When my mother got married in 1957 she started educating herself on all things domestic. Instead of being a child in her parents' house, suddenly she was a wife and she was expected to keep a clean house, cook delicious meals, live within a budget prescribed by her husband, and always look her best. Her marriage was seen as a triumph.
In the 1950's young women were expected to marry and have children, not careers. In fact, a woman who chose to delay marriage and establish a career was looked upon as freakish and unnatural. The idea that a woman could have a family AND a career was just considered bizarre and wrong.
My mother was a very intelligent woman and could have had any number of careers and been a great success. She chose to do what was expected, though, stay home and raise children. She always said she loved staying home, just FYI. It's too bad she was put under so much pressure to do that, though. Young women today are so lucky to have more options..
My mom was not the world's greatest housekeeper. She loved to read and always had a stack of books but the house was usually messy. (I have carried on her great tradition of indifferent housekeeping, to this very day!)
I was thinking about her setting up housekeeping when I put a Revere Ware saucepan in the dishwasher this morning. Mom's Revere Ware pots and pans were purchased in the late 1950's and early 1960's and I expect my grandchildren will one day be using them. Older pots and pans go for hefty prices now on Ebay. They are simply excellent pots and pans. The copper bottoms help distribute the heat evenly.
Another wonderful brand is Pyrex. I have Pyrex bowls and loaf pans that are indestructible and have been in use for decades. It's not terribly expensive on Ebay but it's worth every penny. Anchor Hocking is another excellent brand of glassware. We have Anchor Hocking pie dishes that have made hundreds of pies and they are really durable. Not fancy, but simple can be beautiful too. Ditto for Corningware! We have wonderful casserole dishes and bowls we use all the time and they still look like new.
In general, things that have lasted for an entire generation will likely last a few more generations. I still have some dishes that my grandmother got as wedding presents in 1923. I have a large copper tea kettle my dad's mother probably got for a wedding present in 1922! I don't use it for anything practical, it's just decorative, but it has lasted for decades.
Instead of ordering new dishes and silverware and glasses from Amazon or even going to Walmart, head to a thrift store. Just because someone gives something to a thrift doesn't mean it's undesirable. In fact, household items in a thrift store have usually lasted for years and will continue to be useful and durable. Usually they just need a good scrubbing and/or polishing to shine like new.
Furniture is another lesson I learned from my mother. She was adamant about buying high quality and just re-covering it every 10 years or so.
You see the sofa in the photos below? It's the same sofa I sit on now! That sofa was bought around 1958, with money Mom saved up from her teaching job. It's Flexsteel brand. Mom and Dad always bought high quality, expensive furniture whenever possible, because it lasts forever. That sofa will be around when my grandchildren are ready to marry! It's very comfortable to sleep on and it's indestructible.
The moral of the story is pretty simple: save your money and buy high quality, or go to thrift stores and know which brands are a good investment. Trends come and go but trust the brands I've mentioned here, because they will last.
bottom photo, me age 6 -- the sofa is off to the right
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