All I Wanted Was a Nightgown

So why are the clothes in the retail stores made for age 25 and under women.  Isn't my money as good as theirs?  Why can't they sell clothing that we grannies would be comfortable wearing!

Now that the weather has cooled somewhat and fall is just around the corner, summer clothing is on sale.  All I wanted were a couple of thin, cotton nightgowns.  I suffered through about two weeks of heat and no air conditioning recently.  I own winter sleepwear.  I own a t-shirt style nightshirt that was uncomfortably hot, even with a fan going in my bedroom.  I don't own any thin cotton sleepwear.  So I went to buy some.  I may not use them any more this year, but I surely will next summer, and I wanted to take advantage of the sales.

I don't want t-shirts with matching pants.  I don't want t-shirt style nightshirts in purple and orange stripes.  I don't want some slinky lacy evening gown looking thing to sleep in.  I am neither slinky nor am I the lacy type.  I could care less about looking fashionable when I retire for the night.  I have nobody to impress with my fashion sense at bedtime.  It is just me and sometimes the cat in my bed.  So why should I have to make a fashion statement to impress the cat!

In my frustration with the retail industry that caters to the tastes of the young, I dug around in my closet and found the bin where I keep my fabric stash and sewing supplies.  Found a pattern for sleepwear.  Dug out some fabric that I bought a long time ago for a purpose long since forgotten.  Cut out a couple of simple night gowns.  Spent a day at my sewing machine.  I now have what I couldn't find in the stores.  For less money, even if they had what I wanted.

I had forgotten about the benefits of home sewing.  You get a garment that fits, that is well made and doesn't fall apart the second time it is washed.  You don't have to waste time shopping. (I hate shopping.  I have never understood women who treat shopping as a form of recreation.)  You can get the colors and patterns you like in the fabric as opposed to whatever dreadful choices are on the racks at the stores.  And if you watch for fabric and pattern sales, home sewn clothing costs far less than buying ready made.

I learned to sew well over 50 years ago.  There was a time when I sewed most of my own clothing as well as much of my children's.  I think I stopped while I was still in the working world, for time was at a premium.  Now I have all the time in the world.  I could use some new shirts and slacks for winter.  And a fall jacket.  Think I will go now and peruse the fabric store sale ads.