There's nothing wrong with a ra-ra

So in my quest of clearing out my wardrobe the last couple of weeks I have unearthed some beauties.

 

 Most have gone to the British Heart Foundation shop but a couple I have saved for their pure quirkiness alone. One of these items was a grey woolly gillet with pom pom ties. I only bought it last year and today I wore it but it took me back to when I was a little bairn up in the North East and in the early 70's we all had those huge fur hats with pom pom ties. I am sure they wouldn't pass health and safety these days and I am sure if I trawled the news archives then there must have been at least a couple of little girls that got them stuck in motorbike chains or passing Morris Minors and were strangled.

 But even if they did................those hats were cool!

 

I was lucky enough (?) to have a mother that could knit and sew back in the day , therefore a lot of my clothes as a child were fashioned by her own fair hands. I particularly remember a couple of pairs of trouser suits that I had which were beautiful.

 

One was chocolate brown with a lovely gold braid trim.

 

The other was a red tartan one that any Bay City Roller fan would have given their milk teeth for.

 

They were both worn with either a shirt with gigantic collars or a polo neck underneath.

 

Bloody stunning.

 

Thankfully my mother allowed me to purchase my own clothes when I grew older and a big thing for us Alnwick lasses was a trip up to the toon aka Newcastle, and most specifically , Eldon Square. Top Shop, Miss Selfridge, Chelsea Girl, Etam, Snob - that shopping centre had the lot and I remember as though it were yesterday going in the summer of 1982 ish when ra ra skirts and a lot of polka dots were the in thing. I also seem to recall that emerald green was the colour to have them in.

 

I also remember that we thought we were dead cool by lighting a fag whilst walking through the busy streets. I am right in thinking that Regal Kingsize were the smoke of choice and we were literally too cool for school. So there we were with Top Shop bags bulging with green frilly things whilst lugging on a fag and trying to inhale. Nice.

 

Other memorable fashion items from my past are as follows -

 

1. Knickers with frills on the back. Actually more ruffles than frills.

 

2. Trainer bras. I never actually needed one of these but some of my more bosomally challenged friends did.

 

3. Wham and Frankie t shirts.

 

4. Dungarees - I wore a blue pair on my first date. They went lovely with my lilac kohl eyeliner.

 

5. Headband? Gold ones to be precise. I once wore one that was so tight it caused me to have a nosebleed after a couple of Woodpeckers and 3 Regals and a snog.

 

6. Those awful velvet skirts with a little tie in the corner of the front that exposed a bit of broderie anglaise petticoat. Very Bananarama.

 

7. Tight jeans with a line of piping down the sides.

 

8. Hacking jackets.

 

9. Jackets with too many pockets and buttons.

 

10. Pedal pushers.

 

I am sure I am concentrating more on my teens here so if anyone can throw any forgotten items into the mix then that would be good!

 

On a dietary note I am now detoxing. I have had ham and an orange for lunch and dinner will be an omelette. I will probably go  for a  last ditch bid for my shiny sticker and have a stir fry for dinner tomorrow. I despise stir fries but they are apparently good for you.

 

H was shoved on a train this morning and is now back in Cardiff. She was still slightly drunk from the weekend but got there in one piece. She very kindly pointed out to me last night that after her degree ( she has to wait a year until she does her masters ) she will be home for a year and then will be off at exactly the same time as M if she chooses to go to uni. That's 2 years away though which probably gives me enough time to finish going through the evils that are still lurking  at the back of my Narnia type wardrobe.

 

It's all good and I am not hungry and I think my pom poms looked fab.