I was making the bed this morning, as I do every morning and reflecting. I know a lot of folks don't bother with all that and I suppose I don't blame them. Me......well I have to. I could not stand walking through the rooms and seeing it all undone. I have a quilt and shams and decorative pillows all need to be in place to make me happy. Well, maybe not happy but not irritated. I wonder why? if you are not going to bother making the bed, why bother buying the pretty stuff that goes on the bed? Maybe some people don't and that's OK too. To each his own.............For me, I like order and a pretty room whenever possible. (That reminds me I have to vacuum the floor.I will be right on that as soon as this is done)...........anyway the point of this was that, while making the bed I was remembering when it was not such an easy task.
Going back maybe 55 years (Good heavens)my mattress was not what we have today. Back then the bed consisted of springs with a mattress on top. That mattress was made of some sort of stuffing, an improvement on the horsehair we had prior to that.
The trouble was we had to shake the mattress when we made the bed to redistribute the stuffing. The stuffing got really lumpy. Still if in my case I had made a nice indent in the middle like a nest it was most comfy and cozy. Stopped the drafts a bit on cold nights.
I expect it was when she was Spring cleaning (excuse the pun) but I do remember mum cleaning the springs. She would take of the mattress and stand the base up and using a feather duster or some such thing on a stick she would clean each of those springs to clear out all the dust and cobwebs.
It was much later that they got what we call Box Springs, where those spring were encased in fabric and did away with that horrible job. The mattress itself was cotton batting and got very lumpy after awhile.
There were no fitted sheets either so it was hospital corners all the way around. I actually did learn how to do that in hospital when I had my appendix out. The nurses showed me how to make my own bed. Hmmmmm and yes wouldn't that go over well today. I remember it was fun and I could help them make the other beds. Such freedom haha. Our beds had what mum called a "Bolster" it was a pillow the width of the bed and the two top pillows would rest against it. You don't see those anymore. The sheets would be washed and ironed before going back on the bed.
When I was pregnant for the first time, they had me sleep on a hard horsehair mattress that lay on top of planks of wood to keep my back in shape. I am sure that a lot of those old fashioned ideas actually did some good.
Well anyway...........far cry from the pretty bedrooms we can have these days and the woman's work is certainly a lot easier. All I do is straighten the bottom sheets, pull the others up and make sure the bottom is still tucked in. Simple.
The trouble was we had to shake the mattress when we made the bed to redistribute the stuffing. The stuffing got really lumpy. Still if in my case I had made a nice indent in the middle like a nest it was most comfy and cozy. Stopped the drafts a bit on cold nights.
I expect it was when she was Spring cleaning (excuse the pun) but I do remember mum cleaning the springs. She would take of the mattress and stand the base up and using a feather duster or some such thing on a stick she would clean each of those springs to clear out all the dust and cobwebs.
It was much later that they got what we call Box Springs, where those spring were encased in fabric and did away with that horrible job. The mattress itself was cotton batting and got very lumpy after awhile.
There were no fitted sheets either so it was hospital corners all the way around. I actually did learn how to do that in hospital when I had my appendix out. The nurses showed me how to make my own bed. Hmmmmm and yes wouldn't that go over well today. I remember it was fun and I could help them make the other beds. Such freedom haha. Our beds had what mum called a "Bolster" it was a pillow the width of the bed and the two top pillows would rest against it. You don't see those anymore. The sheets would be washed and ironed before going back on the bed.
When I was pregnant for the first time, they had me sleep on a hard horsehair mattress that lay on top of planks of wood to keep my back in shape. I am sure that a lot of those old fashioned ideas actually did some good.
Well anyway...........far cry from the pretty bedrooms we can have these days and the woman's work is certainly a lot easier. All I do is straighten the bottom sheets, pull the others up and make sure the bottom is still tucked in. Simple.
1 comment:
Oh how I remember those hospital corners my mum taught me how to do.
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