If Mumsnet existed in the 1950s, what would be posted about?

[supersun23]

I was just wondering this....

Can you find some nice groups to join locally - maybe the Mother's Union, or I'm sure the vicar's wife will be able to find you something useful to do. There's pleasure in doing your duty, it's not all about fun you know.

What interests does your husband have? Do they need women to make teas or clean stuff for them?

If not, you need to make sure you are still on Town Gas - electricity or the new fangled natural gas won't kill you and will play havoc with your perm.

This is a sensitive subject but I don't know who else to turn to.

I don't want a baby yet but my husband is very keen. My Auntie says to use the withdrawal method as that stops babies being made.

I suppose it makes sense as I can see that withdrawing to the spare bedroom might work but I'm worried it would make my DH angry. He likes to sleep in the same bed as me, and gets up to all sorts which he seems to like but men are different to ladies aren't they.

I'm not sure what to do for the best.

My boyfriend has proposed but I really enjoy my job and don't want to leave it what should I do?

My husband hits me and I don't know what to do. My parents won't have me back home and say I have to try not to provoke him.

My husband says now we are married he is entitled to sex ...it is his conjugal right ...whether I want to or not is this true?

I am expecting my first baby and; don't know how it will be born. Xxx an you tell me on I really can't ask my mother. (This last was actually true for my mother in 1952)

The unfairness of rationing.

Why has no-one seen Mr Churchill for a while? (he had a stroke whilst in office in either 1952 or 1953).

Princess Margaret and Group Captain Townsend relationship.

I am unmarried and pregnant. The father is prepared to face up to his responsibilities. We don't love each other ...do I have to get married?

I'm unmarried at 25. Am I now on the shelf?

I was seeing a GI (his name was Hank) during the war whilst my DH was away fighting in North Africa. After Hank was shipped off to Italy I discovered I was pregnant. My DH, who thankfully returned in one piece, said he would accept the baby and raise it as his own. We named him Terence and he is now 8. Three years later I fell pregnant by my DH and we now have a girl called Julie. The thing is, my DH really treats the children very differently. Julie can do no wrong but Terence often gets the strap, especially if DH has been drinking. Do you think this is just because he is a boy or because DH isn't his real father? It hurts me so much to see my little boy treated this way but I can't leave, we've got nowhere to go.

How can I update my victorian home. We can't afford to move to a new build in the suburbs but I can't live with the old fire place and old fashioned features any longer. My husband is getting into the DIY fad ,so anything he can do himself?

Mother-in-law’s, - even more so than now.

Domestic friction about the house not being en pointe and dinner on the table with small children and babies in the house.

“Embarrassing” ailments.

Useless husbands and husbands spending money on hobbies and drink rather than family.

Unmarried adult children sleeping together pregnancy out of wedlock.

How to manage friction between DH and teenage daughter who is going out and wants boyfriends and makeup etc.

@Doingmybest12 has your husband considering your old-fashioned victorian doors with some nice, modern plywood. And some Lino on the old floor tiles. (Who wants THOSE monsters on display?! 😂) It’s much easier to clean.

My husband keeps his wage packet every week and just hands me £4 to feed us all - we have two boys who are always hungry - and pay for everything we need to run the household. I just can't manage on that but if I ask him for more he shouts at me and goes off to the pub, where he drinks with his mates nearly every night. What can I do?
(This was my MIL's life in the 1950s)

i am trying to get my parquet nicely polished ready for my mil visit tomorrow i also wonder if someone could suggest a nice rug to pop on it after as a finishing touch? I dont have time to make one
I am going into a nursing home soon to have a baby what is an acceptable colour for bed jackets? i want to look nice but not too showy or dowdy I want to look my best and of course I shall be in bed for 2 weeks so want to look my best for my husband when he visits me

Thanks to Call the Midwife for reminding us how bleak life was for many women in the 50s and 60s.

Honestly, your Mother's advice is out of date. You can wash your hair during rag days as long as you do it lying down in the bath.

My Auntie told me the reason they used to say that you shouldn't is that when you hang your head over the sink to rinse your hair with jugs of water, all the blood rushes to your head so doesn't come out the other end like it's supposed to.

Lying flat in the bath avoids that problem so you are fine to wash your hair that way.

@Craftyroom love your post

@Uselessatbeingaperson fuck me that's dark 😂😂

I think this is a really good question and would be really interested in the serious answers. I think it would be mostly about domestic matters, the things that appeared in woman’s magazines.
I was so naive when I got married, I had the sort of mother that did not think I needed to know about periods until they happen. When they did she said I was not to talk about it with my dad and brother, as if.

There was a magazine you could write about and get a confidential reply,. I wrote and told them how bad I felt because I was going into marriage in ignorance. I gave my address at work and they sent me a leaflet on contraception. The one thing that still sticks in my mind that at 19 I learned that a man’s ‘thing’ was called a penis. I told my friend and she laughed and said it’s not pronounced pen is.

My DH has fondled my tummy button a lot since we got married and I'm still not expecting. I keep wondering why it's not working but I've no one to ask so I thought I'd ask here as you are all Mums so it must have worked for you.

Warning, this might gross some people out.

Another thing I remember about periods is the disposing of towels.. We had no bins in the bed rooms. The towels were wrapped in newspaper and taken through the house to the dustbin outside. I tried to do this has surreptitiously as possible but my brother saw me and demanded to know what I was hiding. An argument ensued and my mum came out into the hall she went mad at me for not being more discreet.

After that I used to hide them in my bag and dispose of them in the street bins.

‘Last weekend, DH & I took a day trip to see Henry Moore’s bronze sculpture ‘Family Group’ in Stevenage, which was finished two years ago, in 1949. I was so overcome with emotion at. seeing this simple yet powerful depiction of the nuclear family, I started screaming and crying. DH is now refusing to take me anywhere, as I have behaved similarly in the past and embarrassed him. He promised to take me on a romantic trip to Paris on the Orient Express to visit the Louvre, but says he cannot take the risk of further humiliation. He says this is bound to happen when women take a fancy to educating themselves about culture , when they should be at home thinking about fluffy kittens and knitting’

That's sad, @Flossiecotton . I remember similar fear and humiliation.

I’ve just read that I should line all my drawers with fresh paper every week! I’ve been married for 6 months and have never done this! Am I a disgusting slattern? Will my dh tell Mil? 😱

I just caught teenage DS playing with his private parts. Does he need to visit an optician, as I am now worried about his eyesight?

My Mum bought me my first stays for my 21st birthday. I hate them because they are so stiff and uncomfortable and make me feel fat as they still only give me a 24 inch waist.

My friend doesn't seem to mind them and gets to a 22 inch waist but I want to be comfortable. She says it's worth a bit of discomfort for the perfect figure, and the men at the dance hall do seem to like her more than they like me.

AIBU ?