A Muumuu, Caftan, or Bata de Casa by any other name

When I was growing up, I had friends whose moms stayed at home and there seemed to be a "uniform" that they all wore......flat shoes and the house dress. It was the uniform of domesticity and grandmas. It was a time of - kids to school, kids home for lunch, daily laundry, baking cookie and cupcakes, dinner, dishes, kids bathed, bedtime stories and mom always took a bath. Sorry I digress....back to the house dress which is my real focus!!! For those of you who are too young to know the house dress (because everyone my age and older know the house dress) - let me try to paint a visual for you. Loose fitting dress/shift some with elastic around the neck for those moms who where a bit larger or a button front for the more petite moms. The material seemed to be last years lawn chair; although, it was lightweight. This enable mom to work and yet still be "dressed."

Fast forward to the 21 century. The housewives of 2009 are running and gunning with kids, errands, but they are no uniforms, like yesteryear. The uniform now runs the gamut of `uber chic to `uber sloppy even for grandmas. That is until today, when reading the Dallas Morning News I see an advertisement from Dillard's and guess what they are selling?!?!?! You guessed it........The 1960 housewives uniform - the house dress; however, it is no longer called the house dress. It is now called "The Patio Dress." Are you kidding me.........I know a house dress when I see one. A Patio Dress?!?!?...do you only wear it while on the patio.....hhhmmmm......it me see if I can visualize this........"Chris, wait a minute - let me run upstairs and put on my patio dress before we begin sipping our adult beverages on the patio." I shutter to think.

I loved seeing my grandma in her house dress and I didn't even mind seeing Mrs. Black puttering around her in her garden tending weeds bent over in her house dress. AND I understand the notion of fashion trends when everything old is new again, but really......this dress?!?!? I am calling all women who have purchasing power to stand up and boycott the clandestine resurgence of the House Dress. Don't' be fooled ladies it was not pretty or flattering then and it is not now. In my best Scarlett O'Hara voice, "As God is my witness, I shall never be a caught dead in a house dress regardless of my age."

Of course, you will need disregard the pictures of me in the islands - where it is the muumuu and becomes stylish; or the pictures on the promenade deck of the Princess -where it is called the caftan and it stylish ship wear or pictures from Ixpata, Mexico where it called the Bata de Casa and it just sounds stylish.

So as Mother's Day nears don't be fooled - the Patio Dress is just a House Dress wrapped up in a fancy title. ~Donna~