To think housecoats were a great idea?

[Chickenagain]

Had a massive amount of hoovering and floor washing to do this morning as guests were booked for the weekend. Also beds to make up and final polishing.

Knowing how hot & sweaty I was going to get, I did it in my dressing gown as there was no point showering & getting dressed as I would need another shower.

I was hoovering the balcony (as you do) and hoping no-one accidentally got an eyeful..... then it occurred to me - housecoats!!

That way, you would look decent if you needed to open the front door or pop out to the bins etc

I'm imagining something not too fussy, with big pockets for 'bits' .

Have I liost the bloody plot?

I've done factory and hotel work in Germany, and the normal outfit ( 20 ish yrs ago) was a thing called a kittel (or something like that!!). They were cotton wrap dress type things that tied around the middle. On cold days you could pile layers of clothes underneath and in really hot weather just undies. Very quick to change in and out of, and kept anything underneath clean.

MrsJayy they are indeed a thing of splendour, I can feel the palpable seething of envy from my NDNs as I wander round the garden in them

I'd best not hang them on the line just in case

I thought a housecoat and a dressing gown were the same thing.

My grandma wore either a gingham overall, or a gingham tabard to do her cleaning.

turnitup you may be right. My gran did call her coat as housecoat but it was more like a pinny.

I actually want to like this. I love the idea of a retro full pleated skirted, pockets, fitted top denim number. But... I nice quickly when I'm cleaning, I sweat like it's exercise. I don't need special clothes for this. I think those aprons were for keeping laundry to a minimum and for people who have to clean in their nicer clothes.

I love aprons and have different ones for various things ... one for cooking as I'm very messy, one for cleaning, one for painting (as in art), and one for sewing - this one is a silky fabric that bits of thread don't stick to and keeps them off my clothes.

I bought a tabard as part of a Rocky Horror Halloween costume (dh and I dressed as the American Gothic couple at the church) and wear it all the time now. It's great for cooking so I don't splash my clothes and it doesn't untie itself like my apron often does.
Oddly in the pub (after the film) everyone was complimenting me on my tabard. I think people just like saying the word.

Like the Toast coat these are £££ but I think they could work as a modern day housecoat for when the postman calls before I've put my bra on.

My Nan was born in 1909, she wore a wraparound pinny a la Nora Batty. Don't recall the wrinkled stockings, though.

I grew up calling dressing gowns housecoats. But then when I went to uni down south everyone said “your what?” so I started calling them dressing gowns. But now I’m married to someone forrin who uses the term bathrobe, so I’ve ended up saying that. I miss housecoats. Saying it makes me feel cosy and nostalgic and I can hear my grandma saying it. I think I’m going to revert to saying housecoat.

We had a charwoman for a little while whenI was very young. She wore housecoats, frilly flowery things made of horrible material, buttons all down the front.

When I was a stage manager, and our last duty before going home after the show was to clean the best 3 dressing rooms and sweep the stage I used to put on a doctor's white gown which I'd found in the lost property box. It wasn't exactly white to start with and wasn't white at all by the time I'd finished with it!

I was going to mention the Toast versions. I've occasionally been tempted but then I remember that I don't sit looking bloody miserable by big windows and log baskets or stride over cacti-strewn landscapes enough to warrant one.

I just clean in a pair of leggings and a vest. Throw on a hoody or cardigan if I need to go outside. I do also have a pinny for when I'm cooking/cleaning with my nice clothes on.

I don't understand how anyone can do anything in a housecoat/dressing gown other than sit down with a brew and get Cosy.

Nora Batty's is a crossover - for me, a housecoat has sleeves. When I was at primary school, one of the infant (Y1 and 2 - reception hadn't been invented back then ) teachers wore a kind of housecoat for work - v. practical for working with young children and, I think, standard workwear for the time she would have started teaching.

I’ve wanted a proper old fashioned house pat for ^years! Could never find one.
I’ve made my piece with it though and this Joules apron is a decent substitute. Good deep pockets, excellent coverage, retro vibe.

My English Grandma wore a pinny like Nora Batty - a wrapover sleeveless one in soft faded floral cotton with bias binding edges. Normal unfancy clothes underneath.

My Scots Gran wore a house coat like Mrs Doyle - nylon with sleeves and pockets. The house coat was worn over undies and then the decent outer layer replaced it after housework was done. Must have been horribly sweaty.

I haven't read enough to see if any Russian or Central European posters have mentioned the widespread wearing of housecoats in their countries. A marvellous array.

i have 'the phobia', even reading this thread is making me feel a bit ill

Gym/workout clothes for cleaning the house in the situation you describe

In the 70's my mother used to sew her own pinnies - like an apron but just the bottom half that tied behind. They had large pockets at the front for her fags and random crumbs.They always had an unusual smell too.

And when going out she would wear her sheepskin coat and head-square (like the Queen).

I wear vintage 40s housecoats at home. Nipped in at the waist, silk or embroidered... have even received impromptu guests in them because they are so gorgeous. Would thoroughly recommend.

I get mine from vintage shops!

They're like dressing gowns made out of sturdy cotton with buttons all the way down.

I wear over my clothes. Like an all-over apron. Great when my kids gave chocolatey hugs as I was about to leave for the office!!!

I like that Joules apron !

Other reasons not to put on gym kit is the dog thinks she's going for a walk and I keep tripping over her, I'm then looking decent enough to nip out to shops which eats into the schedule and yoga pants don't have pockets......

My mum and Nanna had one of these. My mums was very much like the one Mrs Doyle wears but blue check. Whilst I don’t have a housecoat or apron I do have various “cleaning clothes” certain t shirts and leggings that have been downgraded and I don’t care if they get bleach on them. In a move my Mum or Nanna never did, my cleaning outfit includes rubber gloves. It is purely vanity as I get gel nails done every 2 weeks and means I can happily spray, wipe and get in all the nooks and crannies without worry.

Just predicting that in 20 years my DD will be on Mumsnet or whatever the current equivalent is, commenting on how her mum used to wear black rubber gloves to clean and looked like a Plumber 🤣🤣