2025 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

Laura_Elsewhere

CapricornLass said:

I'm beginning to wonder if there was an coupon allocation made  for household linens and things, as I haven't been able to find anything like that on the internet.  Thinking about it, you don't tend to need to buy a new duvet every year  (they would have had blankets, but the the principle is the same).  A lot of the materials would have ended up being diverted to support the war effort.  Probably there was something left to make sheets and blankets and things, but I bet there was a restricted choice, and it would have been expensive to buy.

There was probably a 2nd hand market in such things too. All those jumble sales must have had more than just clothes!

No coupons for household textiles- apart from the small provision for those who were bombed-out.

If you read wartime diaries or Mass Obs letters, you’ll find people are mildly obsessed with finding decent glass-cloths which were not made during the war and face-flannels and so on.

As for replacing them- honestly, you have no idea how long textiles used to last. My gran used her pre-war sheets and pillowcases throughout the war, and then after the war, and then she died in the early 1990s and I used her pre-war sheets and pillowcase until 2014 when I moved here, and they are still up at my parents’ house if ever I need them again (we have no clothesline here in our little flat so we use duvetcovers that can be tumble-dried easily without needing ironed; the old sheets really needed ironed every time).

 I also have some of her wool blankets, and a couple of my other grandmother’s blankets. Again, not wearing out…


now do you see why I keep on about modern textiles being made by cheap methods and not lasting well!

Nelliegrace

Household linens were not rationed but were in very short supply by Government Orders, and subject to purchase tax after 1940.
Utility CC41 marked sheets and blankets were exempt from tax. 

https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1946/apr/17/purchase-tax-exemptions-and-reductions-1

I have looked in Hansard and found this, A docket was given to enable those who lost their homes due to enemy action to have priority in obtaining sheets and blankets. That did not mean that there were any available. 

https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written-answers/1946/nov/21/blankets-and-sheets-dockets

retiredinfrance

I have two wartime blankets still in use. Convoy brand says the label,

MrsCD

I've had to buy 2 bath towels, because the old ones have just worn so thin they don't dry us anymore! I think we might have had them at our old house, and we moved here in 2000, so they've not done too badly!   
Do I need to surrender any coupons?

Diane1276

I thought I'd share my latest mend... Re- knitted cuffs and a couple of darns on these lovely cheerful socks.

I knit them years ago and the original cuffs were yellow. I caught one cuff in the zip of a boot and darned the resulting hole, then at some point washed them too hot and felted the cuff. So this weekend I chopped the cuffs off very carefully, and picked up the stitches to knit new cuffs. I darned the two new holes that had appeared, and gave them a good going over with the debobbler. Very pleased with the results!

Laura_Elsewhere

@Diane1276 - gosh, those look splendid! I hope you get an extra bit of warm glow when you wear them, just from pride in your work! 

Diane1276

Laura_Elsewhere said:

@Diane1276 - gosh, those look splendid! I hope you get an extra bit of warm glow when you wear them, just from pride in your work! 

Thank you! I do!

PipneyJane

@Diane1276 those socks look lovely and cosy. Glad you could resurrect them. Do they have a short-row heel?

MrsCD said:

I've had to buy 2 bath towels, because the old ones have just worn so thin they don't dry us anymore! I think we might have had them at our old house, and we moved here in 2000, so they've not done too badly!   
Do I need to surrender any coupons?

It’s up to you, @MrsCD.  The Fashion-on-the-Ration Challenge is primarily about not wasting clothes and the components that make them - fabric and yarn - but if you want to include the towels in your coupon count, that’s ok.  And it’s ok if you don’t, since they were unrationed but almost unobtainable. 
 
- Pip

kiwisavings

Hello all
Some really interesting posts on here and I hope it's not to late to join this challenge for the year.
I am looking at reducing my fabric stash by limiting the new clothes that I buy and was inspired by Clare Bradley on the Great British Sewing Bee to look at clothes rationing.
As per my username, I'm from New Zealand - we had clothes rationing here too during WW2 and so would love to  give this a go...  
- Sarah

PollyWollyDoodle

Never too late to join in!  Welcome to the Much Mending Village Hall, take a chair and we’ll get you a cuppa.