2026 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

PollyWollyDoodle

Thank you for the link, Floss - Peterborough looks like the nearest one to me, I will look out for dates.  

MrsCD

Laura_Elsewhere said:

MrsCD said:

That would be the nearest for us up north north.(we're more north than Manchester/ Leeds which is what the msm call north!)

I tease a Mancunian friend by calling him a Midlander



@cowboymum - I swim in a local quarry twice a week so we can keep each other virtual company in our swimming!
Think of it as contributing to the War Effort- it should help keep us free of coughs and colds if we swim regularly!  

😂😂😂 @Laura_Elsewhere!

MrsCD

daisy_1571 said:

Laura_Elsewhere said:

MrsCD said:

That would be the nearest for us up north north.(we're more north than Manchester/ Leeds which is what the msm call north!)

I tease a Mancunian friend by calling him a Midlander



@cowboymum - I swim in a local quarry twice a week so we can keep each other virtual company in our swimming!
Think of it as contributing to the War Effort- it should help keep us free of coughs and colds if we swim regularly!  

To me he's still a southerner 😆 

Agree @Daisy_1571!  😂😂😂

kiwisavings

PipneyJane said:

You’re all Northerners to me and @Kiwisavings.  

Yep, sounds right to me 
Though my Father's people came from the Scottish Highlands, so very Northern

cowboymum

Underwear purchased - 3 bras and 3 pairs of knickers. 6 coupons used.

Gem-gem

My Mum thinks anyone north of the River Thames is a northerner!

florianatwobob

My mum was from the deepest darkest Surrey /Hants border. My dad was from Cumbria. They met in the northern Home Counties which felt logistically like the Midlands!

PollyWollyDoodle

Well I thought I was going to declare not only ‘no coupons spent’ but also ‘no clothes bought’ in January. I have too many clothes so I’ve been avoiding the charity shops, this was made easier by a virus that meant I didn’t leave the house for the first two weeks of the year.

However I have just received a new cord pinafore dress from This is Unfolded. I ordered it in November but because the clothes are made to order, you have quite a wait. (I paid for it then, so perhaps technically the coupons were last year’s.).

I’m absolutely delighted with it, it’s the first time I’ve bought from them and it felt a bit scary because although you can return items you can’t just order a different size if you’ve got it wrong. It’s a perfect fit and I can see I’m going to get a lot of wear out of it, so that’s 7 coupons from my total. Now I need to find something to discard, to make room in the wardrobe.

pixtotts

@PipneyJane thank you, tea and cake helps with most of lifes problems. We've lost many a chicken to Mr Fox, but there's something so very different with it being a pet dog who will go off home to have his dinner out of a tin. We did get the lone chicken left (Marigold) a friend Olivia, who lays beautiful blue eggs! (I don't actually like eggs…)

That is such a good idea re the tax labelled savings account, I should really do something similar. I earn about 50% of my annual income in Nov and Dec so it never feels too painful to be paying the tax in Jan, but it would feel even better spread out a bit!



@thriftmonster did you enjoy The Longest Yarn ? It just happened to be on in Stoke On Trent when we visited a friend to see a pottery thing. Absolutely loved it, the amount of hours and skill and yarn… incredible! The Enigma machine was my favourite. And so many had details on the back as well.
I definitely recommend a visit for anyone it travels near! It's not near me until it comes to Tewkesbury next year, but I will try and go again.

@pollywollydoodle talking of books not being rationed I inherited a few war time Vogue magazines I found this while googling to figure out if they were worth keeping.

" With paper rationed and transportation options limited from 1940 onwards, Harry Yoxall – British Vogue’s then managing director – petitioned the Ministry of Information to allow them to continue distributing the magazine. The British government recognised the opportunity that Vogue presented to encourage the so-called “gentler” sex to participate in the war effort, and his request was granted, with the caveat that it became a monthly rather than a fortnightly publication and significantly fewer copies were produced. “Please pass around your Vogue,” read one of many notices in the magazine that encouraged sharing. “Copies of Vogue (since paper rationing) are restricted, so there are not enough to go round. Please pass yours on when you have finished with it. Let friends who can’t get on the subscription list see it first; then take it into the Post Office… They will then be distributed to all the [Women’s] Services where most required, to dozens of stations abroad or lonely stations at home.”

I wonder if the lady we inherited them from had them because her parents owned the local post office.


Right coupon confession time - I have still only earnt myself 3 by selling things… but I might have just spent 5 on some second hand dungarees - I am hoping to sell them to my mum for my birthday though so maybe I can spend her coupons instead! Until then I'm on -2 😅

alicef

@pixtotts there is an interesting book on Audrey Withers (Vogue editor) which covers the war years thru to the 60s called 'Dressed for War' by Julie Summers

I shall call my coupons out from stash for January now (3) as I have finished the 2nd pair of socks and the likelihood of finishing another pair before the end of the month is zero. The 2nd pair needs blocking. I have cast on for another, (small project - handy for taking away from home), but must finish the KAL blanket from last year so will concentrate on that for Feb.