#vogart

BACK IN TIME: LADY GAGA PERFORMS ON GMA

Lady Gaga took over Good Morning America’s stage at Central Park on May 27, 2011 to perform a bunch of songs from her album ‘Born This Way’.

This unique performance was fully styled by Nicola Formichetti and Brandon Maxwell. Set design by Marla Weinhoff. Choreography by Laurie-Ann Gibson. Hair by Frederic Aspiras and makeup by Tara Savelo, respectively.

A few generations ago, many women dried dishes with kitchen towels made from flour sacks, sometimes embellished with embroidery. “Days of the Week” sets of seven towels were popular, and made good gifts. Laundry was often done one day a week, so a set of seven allowed for a fresh towel each day.

A bespectacled duckling with a work basket graces this vintage “Wednesday” dish towel. Mending clothes was the traditional “Wednesday” task.

I have seen sets, both handmade and manufactured, that included six towels, assuming no work would be done on a Sunday. My friend Rozann received a six-towel commercially made set as a bridal shower gift. Mass-produced sets are typically printed or machine embroidered.

A set of six early American theme commercially made “Days of the Week” printed dish towels, circa 1960s or 1970s. 

Many sets of “days of the week” kitchen towels depicted an old-fashioned work schedule. Monday was always wash day, Tuesday was the day to iron, and so on. The work might be shown performed by women or  girls, or whimsically, by cats, dogs, birds, koalas, or other animals. Some sets may have been inspired by the nursery song “Here We Go ‘Round the Mulberry Bush" which begins:

Here we go round the Mulberry Bush                      The mulberry bush                      The mulberry bush                      Here we go round the mulberry bush                      So early in the morning

This is the way we wash our clothes                      Wash our clothes                      Wash our clothes                      This is the way we wash our clothes                      So early Monday morning

The song continues in this fashion. Tuesday is “iron our clothes,” Wednesday is “mend our clothes, Thursday is “sweep the floor,” Friday is “scrub the floor,” Saturday is “bake our bread,” and Sunday is “go to church.”  The tempo slows for Sunday.                 

I’ve noticed with these towels, Monday is always washing, Tuesday is always ironing, Wednesday is typically mending, with Sunday reserved for church or leisure, but specific activities for the other days vary quite a bit. Local or personal customs clearly varied, no matter what any songs said.                                  

Set of “Sunbonnet Girl” embroidered “Days of the Week” dishtowels, from my personal collection.

Set of vintage “Days of the Week” dish towels from my personal collection. A lady in late 19th or early 20th century attire is shown washing clothes on Monday, ironing on Tuesday, mending on Wednesday, going to market on Thursday, baking on Friday, cleaning the house on Saturday, then coming out of church with her husband on Sunday. 

“Monday” dish towel. For many years, Monday was the customary day for doing laundry. ( I have to wonder what this alarmed lady is seeing in the wash!)

The lady irons on this “Tuesday” dish towel. Note how the ironing board is balanced between two chairs.

“Wednesday” depicts the lady darning a sock. 

The “Thursday” towel shows the lady out at the market.

Friday is baking day for this lady. I like how minimal lines give us a good feel for the black cast iron stove. (She looks alarmed here too, doesn’t she?)

Housecleaning is the Saturday task in this set. There is a 1930s look to her hair in this scene.

On the “Sunday” dish towel, we see the lady and her husband dressed in their best clothes, leaving church.

Some women created their own designs, while others purchased iron-on transfers by Aunt Martha’s, Vogart, and other companies. Friends who frequent yard sales and thrift stores have found bargains on these. Aunt Martha’s Hot Iron transfers are still sold, and reproductions of other vintage designs are available online, including through eBay and Etsy. 

Plain white kitchen towels made from flour-sack type fabric are readily obtained from craft suppliers. Although days of the week dish towels are less common now, new and vintage sets are out there, and you can still make your own.

Aunt Martha transfers like this have been used for many years and are still sold.

Reproductions of vintage “Days of the Week” dish towel transfers can be found online.