Washington Post article about the New Domesticity

[Deleted05]

I sew. I sew PANTS. :twisted:

I also quilt, crochet (mostly cat beds), and love doing applique work, needlepoint, and embroidery. I make hooked and braided rugs from old clothes. I can't seem to buy a garment without modifying it somehow, and I think I'm going to teach myself tailoring this year because I want a man-styled suit that, when worn, would strike fear in any fundie patriarch's heart. :lol:

I would kill to learn how to do this stuff. It just all seems so intimidating.

[Jessica]

I love to knit, sew, crochet, cook, bake, I would LOVE to be able to garden but I seem to have a black thumb. I'm going to keep trying. Maybe next year I'll have some success. I'd like to be able to can (I even bought a pressure canner!). If things hadn't fallen through, we were going to buy a house with a third of an acre yard and I was going to plant a massive garden plus keep about 10-15 chickens and 2 goats (for the milk so I could do homemade goatmilk soap).

[leena_noor]

I loved this article. Where I grew up, not a lot of people were into the fiber arts, but my mom and aunts are really talented. Let's see...

-I sew (better at handsewing ironically enough, need more practice on a machine. I've been sewing for as long as I can remember though)

-Crochet like a demon. I'm not that good, but I make up for it with perfecting something and making a lot of it.

-bake and cook pretty damn well.

-DONT WORK...yeah, I'm a stay at home wife without kids--isn't that fundie fodder?

-Can can

-frequently make things like pie crust and tortillas from scratch.

-Can can jam and have a freezer full of it.

-Wished I lived on a farm instead of outside of Baltimore.

-Go visit my friend's farm instead for fresh eggs. We helped raise some chicks too.

-know too much about midwifery for someone that doesn't have kids.

However...I'm liberal, loud, not submissive, like to cuss, have loud sex, occasionally drink and have a well earned degree from an ebil Catholic university (that was ironically all women...).

I disagree with the authors last statements about this becoming the obligation of her grandchildren. We have a choice b/c it is cheaper now to buy things than to make them. Unless the global economy comes crashing down and we are the only people LEFT, and spinning and such is our only option, then that won't happen. However, we are creating less of a demand for crap, and more a demand for higher quality food and clothing at affordable prices. I think that we are HELPING the economy. I'm in my 20's, and my grandmothers generation worked their asses off holding down a full time job and raising kids. They didn't think of the chemicals that their kids played in and my mom's generation is sick b/c of it. We, at least I do, have health issues resulting from that and I will do anything to prevent my child from going through the same thing. I think this is about learning from the past, and creating a better future, NOT repeating history.

[NurseNell]

i'm in a knitting group where every single woman considers herself a feminist (we have two men as well). we talk about lots of things... from sex to politics, make up to economics.

there is a whole knitting movement (and of course the other domestic arts) that basically says that just because something is traditionally considered "women's work" doesn't mean it holds any less value than "men's work." knitting, crocheting, scrap booking, gardening are all creative pursuits that are enjoyed independent of what kind of degrees your hold or how you choose to live your life.

fundies seem to view "women's work" as exclusive privilege of the oppressed walking uteruses. i always think its funny, because most of us could beat most of them when it comes to crafts and funny enough we all found time for careers as well ;)

I thought I read somewhere that the largest number of new knitters was in the male college population. Anyone remember Roosevelt Grier, the massive sized NFL football player, who used to knit? I don't know any men who knit but I know men who scrapbook. And when I owned a house two of my neighbors were stay at home Dads. One was white and grew up upper middle class. The other was African American and grew up in foster care. The white Dad had a wife who made significantly more money and he loved being a stay at home Dad. The African American also had a wife who made more money but she really didn't enjoy parenting little kids whereas her husband loved it and wanted his kids to have the life he didn't. It worked for both of them. They each gardened also.

I've always knit, can't sew worth a damn, don't care to can, love to scrapbook, and have a nice balcony garden.

[Jessica]

I would kill to learn how to do this stuff. It just all seems so intimidating.

YouTube! Seriously, you can find tutorials for anything on there! From knitting to

to

and

[leena_noor]

The thing is, I actually know a lot of men who also do this type of thing. That would sure make fundie heads spin, but it's actually very practical. I've known a lot of older men who served in the military before women were allowed in. One man that I work with sews dresses for his granddaughter. He said that if a button came off or your socks got holes in the middle of nowhere, you couldn't wait until your tour was over to have a woman fix it for you.

I taught myself how to knit, and I do it because it's a mindless hobby I can do to occupy my hands while watching tv. But I also like the satisfaction of using something that I made myself. If I had more space, I'd love to get into woodworking. Furniture is just so expensive and I could use a bunch of bookcases. And even though knitting is "feminine" and woodworking is "masculine", I like them both for the exact same reason.

Funny you mention men in the military--my husband worked in a canvas shop in the navy and can sew (using a machine) soooo well. Handsewing...not so good. And...the other thing he is amazing at--FOLDING CLOTHS! He doesn't do it 99% of the time, but since he isn't bothered by my crap job, I'm okay with that.

I too crochet based on how many shows I can watch while doing it! Hulu and me have a great relationship. My dad taught me some woodworking and auto mechanics as a kid, but that isn't something I would claim to have any talent in.

[smores]

There was a NYT article about this not too long ago, too.

I sew, I'm actually a "modern quilter" (probably part of this new domesticity) and halfheartedly belong to a modern quilt guild. I can crochet and knit but I lose patience with it. I have grown my own vegetables in a really successful container garden and also in my parents' full size garden back before college. I also cook from scratch and bake from scratch.. I enjoy all these things! Next up is canning, which my MIL does and I need to learn.

[Black Aliss]

I garden, and preserve the harvest. I have a flock of poultry. I bake my own bread and cook all of our meals from scratch. I don't do much sewing for myself but I do sew a lot of feminine hygiene kits to send to schools in Kenya and Uganda, where girls without access to pads have to stay home from school for a week every month. I have a career. I am the very model of a modern librul feminist.

[NurseNell]

I garden, and preserve the harvest. I have a flock of poultry. I bake my own bread and cook all of our meals from scratch. I don't do much sewing for myself but I do sew a lot of feminine hygiene kits to send to schools in Kenya and Uganda, where girls without access to pads have to stay home from school for a week every month. I have a career. I am the very model of a modern librul feminist.

I would like to know more about the feminine hygiene kits project. That sounds like something I would like to do.

[apple1]

I would actually say that (back when) quilting and sewing groups were maybe the first circles of feminists.

It would be interesting to know how much groups of women getting together and doing "domestic" things actually influenced history. (We will probably never know, since most "history" books are rather male-centric...)

[theologygeek]

The writer of this article missed something very important. Many women of her mother and grandmother's generation "shucked off" (her words) these activities because they saw the injustices that were put upon women of previous generations. Women were expected to do these things. I love to cook, bake, garden and sew. But if I were expected to do those things, or have them dictated by a man, I would not enjoy it.

[Marian the Librarian]

Love this thread, thanks for the link! I've been a knitter, cross-stitcher, embroiderer since childhood. Love to make homemade jams and jellies, bread from scratch, love to cook in general. Knitting is the most meditative/spiritual thing for me - I think working repetitively with one's hands (or doing any manual labor, for that matter) quiets the mind.

In their usual solipsistic, Special Snowflake way, the fundies claim a monopoly on these "good ol' days" crafts and skills. My grandmother (who died at 96, and was knitting right up to the end) would laugh out loud!

[liltwinstar]

Interesting article, thanks!

I knit, bake, cook, and do embroidery - I also *can* sew but I'm not very good at it (I would need lots of practice to be good at it). For me, doing that stuff is empowering becuase I feel less dependent on processed/packaged food, clothes in the stores, etc. I can make things just the way I like them, not settle for whatever I can find in the store.

I also think that it's good (in general) for people to have something creative to do with their hands. So many of us spend hours and hours sitting in front of computers, and when that's *all* we do as a society, I think something is lost. The process of cooking or knitting or gardening or keeping chickens or whatever builds confidence and (at the risk of sounding like Lady Lydia) can calm the mind...I guess sort of like yoga does.

I do have to say that I'm very glad I don't *have* to do any of those things...I'm sure quilting or spinning and such loses a lot of its appeal when it's something that you *have* to do.

[Soldier of the One]

This is an awesome thread. How about a way to pool FJ resources, skills and tips on the 'Domestic Arts'?

[ilovetchotchkes]

Fundies love me, until they find out I'm a feminist-liberal-bisexual-prochoice-Jew.

I'm a SAHM- out of purely PURELY economic reasons, nothing to do with a "woman's duty"- had I been the breadwinner instead of my husband, he'd be "Mr Mom" right now and I'd be in a cube somewhere being emailed daily pictures of the squishy one instead of the other way around. Daycare in our area is like $900+ a month, and I was making like, NOTHING because what do you do with a BA in English? NOTHING, so me staying home makes more sense. I bring in some cash doing alterations and dog sitting which is what we use for "mad money". So its not like I do nothing to contribute to the household $$, but its not as steady as his full time job.

I garden and can/preserve my veggies- my toddler was eating me out of house and home in produce consumption so I thought I'd give it a shot! HUGE success! Ever seen a 20 month old inhale a pint of cherry tomatoes? well, it was happening EVERY DAY. I canned over 20 jars of spaghetti sauce, homemade catsup, pizza sauce... fabulous. And all out of 7 plants. I plan on doubling that next year. I found through gardening, I love it. I love the smell of the dirt, just yeah!

I sew- My brother taught me some basics and set me loose.

I knit - My grandmother taught me how as a kid to keep me out of her hair when I was at her house. I still keep it up, but not much anymore because I've got tendonitis and it KILLS man. I'm hoping to pick it up again.

I'm learning to spin wool- its been my dream to have a spinning wheel since I was a kid. I got my spinning wheel with my tax return this year. I haven't had much of a chance to play with it yet, as my toddler seems to think its a pirate ship wheel and tries to stick his fingers in where they shouldn't be when I'm working.

Basically, my mother teases me, that all my old fashioned "domestic" habits are because I want to be Laura Ingalls Wilder or Tasha Tudor when I grow up.

But then... they get freaked out when I post stuff about women's rights to their own bodies and such. Its so crazy. They get REALLY confused.

[GolightlyGrrl]

This is an awesome thread. How about a way to pool FJ resources, skills and tips on the 'Domestic Arts'?

I'm all for this!!!!! I have a series at my blog I call "Make Shit Yourself." I can definitely post some of them at an FJ Domestic Arts thread.

I cook, bake and do other domestic things like make my own soap and other bath/beauty products. I make beaded jewelry for myself and as gifts. I made a jewelry box for my friend Kristine's b-day and she loves it.

I also try to be green and economical with my crafting and other assorted domestic duties. I use paper bags and old VHS tape to wrap Xmas gifts. I wash out old containers and use them again for other things.

I'm not alone. A majority of my friends (most of them liberal-leaning) are very domestic and crafty. You won't see any of us eating TTC.

[MamaJunebug]

After my early retirement, I putzed around in several temp jobs. Most of them asked me to stay on as a "permanent" hire, but when I figured out how to budget to live on my TSU's salary, I chose to stay home. The other day someone asked me what I do and I said, "i'm a homemaker."

I'm not sure it's any kind of new domesticity as much as just my feministic upbringing and way of life permitting me to live life as I choose, and in these years, i choose domesticity.

So there, those who think domestic bliss is only the purview of the dominionistic!

[Soldier of the One]

I am a HUGE believer in reclaiming domesticity from its sexist and patriarchal connotations.

We all need to live in houses. Most human beings like having a cosy and pleasant living environment. Domesticity is a great way to be creative, frugal and create a real sense of belonging in the home. It does not preclude having a career or a mind of your own. And truth to be told, there are more and more MEN who enjoy being domestic. And why not?

In the stresses of day-to-day post-modern life, being domestic can be nurturing and relaxing.

Besides, ever heard of MANBROIDERY? The scourge of gender essentialists everywhere! :lol:

Here's an excellent example of a famous and dedicated manbroiderer: mrxstitch.com

[ilovetchotchkes]

I am a HUGE believer in reclaiming domesticity from its sexist and patriarchal connotations.

We all need to live in houses. Most human beings like having a cosy and pleasant living environment. Domesticity is a great way to be creative, frugal and create a real sense of belonging in the home. It does not preclude having a career or a mind of your own. And truth to be told, there are more and more MEN who enjoy being domestic. And why not?

In the stresses of day-to-day post-modern life, being domestic can be nurturing and relaxing.

Besides, ever heard of MANBROIDERY? The scourge of gender essentialists everywhere! :lol:

Here's an excellent example of a famous and dedicated manbroiderer: mrxstitch.com

My husband is DYING to learn to embroider! I'm so going to send him to this link.

My favorite cross stitch website however has nothing to do with manbroidery though: http://subversivecrossstitch.com/

[dawn9476]

Yeah. Knitting is definitely not just a fundie thing. Julia Roberts, who is a liberal and probably one of the biggest Obama supporters in Hollywood, knits and has done so for a long time. I think there a few other actresses in Hollywood that knit. Probably because it is a productive way to pass the time when you are waiting around for hours in your trailer to film a scene on a film or TV set.

[Wolfie]

In high school once, my brother's friends all came up to me one day and said, "Did you know your brother can bake cookies?" Um, yeah, I knew that. My parents shared the cooking and taught my brother and I how to follow recipes well. They didn't do as good of a job with the youngest, but it was figured out when they had to learn to cook on their own.

The knitting and spinning groups I'm in are all co-ed, and for the most part liberal. There are a few more conservatives in them, but they deal with the rest just fine.

And the diaper covers are done, now on to tote bags. If only I could keep my house as clean.

[liltwinstar]

Probably because it is a productive way to pass the time when you are waiting around for hours in your trailer to film a scene on a film or TV set.

Yup - I think that my knitting keeps me sane. I do not "wait" well. At all. As a kid, I was destructive when bored - I would rip my dinner napkin into little pieces while waiting to be excused from the table. When my husband says he'll be ready for bed in "just a few minutes" I would go batshit crazy if I didn't have something to do in the meantime. Car trips, movies, family holidays - all made, like, 1000% more enjoyable by having something to do with my hands!!

[ilovetchotchkes]

Yup - I think that my knitting keeps me sane. I do not "wait" well. At all. As a kid, I was destructive when bored - I would rip my dinner napkin into little pieces while waiting to be excused from the table. When my husband says he'll be ready for bed in "just a few minutes" I would go batshit crazy if I didn't have something to do in the meantime. Car trips, movies, family holidays - all made, like, 1000% more enjoyable by having something to do with my hands!!

I had a professer in college who required as part of my ADHD accommodations for me to have knitting or embroidery with me as she noted that I paid MUCH better attention when my hands were occupied.

She was a fabulous lady. I should email her and go visit her.

[Soldier of the One]

I'm loving this thread more and more. LOL @ subversive cross stitching :)

[amydamy]

I would kill to learn how to do this stuff. It just all seems so intimidating.

I self taught myself a lot of the stuff. I started sewing by doing Halloween costumes so I knew they only had to last for one night and it would probably be dark when my friends and I were wearing them. My grandma did teach me some quilting but just making lots of baby quilts helped me get better at that. She did teach me cross stitch and needle point which are pretty easy to pick up on your own.

I've never been able to teach myself knitting or crochet I can so the basic stitches but can't turn them into anything besides a scarf.