(my mother, as a young girl in center with her mother and neighbors circa Easter 1954)
I recently posed a question to my Facebook and twitter followers. “Do you get new clothes for everyone at Easter?” It seems that at one time or another everyone either got new clothes or gets their kids new clothes for Easter. I have been pondering this question myself. I always got the kids something new to wear, and sometimes for myself and Deacon G. I don’t have to worry about his clothes for church anymore though. This year I was struggling with my urges to downsize and minimize while deciding on whether to get everyone new outfits for Easter.
But I was curious, why do we have this urge to get new clothes for Easter? Growing up my mother always got us a new “dressy” outfit for Easter. Sometimes even a hat for me. Even when my mother was growing up, and she was what some would consider poor at times, there was always at least new shoes for Easter.
It appears that wearing new clothes at Easter is an old one. The newly baptized would wear white clothing throughout the entire Easter Week as a symbol that the waters of their baptism had cleansed them from all sin. Other Christians would dress in new clothing to show that they, too, had risen to a new life in Christ. This became an outward sign of one's faith and participation in the dying and rising of Our Lord.
Now that I have had some time to think things over and we have accessed the wardrobe situations of everyone, and looked at other events coming up, First Communion and the Madonna House Fashion Show and Tea Party, I have decided that some new clothes are in order. We went and did a little of that shopping today. A new shirt and a sweater for Pi to go with a skirt we had acquired she looks very ladylike; a new shirt and tie for Pumpkin to go with his suit and we are still looking for a nice sweater for Peanut. I even found a dress and matching jacket for me. All this for much less than you would think for about $40, which gives me a little more money for shoes for the girls. Ah, shoe shopping, believe it or not,
How About You? Do you get or plan on getting new outfits for Easter? Do you still do Easter Hats?
Saint's and Scriptures Sundays
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4 comments:
We got new clothes for our kids when they were little. When we had 6 kids and more, we stopped getting new clothes for Easter. Many were past down and the main reason is we could not afford them. If the boys pants still fit from Christmas they wear them and get a new shirt if the weather is warm that year. I use to make shirts and dresses for the kids year ago. Now I looked for second hand deals and sometimes shop at a retail store. I am not sure why people get new clothes for Easter. Maybe because it is spring and we want to look good for the Resurrection. This year my youngest daughter has been wearing the same Easter dress for 3 years. She has outgrown it and so will be getting one. Good food for thought.
We are not doing complete new outfits this year but everyone has something new, except for Deacon G, but I guess you could say that even he will have new vestments. Yes there is an expense in getting new clothes for everyone, but the whole idea of new clothes is to represent our rebirth in Christ.
One solution for saving your budget - consignment sales/stores/Ebay ... or buy at the end of season for next year. Around here, one of the problems is that we see all these beautiful Easter dresses, and they are all sleeveless. More often than not, Easter is chilly around here. (KY) We've been unseasonably warm this year, so now I have to switch my way of thinking!
I love the analogy about the new clothes - I had never given it much thought.
Thanks for linking up with Saints and Scripture Sunday! Hope to see you again soon!
Dianna, I did just that, some of the a new to us Ralph Lauren suit for my son to wear for Easter and First Communion.
I am a huge fan of thrift and consignment stores. We get some great deals there, Never thought to check Ebay though. My have to look for a sweater there.
We have the same problem with the weather here, when you plan on it being warm it will be 50 and rainy, and it seems all the little girl Easter dresses are sleeveless. Now that the girls are older we can do some different things for Easter. My oldest has a skirt and sweater, very ladylike with "pearls"
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