Remembering life in the 60s as a child...

My elastic garters were carefully hand-stitched together at the open end of the elastic by my great-aunt, who must have made dozens of them for us during our childhood, as they were never allowed to become too tight as we grew, or too slack when the elastic stretched.

Mine were stitched with blue embroidery thread, my sister's with green so we could instantly see whose garters were which.

My bugbear were my grandmothers' production of hand-knitted pure wool vests - to be worn next to the skin with a bought cotton vest on top. We itched and scratched all winter, but didn't dare reverse the order the vests were put on in.

I was frankly envious of the flowered, frilled and beribboned Sunday hats other girls had. My mother could not see one without muttering "ridiculous" under her breath. In her view any old hat or head-scarf would do, on weekdays or on Sundays.

I had forgotten about garters. They really were the devil's work. They had to be tight enough to dig into your legs or your socks fell down.

I remember balaclava helmets being popular winter wear at infant and junior school, for both boys and girls. They kept your ears warm but were quite unflattering. Presumably that was why nobody wore them at high school.

My sisters and I rushing to stick mum's green shield stamps in her book after shopping. We got so excited to see if a book was nearly filled!

Does anyone remember as we got older in our teens those plastic type long socks that you wore with shoes on so they looked like a pair of white/black boots?

mrsgreenfingers56

My sisters and I rushing to stick mum's green shield stamps in her book after shopping. We got so excited to see if a book was nearly filled!

Does anyone remember as we got older in our teens those plastic type long socks that you wore with shoes on so they looked like a pair of white/black boots?

yes my friend had a pair of those - sock boots i think we called them. my lgs were too short. i think they were fashionable again a few years ago.

Born in South Africa, in a small town where everyone knew everyone else. We were free to go in and out of the house, no locked doors then. Played with kids in the neighbourhood, at the sailing club, or spent school holidays at the seaside. Hated wearing my school choes and socks in my free time. Always had to wear a skirt or a dress. Got my first pair of trousers when I was 13. Surrounded by mountains that were often capped with snow in the winter, we had a lovely carefree childhood. Birthday parties were plain and simple, one cake and some cold drinks in the bottles. Lots of games, pots and pans, treasure hunt, open gates. No little "take home gifts", but everyone had a lovely time.

I was born in 1962, but very few of the things that most of you remember feature in my own memories of that decade.

I never had garters to keep my socks up, had never even heard of a liberty bodice until I joined Gransnet, and don't even remember poppit beads.

I do, however, remember my grandma's big tin of buttons, and her candlestick beadspreads. If I stayed the night there, the big double bed (that my mum had shared with her sister while growing up) always had to be well aired in winter before I could use it.

I remember Daleks- my big brother received a battery operated one for Christmas one year, along with meccano. I remember being given soap on a rope most Christmasses as one of my gifts.
I read Jack and Jill, then Sandy and Diana, while my brother had Look and Learn plus various other comics at different times.

We all played out. The local woods and streams were our playground in the summer.

My favourite toy of the sixties was my roller skates, the sort that were adjustable in size and were worn over shoes.

Sundays often meant a run out in the car, with me squashed between my grandparents on the back seat. I always hated it. I've never liked car journeys.

didn't anyone have socks with inbuilt elastic in the 60s ? that's all i ever saw.
ditto above, although a bit older i too had never heard of a liberty bodice, sounds horrid, and like a contradiction in terms. why not wear a vest?
everyone's experience is their own, of course.

We wore liberty bodices with rubber buttons.

Vest and pants, then liberty bodice, then full length underskirt!

I had a lovely childhood growing up in the country, where the school holidays were spent roaming the fields and woods til dusk, coming home filthy ! I went to a small village school . the school dinners were scrumptious, you could smell them cooking all down the village street. Then came the 11 plus, and a big all-girls school which I hated, couldn't wait to leave.
I also had my first big crush on a boy, he was 20, and I was only 15, very unsuitable ! I took ages to get over him, my feelings were not reciprocated, but I still wonder if it could have been true love.
Quite a few things I remember were not so great, the houses were freezing, yes we had a outside toilet until the council laid main drains.
I also loved those popper beads, and still have Mum's button box .

I had knee socks which needed an elastic garter to keep them up. Mum made the garters but often they were too right and I had welts on my legs. Another thing was my neighbour used to take me to the library along with her kids. They took books home but I wasn't a member so I only looked at books in the library. I had no idea I could join!

never heard of popper beads either.
i remember in late 60s some kind of tisty thing with two lengths of different coloured plastic strings, they were woven into a short length. not sure if they were for a purpose, maybe a key chain, or just decorative/ something to do.
i also loved those stripey elastic belts with a sideways S as a clasp at the front.
i'd love one of those now, so useful, but can't find them.

i;ve found what i mean ! it's called scooby-do.
from wikipaedia,
Scoubidou (Craftlace, scoobies, lanyard or gimp) is material used in knotting craft. It originated in France, where it became a fad in the late 1950s and has remained popular. It is named after the 1958 song of the same name by the French singer Sacha Distel.

I fell in love with an older boy of 21 when I was 15. He was doing his PhD at London university. We have been married 55 years on Friday!

I remember Daleks- my big brother received a battery operated one for Christmas one year, along with meccano.

I was scared of Daleks. When I was in hospital having my tonsils out one of the boys had a Dalek outfit, he woke me up and seeing this Dalek I screamed, got in trouble with the nurse the boy disappeared but bumped into Matron lol. End of Dalek outfit.

lindiann

I remember Daleks- my big brother received a battery operated one for Christmas one year, along with meccano.

I was scared of Daleks. When I was in hospital having my tonsils out one of the boys had a Dalek outfit, he woke me up and seeing this Dalek I screamed, got in trouble with the nurse the boy disappeared but bumped into Matron lol. End of Dalek outfit.

I can remember hiding behind the sofa when Dr Who was on, when I was about four. I had nightmares about them for years!

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202208/medium-261459-1432c93c-40bc-41fd-8c5d-e0c585eec841.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202208/medium-658724-512be9bd-0bae-4488-a669-55d7d8f505b6.jpeg

Also always having Clark's sandals with a diamond cut out pattern in the summer

Were they Joyance by any chance, GrannyRebel17?
We used to get these every flippin' summer, alternating red one year, blue the next!

I was born on Scotland in 1941. I remember gas masks ( especially the peculiar smell if you had to put it on. ) I played out on the street around the air raid shelter. Skipping ropes, peevers, but my favourite was my whip and perrie, with chalk designs on the top. Gas lamps on the streets and I had to go home when the gas lighter man came round. Oh I forgot the sound of air raid sirens and watching planes go over. My mum and dad had cousins who were pilots, so mum and I used to go outside to the garden and wave to planes that we heard flying over. We lived only a few miles from Glasgow.

Born in 1947 some of my memories from the fifties are similar to yours of the sixties. My memories of the early sixties:

Sitting at the kitchen table doing homework when the news came on the radio of Kennedy's assassination

The Archers every evening

Listening to Childrens' Favourites on Saturday mornings and Two Way Family Favourites on Sundays, waiting for the few pop songs that were played

Getting a record player for my 11th birthday and passing the 11 plus. I bought 3 singles.

When I was about 16 I couldn't go on a school trip because of German measles. My dad bought me a transistor radio with the refund and I remember listening to Radio Caroline.

Laying on the floor listening to Saturday Night Theatre. 1 1/2 hour long dramas. Sometimes falling asleep if the fire was on.

I grew up in the 40s so my memories are different. I won’t list them here except for one. Wearing wellies with short socks. The socks always worked themselves into a ball in the toe of the wellies and we always had a chapped ring around our calves where the top inside of the wellies got wet and rubbed against our legs. Painful.

I specially remember my Clark’s sandals from the late 1950s. Usually they were tan, but I remember a beloved pair that were cherry red. We bought special red shoe cream to polish them with. They probably sparked my love of nice shoes which remains to this day.

I was having lunch with my youngest daughter (38 years old) a few months ago and we got talking about this. She told me I ought to write my life story so she and her sister could read it.

I am now up to page 36 and approaching the most recent couple of years. The first ten pages cover the 50s and 60s and I have been surprised how much I remember.

I think (hope) that my daughter will find it interesting.

I was born in 66, and in winter my Mum put her old fur coat on my bed, as we didn't have blankets or heating. She always put it skin side down which I hated, so waited until she tucked me in so I could flip it to the comforting furry side...Dreadful thought now. It was so cold the inside of the windows iced up with marvelous patterns too.

Sunday tea could be tinned salmon, but with lots of pieces of bones in, which I hated, and homemade cake. She wouldn't often buy shop cakes as it had to go round six and they were tiny. My older brother worked for Kraft headquarters for a while and they had a staff shop. He'd buy 5kg blocks of cheddar. I'm sure it really helped Mum's housekeeping, but I grew to hate cheese as every day school lunch was a cheese sandwich...from aged 9-16. I asked for tomato sandwiches instead, but Mum said I needed the cheese for protein...so many ended up in the school bin uneaten as I got to the point of preferring hunger to cheese ?

AussieGran59

Yammy, you mentioned gammon. My friend served this when we stayed with her in Cornwall. Loved it but can’t seem to get it in Australia. Nicest meat I ever tasted. I miss so many foods only available in the UK.

But you have proper joints of corned beef which have to be cooked!
I've never seen them in the UK, our corned beef is completely different.

I too loved all the freedom. I left the house on my bike with friends on theirs and we would be gone all day. We would pull some rhubarb and take a poke (paper bag) with some sugar in.
I remember the beads, Clark’s sandals, jam sandwiches, Liberty bodices, garters, chilblains - so painful. Izal hard toilet paper at our house and some of my friends had squares of newspaper hanging in their toilet. Going to pictures on sat mornings. No telephone, no car, no fridge, one coal fire. Having huge games of rounders, hide and seek. Brilliant time!