Things old ladies do...

[T'Girl]

Cookies.

One night a boyfriend and I were watching TV and eating chocolate chips out of a small bowl. He mention that he liked chocolate chip cookies, being a good girlfriend I said I'd make him some, excused myself, went into the kitchen and quietly called my grandmother on the phone to talk me through the process.

 

[auntiehill]

My Mom is amazing. When I was a kid, she could:
sew
knit
crochet
maintain a vegetable garden
cook a gourmet dinner at a moment's notice
bake any dessert
change the oil in her car
administer first aid
clean and cook fish
clean, butcher and cook a deer (yes, a deer)
draw architectural blueprints
do basic electrical work
produce an elementary school's yearbook
learn American Sign Language
work as a nurse
work as a librarian
work as a forest ranger
beat cancer
beat TB
survive a hit and run that crushed her pelvis and thigh
raise three girls without attempting to kill them in their teen years
survive being married to my dad for over 60 years.

Me? I'm totally fucking useless. I've managed to get a few recipes from Mom but my hubby has cooked them more than I have. I can barely sew on a button. I don't even own a sewing machine. I kill every plant, my cooking sucks ASS, and have no special skill or talent whatsoever.

 

[RoJoHen]

Me? I'm totally fucking useless. I've managed to get a few recipes from Mom but my hubby has cooked them more than I have. I can barely sew on a button. I don't even own a sewing machine. I kill every plant, my cooking sucks ASS, and have no special skill or talent whatsoever.

You must be great in job interviews.

 

[auntiehill]

^Hence why I work at my home office.

 

[Grey]

I crochet and cookie-bomb everyone.

Now I'm the one crocheting little things for the 70-90 aged generation in my family, as they've given it up.

 

[Gul Re'jal]

My grandma had taught me how to knit, but I forgot since (I was a teenager and now, well, I'm not). Though, I had my own self-made scarf and pillow
I also used to watch my mum using sawing machine when I was little and I guess I could saw something if I had one too.

Life circumstances forced me to learn how to fix pipes, toilet flushing pump, change electric socket and other "manly" things, some of those thanks to watching my dad doing or fixing homey things. And putting IKEA furniture together is fun for me

 

[mari]

I crochet, and have for about 25 years (in my early 30s now)... rarely afghans, because I don't have the patience for a large project, but I make purses and baby clothes and stuffed animals and hats. Lots and lots of hats. I vaguely know how to knit, and I sew a lot even though I suck at it. Getting better though. Small things, baby things, purse linings. And I can do lots of home improvement things - laid a subfloor once, replaced a kitchen faucet. Fun times!

 

[Hunter X]

My wife crochets and cans (jams, jellies, pickles). My sister crochets, knits and keeps bees. My mom quilts. So I don't really have a sense that these abilities are dying, don't you worry.

I even(!) have a male friend who crochets quite well, since there's no reason a guy can't learn to do this stuff either. I'd like to be able to garden, if I ever have a space to garden in, and I can bake a pretty good loaf of bread (something one of my grandma's has never done by her own admission, actually).

 

[Spot's Meow]

I must be very old lady-like, I crochet and bake cookies all the time. Actually, as others have mentioned, you'd be surprised by how many 20-somethings enjoy crocheting nowadays. I'm making an afghan right now RojoHen, though I don't know who for. It's taking forever since I work full time now, but I usually find time to crochet on the weekends while watching TV.

Sewing is something that I really see dying out. I don't know many people who can sew, myself included. Many clothes are cheap enough that it's just easier to buy a new whatever instead of mending your old one, and I can't even imagine having the time to sew whole new items.

 

[Grey]

Many clothes are cheap enough that it's just easier to buy a new whatever instead of mending your old one, and I can't even imagine having the time to sew whole new items.

Actually, that's part of my issue! I have yet to sit down and crochet a whole afghan mostly because it just isn't that cost effective. You really need to buy all the yarn up front (to be sure the dye lots are the same and the color will be consistent throughout) and it's just...cheaper to buy a blanket or a sweater than to make one a lot of the time.

I really love cooking and baking but its discouraging to see how frozen, pre-packaged, or processed foods and ingredients are often cheaper than buying the fresh ingredients to make a dish from scratch. It used to be that making things yourself, whether food, clothes, or otherwise was economical. Now it's something I have to set aside because I can't afford the supplies a lot of the time!

 

[scotpens]

I just keep envisioning a world without afghans, and it feels worse than Hell.

Yes, they're beautiful dogs.

I will say that, while I find the casual racism kind of funny sometimes, it's probably okay that it's a dying trend. Though how often to do you get to hear somebody say the word "Negro" in regular conversation?

Hey, when I was growing up, that's what you were supposed to call them.

 

[Spot's Meow]

Many clothes are cheap enough that it's just easier to buy a new whatever instead of mending your old one, and I can't even imagine having the time to sew whole new items.

Actually, that's part of my issue! I have yet to sit down and crochet a whole afghan mostly because it just isn't that cost effective. You really need to buy all the yarn up front (to be sure the dye lots are the same and the color will be consistent throughout) and it's just...cheaper to buy a blanket or a sweater than to make one a lot of the time.

I really love cooking and baking but its discouraging to see how frozen, pre-packaged, or processed foods and ingredients are often cheaper than buying the fresh ingredients to make a dish from scratch. It used to be that making things yourself, whether food, clothes, or otherwise was economical. Now it's something I have to set aside because I can't afford the supplies a lot of the time!

I completely agree, it's really unfortunate that it costs me so much more to crochet a blanket than to just buy one. But, I really enjoy working with my hands, and I find the rhythmic motions of the crochet stitches calming and therapeutic. It took me a while to get the hang of it (I actually gave up for five or so years because I thought I just wasn't very good at it), but now the movements come naturally and without conscious thought, and there's something pleasant about that. Maybe sewing would provide the same feeling, but it feels like it would somehow involve more thought processes or careful attention.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

I love doing all the old fashioned stuff Needle work, cooking (pferably using wild plants), crafting, you name it I do it. It's so much fun! At the moment I am rediscovering the art of preserving things without a freezer.

 

[Smellincoffee]

I love doing all the old fashioned stuff Needle work, cooking (pferably using wild plants), crafting, you name it I do it. It's so much fun! At the moment I am rediscovering the art of preserving things without a freezer.

Like canning, making jerky, that sort of thing?

 

[Ood Sigma]

My wife, who is in her mid-30s, has been crocheting for the last 15 years. I gave it a try once, but I've never been good with knots/tying things and it was a complete disaster. I did do some cross-stitching once and it was kind of relaxing and fun (and much easier than crocheting), but I haven't done it for many years so it's not something that appealed to me enough to keep going. Plus, it takes a lot of concentration to ensure you are using the right color in the right spot.

 

[milo bloom]

My wife, upper 30's, started knitting and crocheting when our son was born 5 years ago so she could make wool covers for the cloth diapers. She's made several different things, with the latest and greatest being my Christmas present:



206579_10151522766090101_1640988944_n by mithmaster, on Flickr

 

[propita]

Me? I'm totally fucking useless. I've managed to get a few recipes from Mom but my hubby has cooked them more than I have. I can barely sew on a button. I don't even own a sewing machine. I kill every plant, my cooking sucks ASS, and have no special skill or talent whatsoever.

You must be great in job interviews.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Knitting and Crocheting never went out of fashion in Australia and I know many people in their 20's and 30's who do both. Yarn bombing has kind of taken it to the street and is an example of it's continual revival in new forms. In the last week I've seen 5 yarn bombs in the city and the suburbs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yarn_bombing

People also make jam and bottle (can) very commonly here, young single people as well as older people. If I've got a bunch of fruit that is not going to get eaten or about to turn I'll throw it into a pot with some sugar and make some jam (I don't measure anything, nothing has ever failed). I've had phases of doing tons of it, especially when I've had friends with laden fruit trees.

 

[T'Bonz]

Preparation of enough Christmas cookies to feed several armored divisions.

Not in our family. All 3 of my girls were taught how to make Christmas cookies and they all do.

Sewing. I sew, but 2 of my daughters have no interest in it and 1 is too frustrated by it (it takes a while to get past the hassles of sewing).

I can't knit or crochet, so once my mum is gone, that's it in my family.

Cooking - my youngest has a knack for it. I can cook, but I don't like to do so and so just do what needs to be done. She does fancy stuff and exotic stuff and great stuff. This was all self-taught. I don't make mini-cheescakes and such.

Pretty much, if the young ones get interested in something - they'll figure it out and do it. I don't think crocheting and knitting will ever die out. I do worry about sewing. Many more seem to knit/crochet than sew.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

Bonzie, do you do patchwork/quilts?

Like canning, making jerky, that sort of thing?

Precisely And drying, pickeling and candying. (No smoking, though - I live in an appartment building and my neighbours might complain)
I have only a very small freezer but a big attic and cellar where I can store a lot of food. And homemade jerky or pickles are so much better than the bought stuff (less sugar and atrificial sweeteners, mainly)

Btw, I also make my own toffees and fudges =) And traditional Bavarian bread (a sour dough rye bread with lots of caraway, anise, fennel and coriander) and baguette.
I'd be grateful for a good recipe for the (apparently traditional) brick-shaped white bread one always sees housewives baking in American TV series. It looks a bit like toast bread and I've always wanted to give it a try.