Poodle Skirts

I was reading one of my friend's Blogs and looking over some of the things that she had written about. One that struck me was about a polka dot dress. I liked her entry and thought about the dress. I never had a polka dot dress but I do remember when I was little that an aunt made me a poodle skirt. The skirt was full with a white poodle dog and a leash on the front. My aunt also made my cousin one as well. That was so in and so very long ago, I am surprised that I can remember it. Even though I wasn't a teenager, I had to be a least 10. I thought I was really cool...even though I have seen a picture of me and I looked like an absolute dork. I definitely did not fit the definition of cool.

Then I just started thinking about all the cool things that were popular and the things that I had. My black and white saddle shoes were my pride in joy in the 60s. I wore a pair of those shoes for four years while I was in high school. The only way to wear them and look cool was to make sure that the white area had a scuffed look.

I remember when boat neck sweaters were big. It was a sweater that I wanted to add to my clothing collection. I was at one of the college boutiques and found a navy boat neck sweater. I bought it and can honestly say that I definitely didn't look like a dork! I wore that sweater to death. I also had a white sweater with a hood that was popular until I threw it over my popcorn popper in my college dorm room and burnt it. It was supposed to hide the sight of the popper which wasn't allowed in dorm rooms but it didn't hide the smell.

What about the green slickers that were stylish in the 60s? I had one of those and even wore it over my nightgown to one of the college dances. Unfortunately I was sweaty and couldn't even take the slicker off to cool down.

In the 60s the bell bottom pants and jeans were big. They were comfortable but then that fad went out. So did tied dyed and paisley shirts, along with go-go boots. The only boots that I ever owned were the cowboy boots that I wore when I was little to accompany my cowboy hat and Hopalong Cassidy six-shooter.

How about the mod style? I was more of the preppy kind of person. I wore rounded Peter Pan collars under my sweaters, or button down collars. And don't forget the plaid skirts. Those were cool, too. But my favorite had to be the culottes. Whoever invented that skirt was definitely cool and looking for comfort.

Of all the styles, I think besides being preppy, I was the sloppy hippy person. I loved the tied dyed shirts and even have a few that I wear to work out at the gym. I loved the poncho, and even made one, along with a shawl that I wore with a hippy long dress.

Then along came the pill box hat, immortalized by the late Jacqueline Kennedy, the wife of the late President John F. Kennedy. I had one of those hats along with a lot of woman in America.

As for my beloved poodle skirt, I wore it until I out grew it. Then my cousin gave me her skirt after she out grew it. I wore it proudly, even as I scaled a tall metal fence across the street from my house, too lazy to walk around. I made it home, with a scratched leg and a red face, wearing half of the skirt, the other half was flapping in the breeze on top of the metal fence.

It is amazing that whatever you wear is going to show up 20 years down the road. I still have my tied dyed shirts, and my poncho and the shawl that I made. I just can't give up those things. If I live another 20 years, which I doubt, I will be in style.