We all ridicule our mothers for putting plastic over everything in sight. Who among us doesn't have a memory of a living room virtually encased in the stuff? It kept the furniture looking brand-new for pretty much forever, but only because our little-kid grubby hands never actually touched the fabric. And I won't even begin to talk about what it did to the back of our shorts-clad legs on a summer's day. All together now: ew.
The other night, I noticed some water on the table - plastic-over-embroidered-tablecloth, of course - and decided to have some middle-of-the-meal macro fun before wiping it up. Needless to say, my extended family now has yet another reason to look at me funny. Oh well.
Your turn: Was your parental or grandparental living room wrapped in plastic? Do tell.
No, but parts of our living room are now, believe it or not as a prevention against the cat destroying the furniture!
ReplyDeleteNo...Neither of Grandmothers or my mother or my father EVER encased the furniture in plastic! (Thank You Very Much LOL).
ReplyDeleteI honestly never understood this phenomenom...I mean I get WHY people thought they needed to do this...but I just never got the actual doing of it for years and years...even after there was no need to Child Proof anymore...What did people do before Plastic was invented?? Lived with whatever happened and in the homes I grew up in, that's how it was. No Plastic, ever.
Love that picture Carmi.
Nope, but I do remember a horsehair couch that also did strange things to the backs of bare legs!
ReplyDeleteMine, thank God, was not. We did have lace doilies all over the chair arms and head rests, though. Mr. Kenju's aunt and uncle had a house like you describe. Nearly everything was encased in plastic slipcovers (custom-made and a source of great pride). They ever left the cellophane on lamp shades. You would have loved it, Carmi...LOL
ReplyDeleteMy mother's living romm was totally wrapped in plastic. I too remember sticking to it in the summer heat. It's not one of those fond childhood memories.
ReplyDeleteWas that just a Northern thing? I don't ever remember plastic on any furniture in anyone's house that I knew. Maybe in the South it would have just been cruel to have plastic on furniture with our temps?
ReplyDeleteMy family never did the plastic covered thing, but perhaps they should have. I remember this one inciden involving orange jello...
ReplyDeleteLets just say that you shouldn't mix hot liquids by shaking them in sealed plastic containers, and leave it at that.
No plastic, but strict rules about when the furniture could be sat upon. As in: not after playing outside, never with shoes on, not when sweaty or just back from the beach. Like the carpets, which were never walked on with shoes, the furniture was too expensive for my folks to consider replacing. Everything in our home was treated with the utmost care.
ReplyDeleteAnd that's not a bad way to be, from what I've seen of more "modern" homes and child-rearing techniques.
No, my family didn't do the plastic thing, mainly because no one had any furniture they liked enough to bother to protect. My mother does get a little anxious now when my kids are in her living room, but not enough to get the plastic out.
ReplyDeleteCarmi: This brought a smile to my face as I recalled my late father having the seats of our family car covered with plastic. "EWW!" is right! Further, I will never own another car with Leather seats. I had a date once who told me she "left skin" on Leather seats. Ouch!
ReplyDeleteMy mother's dining room table had a table pad, a linen table cloth, a sheet of plastic, and then, on top of all that, we put the placemats. I'm not sure I've ever seen her table naked.
ReplyDeleteNope, this was always something that my family ridiculed. We had a living room and dining room growing up that children weren't allowed in without an adult, and that seemed to save the good furniture.
ReplyDeleteHaha, I just wanted to add that my husbands family is Chinese and they keep plastic on EVERYTHING! Including remotes, couches mattresses, dishwashers, EVERYTHING! haha
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