We wore what we'd got project

This project worked with older women in Warwickshire – people who had been in their teens and twenties during World War II. It explored how the war affected women’s dress and appearance – from clothes for war work to ‘Make-do-and-Mend’.

Air raid warden

“I qualified as an Air Raid Warden 6 weeks before the war. They gave us this uniform – a blouson battledress with pockets and thick socks and flat shoes, a scarf round my head to take the weight of the helmet. I used to like to feel I felt smart.”

Land Girls

“I was 22 when I bought my first pair of slacks. This was on joining The Land Army, when, after wearing breeches or dungarees for work, a skirt could seem very cold in the manor we were billeted in.”

Wedding group

“We married in 1944 at St Mary’s Church, Warwick. My future father-in-law did not go out so I was able to use his clothing coupons. I went to Birmingham for my wedding dress – it cost £18. I remember going into a cubicle to try it on and then was told to walk out into the area with the large mirrors. It was beautiful and I felt like a queen.”

Suit

“Utility clothes were made to last. I can remember having a tweed suit worn with knitted jumpers underneath, and I don’t think the quality was any less good. It was a little uninteresting in design, I suppose – you wouldn’t get fancy buttons.”