As regular readers of this column well know, I love all things vintage. From housewares to personal attire to my choice of transportation, I've long said I was born in the wrong era. Based on this knowledge of my attraction to things not of my generation, one might justly conclude I have an interest in history.
No, not historically.
Throughout my scholastic years, I never cared for the subject. I saw as needless the memorization of names, dates and places, and I found many of my history teachers boorishly dull. Oh, I made straight A's in the classes, but I only did enough to ace the test and let precious little seep into my core.
Since history repeats itself, I figured I'd catch it the next time around the horn.
My take on history, like my take on many things, has changed a bit as I've aged. I still don't want any part of memorizing things (which is good since that ability has changed a bit over the years, too). But I now enjoy experiencing history -- touching the hand-embroidered linens, seeing the battlefields, tasting the old ways of preparing meals. When history comes alive through stories of real people, that's when it becomes alive for me.
I have particularly come to appreciate the fashion sense of days gone by. The tailored suits, hats, gloves and handkerchiefs -- all were staples in the dress code of ladies and gentlemen not long ago.
Sifting recently through umpteen pairs of my grandmother's gloves and beautifully printed handkerchiefs, I wondered, "When exactly did these go out of style?"
So I embarked on a trip down history lane and here's what I uncovered from various sources.
Handkerchiefs have been around since Biblical times, but they didn't become prevalent until the early Renaissance. Throughout the 1800s and early 1900s, they were an indispensable accessory of every man's and woman's outfit. However, in 1924, the "Kleenex Kerchief" was invented for ladies to remove cold cream. Within a few years, the ornate fabric hankies were shoved into closets to be found by granddaughters years later.
It was also not many years ago when a man (or woman) didn't leave the house without a hat. Now, besides the occasional ball cap, it is rare to see someone lidded. There are a few schools of thought on this and they all might be true.
All presidents wore top hats to their inauguration until John F. Kennedy, who brought one, but hardly wore it. After that, many men began leaving their hats at home. Around the same time, folks began driving their own cars rather than taking public transportation. The roofs of the buses and trains where much taller than those of the family car. Having to remove your hat each time you went to and fro was cumbersome. Further, the mass marketing of sunglasses after World War II may have contributed to the hats' demise.
And with the arrival of women's lib, young ladies went topless in more ways than one. Hats, gloves and fitted clothing were tossed aside for unrestricted comfort.
There seems another reason to explain our cultural disenchantment with dressing up. Going places -- to church, to a ballgame, for a drive -- was seen as privileged, not commonplace. Folks placed value on these occasions and respected others and themselves to look and act a certain way.
In my estimation, history will repeat itself any day now and I'm lidded, gloved and hankied for the occasion. Until then, I'll just be very uncool.
NAN Our Town on 07/09/2015