Hand-me-downs

[TheAngryPixie]

Although it isn't actually said, I wouldn't be surprised if the girls in the Faraway Tree wear hand-me-downs because the family is noted in the books as being pretty poor.

A bit of a rare instance in a Blyton book of a poor family as the stars.

[Katharine]

Fascinating topic. I can't recall any examples other than those already mentioned, and agree that maybe it was accepted as such a normal way of life that it wasn't really mentioned.

Most of the school girl type books I read from the 1930s - 50s seem to feature the girls mostly wearing a school tunic or a Girl Guide uniform, even at weekends which suggests that ordinary clothes were in short supply, even for those girls whose families could afford tennis courts and servants!

As a child, I rarely had any clothes bought for me new. I think my grandmother gave me a lovely 'best' dress when I was about 8, and the next time I had anything new was from C & A when I was a teenager. 'Play' clothes were handed down from various relatives (or friends of friends) and anything new was hand-made by my mother. Although we weren't in the same sort of class as the FF, FFO etc.

[Courtenay]

Although it isn't actually said, I wouldn't be surprised if the girls in the Faraway Tree wear hand-me-downs because the family is noted in the books as being pretty poor.

A bit of a rare instance in a Blyton book of a poor family as the stars.

Not totally — the Brown family in the Galliano's Circus books are poor at the start, with Jimmy's father out of work. He (Mr Brown) is a handyman, so definitely not your average middle (if not upper middle) class Blyton family. And of course, the circus folk in general don't have huge amounts of money and most of them have had little or no academic education — Jimmy soon finds he's unusual among them in being able to read and write, and he and his mother soon start working on teaching young Lotta. The circus people are portrayed as often untidy and sometimes dirty, but Enid's emphasis is always on their good-heartedness and honesty and solid work ethic and kindness to animals — and those who don't have those qualities usually don't last long in Galliano's Circus.

But this is getting off the topic of hand-me-downs, since Jimmy and Lotta, both being "only" children, aren't portrayed as either inheriting an older sibling's clothes or passing them on to a younger one! (As the youngest in my own family, incidentally, I grew up knowing a lot about hand-me-downs — all through my primary school years, it felt like nearly everything I wore had previously belonged to my sister or to one or other of our two closest girl cousins. It was always exciting whenever I was given something brand-new to wear!!)

[Judith Crabb]

I didn't experience hand-me-downs as I was an only child and my slightly older cousins were boys. Most of my clothes were made by my mother and an aunt had a knitting machine and I have never been able to give away the dress she knitted me when I was a teenager. Like Katharine I remember a 'special' dress, this one purchased from a department store. I can still feel the round little pearly buttons down the front. With great pride I wore it to Sunday School, and to my horror another child had on the identical style dress. Great amusement all round. 'Twins' said everyone. I took (read: pretended to take) it all in good form, but flatly refused to wear the dress again to Sunday School and perhaps I can attribute my (almost) complete lack of interest in new clothes and what I wear to that experience. Back to Blyton - it seems that hand-me downs do not feature in her work. Unlike Noel Streatfeild, who even wrote a book called 'Party Frock' connected with war austerities, Enid Blyton does not appear to be much interested in fashion. Am I right?

[Fiona1986]

I didn't have any hand-me-down clothes as I was the older sister, but my sister definitely got things that had been mine. I was only ever bothered if it was something we'd had at the same time (we didn't often do matching but sometimes we would have the same jumper or dress) and then I'd grow out of mine and my sister would get it, so she'd have twice as long wearing it!

I did have a lot of hand me down toys, though. I had older cousins (too old to pass on clothes) so inherited various bits of Lego and dolls from them, but I was also given some of their Sindy things as gift from my parents. One birthday I got the Sindy boutique (https://www.reemandansie.com/auction/lo ... t=517&sd=1) and Barbie travel agent office (https://images.app.goo.gl/creLtREUHPLY7UCn7) from my parents. They weren't boxed of course but I loved them anyway and knew that they had been my cousins' first.

[Irene Malory Towers]

Again similar to the shower/bath business I had loads of hand me downs. I was the youngest of 3 and the youngest of all my cousins. I didn't mind. But I also got new clothes as well. Clothes were a lot more expensive than they are now, and it was just accepted as part of life. I can afford new clothes for me now but occasionally I don't mind a forage into a charity shop and see what bargains I can pick up, plus I am helping a good cause as well.