Baby clothes

Think of the different way we dress babies today. Brightly coloured baby clothes, stretchy baby gros, miniature adult outfits. The layettes of my childhood, matinee coats in pale primrose, pink, white and baby blue are no longer fashionable. We have children's clothes in the collection at the Old House Museum, including some lovely white cotton nighties, petticoats and christening robes. In cotton or fine wool, these must have been difficult to wash and keep clean. All babies wore the same clothes, passed on from brother to sister. This was practical, as you never knew which you were going to get! Families weren't planned,and sadly infant mortality rates meant some children didn't survive for many months. What is surprising is that boys and girls continued to wear dresses into toddlerhood . The boys often kept their long hair too. There are theories about this. There were superstitions around disguising boys as girls so they wouldn't be stolen away by the little people. It was of course very practical. Boys didn't have to struggle with trousers and button flies. One style fitted all, hand me downs were more than versatile. If you look at Victorian family photographs you may see the proof of this. In some areas it was believed that a string of coral beads kept diptheria and throat infections, which could be fatal, at bay. So next time you wonder why there are no photographs of the boys in the family, take a closer look at the children. Of course, once boys were ' breeched' and had their hair cut, they looked like little men. This occasion was often marked by a studio portrait. Do you remember the days when boys wore shorts until secondary school? It doesn't seem so long ago!