were in the hospital.

I’ll be in for 5 days, mainly so that they can monitor my kidney function.  The drug they’re giving me is known to be hard on your kidneys. 

I’ll sort the knitting out, later today.  I probably just need to do a few rows setting up the pattern.  Priority 1 is a pair of fingerless mitts for MIL, to give her when we visit next weekend.  I’m going to make another pair of these.



- Pip

Mrs_Mavis

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone. Nice work on the dog @PipneyJane, if the cricket club asks about the muddy washroom I won't say a word. Oh and thank you for the nice chewy flapjack.

I met with the first challenge to buy less clothes today when I went into a big charity shop near by to look for a jigsaw and they had a £1 sale on all the clothes. I thought of my coupons and overstuffed wardrobe and walked away, phew.

PipneyJane

Mrs_Mavis said:

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone. Nice work on the dog @PipneyJane, if the cricket club asks about the muddy washroom I won't say a word. Oh and thank you for the nice chewy flapjack.

I met with the first challenge to buy less clothes today when I went into a big charity shop near by to look for a jigsaw and they had a £1 sale on all the clothes. I thought of my coupons and overstuffed wardrobe and walked away, phew.

Congratulations on your restraint, @Mrs_Mavis.  Do remember, though, that Charity Shop items are deemed to be secondhand and, therefore, are coupon free.

@Laura_Elsewhere, do you think applying milk would be the best way to get rid of commercial curry stains from a pale blue t-shirt?  I’ve managed to ruin yet another one, despite soaking it in oxy-bleach before washing.  (That’s two so far.). I must have splashed myself while stirring one of those “heat in the oven” takeaways, on Wednesday night.  Only saw it yesterday, so soaked it overnight before washing.

- Pip

Cherryfudge

PipneyJane said:

The cricket club won’t thank me, @Cherryfudge.  I used their washroom, downstairs.

Serves 'em right, Pip. They do feed him rubbish in between moaning about him trying to join in their games.

Those mittens look nice and warm, as well as 'handy' (sorry) due to the fingers being free. I would imagine they would be very helpful for your MiL. 

I hope all goes well with your kidney function:  it's not inevitable but at least it will be monitored, and even if it affects you, you may feel no different. DH has reduced kidney function which is probably due to medication, but we only know about it because they test for it and it's been stable for a long time now. 

@Mrs_Mavis, welcome! As Pip says, do bear in mind that second hand is coupon free (the only reason I don't have a massive coupon spend) but some people choose to count second hand towards coupons to reduce overall buying. At the risk of tempting you, I bought a rather lovely cardi off a £1 rail a couple of years ago. It needed a tiny mend and I now flatter myself that it makes me look more 'dressed up' than usual. Then last year almost the same thing happened again - I needed a cardigan and bought a second hand merino one that I thought was fabulous fabric but hopelessly old fashioned, then I found it looked particularly right with something I already had, so no need to change it at all.

PollyWollyDoodle

I buy everything (apart from underwear) second hand, which is why I hardly use any coupons. I enjoy the challenge of hunting down items that I want!  However I recognised a couple of years ago that I was buying things just because they were a bargain, not because I needed them. 

Now I try and operate a ‘one in:one out’ policy and only buy when I’ve identified a gap in my wardrobe.  If you feel you’ve got too many clothes, I recommend the Marie Kondo approach. Get all your t-shirts or skirts or whatever out, and just keep the ones you love.  I was surprised and slightly horrified when I did this to find I had eight black t-shirts, I mean they are useful but who needs that many!  I have had a bad habit of buying things because they are like something I already own.  I’m working on it. 😄

Nelliegrace

I have been tempted by the squander bug! 



I have been looking at an advertisement for a vintage, warm, three-quarter coat, for several weeks, and wondering how much I would wear it. It is wool and made by my favourite Welsh weavers. The measurements show that it is roomy enough to wear over several layers in Winter. The woman selling it asked for almost £40.  (That would be worth about 11 shillings in 1940.) There are no clothes coupons required. 
 
It was still there, and I have the money, and I have put my savings away, so I bought it. I shall put my old Graduation/ Going Away smart jacket in the Hospice Shop, it doesn’t owe me anything after forty-nine years. I am, of course, turning into my Granny, as she wore something very similar.