The Return of the 1950s Housewife?

Amber Robinson

Sewing lessons are on the up, and sales of craft supplies are going through the roof. Does that mean, as per the title of this thread and the AdelaideNow story of the same name, that woman are harking back to the “simple” times of the 1950s? Well – not quite.

Social analyst and AustraliaSCAN consultant David Chalke says that “there has been a substantial shift in our mindset to a more old-fashioned, frugal lifestyle – that real waste-not-want-not approach.”

New data from AustraliaSCAN shows home-based activities are increasingly popular. The survey shows a five per cent increase in the number of people spending time doing craft and a four per cent rise in people devoting time to home cooking, DIY and gardening.

But it’s not necessarily the end of feminism. Instead, Chalke points to other factors for the resurgence of domestic crafts – “the global financial crisis, enviromental concerns and a new cocooning – which are pulling together to form the new homemaker.”

Completely anecdotally, I have noticed many of my friends getting in on the act – lusting after KitchenAids, planting heirloom tomatoes and making Christmas presents. Environmental reasons seem to be the main driver, plus the satisfaction of creating something from scratch, a skill that has been lost for at least a generation.

I will keep the other advances we have made as housewifes, mothers and women since the 1950s though!

So, quick Babble poll – Are you getting all domestic?