One Rose or Two part 2

So where did those corsages go? Pearla, my youngest DIL thinks only at prom do girls get one these days. She then happened to say that since she went stag to her prom she didn't have one then either. I thought that was kind of sad. Still at least she went. When I was in high school it would have been social suicide to go to prom alone.

Oh well, back to nostalgia.

My very first corsage from a boy ,was given to me by Tommy L. He was a year ahead of me in school-an important distinction for a sophomore. He was taking me to the Children of Mary Valentine dance at St. Joe's in North Adams. I had a wonderful white wool dress with red piping. I wore red high heels and, of course, my bag matched. The red rose corsage, very similar to the one pictured here, was absolutely perfect.When he gave it to me it became the symbol of an unforgettable evening. While dancing, Tommy asked me to go steady. I had been one of those girls who didn't think going steady was such a good idea. But then no one had ever asked me before (probably because this was my first real dress up date).

Later, when he took me home he leaned over and kissed me, very gently. I was ecstatic. Two weeks before my birthday, he had saved me from becoming one of those poor girls who became "Sweet Sixteen and Never Been Kissed". There I was, falling in love(with falling in love) on the spot when my dad opened the front door. He turned on the porch light and rather dryly asked Tom how long he planned on leaning on the doorbell!

Three weeks , one movie, and one bowling date later, Tom told me, while we were putting out the hymnals in the choir loft, it probably wasn't a good idea to go steady after all. Stunned I asked him "Why not?" Imagine my chagrin when he quite matter of factly replied that since he was going into the seminary in September, to become a Catholic priest, he probably shouldn't have a steady girlfriend.

Side note: In my youth I apparently inspired many men to seek a higher calling. I have on my dance card, a Catholic priest, an Episcopalian priest, a Methodist minister and a Bhuddist Monk! (a great Chinese guy who we met and hung out with for 2 weeks in Bancroft Ont.) All but Eddie, the monk, gave me at least one corsage of every imaginable flower except my favorite yellow roses. I told Peggy, while we were still in high school that if any guy finally gave me yellow roses I'd marry him!

So Pearla also said she thinks no one wears corsages anymore. Now, far be it for me to be one of those mothers-in-law everyone hears about but I think she's wrong. I've been browsing fashion magazines a lot lately looking for ideas for the scarves and accessories I crochet. I see corsages all over the place. While many are made of fabric or feathers or even leather, some of them look exactly like the ones I wore so happily 40 years ago.

In fact, one Christmas crafts magazine this past year
featured the comeback of Christmas corsages. Funnily enough the very first craft I ever made money at was making Christmas and easter corsages which I sold through my Mom's little rock/gift shop and to friends. They looked like these. In fact, I'm sure the green one is one I made. Hmm, maybe I shouldn't say that. It was on an antiques site

The only difference in the corsages now is that they are usually called flower pins and they don't always cause boys to blush when they pin them on. Maybe that's because of where girls wear them.

So I'm getting into the act and II've been making corsages and pinning them to hats made from a 1929 pattern now for about a year. Hopefully, a whole new generation will think they are neat, groovy, cool, rad, awesome, bad, bitchin, or ...Oh I got it... RETRO! Maybe I'll make one for Pearla. Yeah I think I will.

See ya down the road,
Yarntangler
PS I finally got that yellow rose corsage about a year before Jim asked me to marry him. He had no idea what he was getting himself into and he's never said if his mother picked it out. If she did... I got another one two years later as part of my bridal bouquet and wore it in triumph when we left on our honeymoon.