In a lovely case of serendipity, I stumbled across Danielle Wood’s biography of Tasmanian Domestic Goddess Marjorie Bligh and found myself rather tickled by the coincidence of naming my darling posse of vintage housekeepers after a woman who surely set the standard for all of us! If you aren’t familiar with Marjorie, she is a small town housewife who became a Tasmanian Superstar by being something of a creative powerhouse and excelling at all things domestic: a woman frequently rumored to have inspired Dame Edna Everage with her penchant for straight talking and extravagant taste in eye-wear…
Wood’s biography of Bligh presents her to us as something of a conundrum without I think ever really getting to the heart of the woman herself – perhaps because as Wood’s admits herself most of her story is cobbled together from Bligh’s extensive diaries and private journals are notoriously self-absorbed and do not always present us in the best light. The woman we get to some extent to know, is a cold fish: ambitious and fiercely passionate about her three marriages, while paying little heed to the children each of her relationships compromised. Her focus is always on the nurture of the marriage itself, and though her efforts are not rewarded in her first marriage which ends in spectacularly ugly, distressing fashion, thereafter Marjorie seeks out two kind men who both seem happy to exist in her shadow and allow her to forge a career built on dedication to house and home.
The book is a strange combination of biography, household hints, Marjorie’s rather cringe-worthy poetry, ( written I think in the innocence of another age) and at the end a peculiar chapter based on dispelling or rather seeking to prove that Marjorie was indeed the inspiration behind Barry Humphries, gladioli carrying, excitable nemesis, Dame Edna Everage. The problem with this is that Dame Edna Everage existed before Marjorie Bligh came to prominence in Tasmania and that Barrie Humphries himself, while admitting he adores Marjorie Bligh and recognizes her influence as housewife extraordinaire  is rather cagey about to what degree she shaped his character and indeed during an awkward encounter between the book‘s author and the man himself, seems almost resentful of, and  bored by the very question: a fact made all the more odd when we learn that Dame Edna and Marjorie Bligh have never met. Furthermore, beyond Tasmania, Dame Edna Everage is little more than a much loved comic caricature, and to hinge the book on the premise that Marjorie inspired her, strikes me as mildly insulting and rather undermines her achievements if we are only to consider her within the framework of inspiration for the ridiculous…
All of this is something of a shame: though we learn that Marjorie wrote long-standing columns, various books and eventually created an in house museum of her own domestic achievement, we never learn quite what the process was that got her there, to what degree her obsession with all things domestic shaped the atmosphere of each of her homes, or how engaged she was in the process of writing about all those things she clearly taught herself to be capable of because the focus remains firmly on the ups and downs of her relationships.
This bothered me hugely throughout the book: I would hate to have my achievements regarded secondary to my frankly tumultuous relationships with men – though I understand that the bad times and the good times shaped the trajectory of Marjorie’s career,  I think delving into most women’s relationship history throughout a ninety something year life would highlight moments when we are simply not our best selves but are instead women trying to stay strong and forge our own path un-compromised by neither the demands of marriage or the follies of men.
All in all, despite what may seem like rather extensive criticism I thoroughly enjoyed Housewife Superstar, simply because it is my kind of book: it is fascinating to read about a woman who followed a similar path to mine in a time and place where the competition was simply not as fierce and to spend a while in the company of a woman who puts marriage above all else in a time when as women we are taught not to define ourselves by the men we love. All that and household hints? Wonderful!
ABC of Happy Marriage by Marjorie Bligh…
Always. No refunds if not satisfied, so choose carefully.
Boredom. The arch enemy of marriage. Root it out at first signs of growth.
Children. Marriage was instituted for protection and procreation.
Domestic Duties. The most important work in the whole community.
Exercise. Physical—to keep you trim. Mental—to keep you interesting.
Food. Be imaginative, original and appreciative.
Gossip. Don’t gossip about your partner’s failings.
Honesty. Be honest with each other, but not brutal.
Intelligence. Allied with commonsense, it solves many problems.
Job. A helping hand or listening ear when necessary.
Kindness. Be kind to each other.
Love. To marry for less is to invite disaster.
Modesty. Something you can’t afford to lose.
Nagging. Never accomplishes anything. Try encouragement instead.
Others. To live in a cocoon of self-centredness is not wise.
Pride. Something you can’t afford to lose.
Quarrels. Always apologise first, even if you are right.
Religion. The tie that binds, the anchor that holds.
Sex. Sexual compatibility is essential to a happy union.
Trouble. Meet it together with courage and loyalty.
Understanding. When grounded in love it is never abused.
Vindictive. Check it by a check-up on your physical relationship.
Wedding Day. A beautiful memory, but only the beginning.
Xtravagance. Stimulating occasionally, but must not become a habit.
You. Retain your personality. Refuse to become just Mum or Dad.
Zzzzzzzz. Unfortunately, there’s no known cure for snoring.
Create your own Brocante Life Book, plan Christmas, set up routines and rituals or live life the BrocanteHome way with my guided workbooks and planners.
Love Poem The afternoon we left our first apartment, we scrubbed it down from ceiling to parquet. Who knew the place could smell like lemon muffins? It suddenly seemed nuts to move away. The morning someone bought our station wagon, it gleamed…
When I am not being a Vintage HouseKeeper I am busy being a teenybopper. Which would explain why I found myself queuing up behind a hoard of little girls in pink furry bunny rabbit ears as we waited a lifetime to see…
Almonds. I can’t get enough of the scent of them. It started with Method’s Almond scented polish and one too many compliments from visiting friends. (As if it was me doused in the the gentle dust of these fragrant nuts). And then…
Let me begin with an apology… a little while ago somebody emailed me to ask my thoughts on creating a cosy room for her children, and I thought my thoughts and planned on committing them to paper and then promptly deleted the…
Did you ever see such scrumptious use’s for the exquisitely homely embroidery to be found on many a worn out tablecloth? Loopy Design incorparates vintage textiles into their delightful little range of clothes for girls and offers the collector of far too…
Record the day Christmas Baking: Peppermint Bark… Techniques for Restoring an old Cast-Iron Skillet Other People’s Junk Drawers How to Grow a Depression Garden | eHow.com Other Things To Do At BrocanteHome Browse the Bookstore Discover a curated list of books to…
3 Comments
Have you read “Servants, a downstairs view of twentieth century Britain” by Lucy Lethbridge? I have just finished it and really enjoyed it. It is a rather academic tome and being a history fan I thought I would be more interested in the earlier years described in the book, of ironing newspapers and millions of minions scurrying too and fro. Although I did enjoy that, as well as the descriptions of all the societies and associations for servants, it was really the latter years – the 50’s and 60’s that I found fascinating. My Mum worked selling electrical appliances and I just grew up with them of course. But rather like my son now, who thinks the internet always existed, I didn’t really realise how “new” all these electrical appliances were to help the housewife. Prior to the Servants book, I read “The Scent of Water” which I saw recommended on here and thoroughly enjoyed – a new author for me so thank you.
In the ABC, zzzzz made me laugh out loud. I used to get so annoyed with The Man for snoring, as if he had control over it, as if he was doing it to foil my beauty rest. I used to poke him angrily. Terrible.Now if it gets really bad, I will try to roll him over once. If that doesn’t work I will make a few trumpeting elephant noises, which gets me giggling rather than angry. Usually my laughter will wake him up just enough to get him to change positions to end the nasal rumbling. 🙂 Much better response on my end, I think, and results in much better repose for me also! -Barb
{"id":null,"mode":"form","open_style":"in_place","currency_code":"USD","currency_symbol":"$","currency_type":"decimal","blank_flag_url":"https:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/plugins\/tip-jar-wp\/\/assets\/images\/flags\/blank.gif","flag_sprite_url":"https:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/plugins\/tip-jar-wp\/\/assets\/images\/flags\/flags.png","default_amount":300,"top_media_type":"featured_image","featured_image_url":"http:\/\/brocantehome.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/tipjar-2.png","featured_embed":"","header_media":null,"file_download_attachment_data":null,"recurring_options_enabled":true,"recurring_options":{"never":{"selected":true,"after_output":"One time only"},"weekly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every week"},"monthly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every month"},"yearly":{"selected":false,"after_output":"Every year"}},"strings":{"current_user_email":"","current_user_name":"","link_text":"Leave a tip","complete_payment_button_error_text":"Check info and try again","payment_verb":"Pay","payment_request_label":"BrocanteHome","form_has_an_error":"Please check and fix the errors above","general_server_error":"Something isn't working right at the moment. Please try again.","form_title":"BrocanteHome","form_subtitle":"Help Me to Keep BrocanteHome Online","currency_search_text":"Country or Currency here","other_payment_option":"Other payment option","manage_payments_button_text":"Manage your payments","thank_you_message":"Thank you so much: helping me keep Brocantehome online really means the world to me.","payment_confirmation_title":"BrocanteHome","receipt_title":"Your Receipt","print_receipt":"Print Receipt","email_receipt":"Email Receipt","email_receipt_sending":"Sending receipt...","email_receipt_success":"Email receipt successfully sent","email_receipt_failed":"Email receipt failed to send. Please try again.","receipt_payee":"Paid to","receipt_statement_descriptor":"This will show up on your statement as","receipt_date":"Date","receipt_transaction_id":"Transaction ID","receipt_transaction_amount":"Amount","refund_payer":"Refund from","login":"Log in to manage your payments","manage_payments":"Manage Payments","transactions_title":"Your Transactions","transaction_title":"Transaction Receipt","transaction_period":"Plan Period","arrangements_title":"Your Plans","arrangement_title":"Manage Plan","arrangement_details":"Plan Details","arrangement_id_title":"Plan ID","arrangement_payment_method_title":"Payment Method","arrangement_amount_title":"Plan Amount","arrangement_renewal_title":"Next renewal date","arrangement_action_cancel":"Cancel Plan","arrangement_action_cant_cancel":"Cancelling is currently not available.","arrangement_action_cancel_double":"Are you sure you'd like to cancel?","arrangement_cancelling":"Cancelling Plan...","arrangement_cancelled":"Plan Cancelled","arrangement_failed_to_cancel":"Failed to cancel plan","back_to_plans":"\u2190 Back to Plans","update_payment_method_verb":"Update","sca_auth_description":"Your have a pending renewal payment which requires authorization.","sca_auth_verb":"Authorize renewal payment","sca_authing_verb":"Authorizing payment","sca_authed_verb":"Payment successfully authorized!","sca_auth_failed":"Unable to authorize! Please try again.","login_button_text":"Log in","login_form_has_an_error":"Please check and fix the errors above","uppercase_search":"Search","lowercase_search":"search","uppercase_page":"Page","lowercase_page":"page","uppercase_items":"Items","lowercase_items":"items","uppercase_per":"Per","lowercase_per":"per","uppercase_of":"Of","lowercase_of":"of","back":"Back to plans","zip_code_placeholder":"Zip\/Postal Code","download_file_button_text":"Download File","input_field_instructions":{"tip_amount":{"placeholder_text":"How much would you like to tip?","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"How much would you like to tip? Choose any currency."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"How much would you like to tip? Choose any currency."},"invalid_curency":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please choose a valid currency."}},"recurring":{"placeholder_text":"Recurring","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"How often would you like to give this?"}},"name":{"placeholder_text":"Name on Credit Card","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter the name on your card."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter the name on your card."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please enter the name on your card."}},"privacy_policy":{"terms_title":"Terms and conditions","terms_body":null,"terms_show_text":"View Terms","terms_hide_text":"Hide Terms","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"I agree to the terms."},"unchecked":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Please agree to the terms."},"checked":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"I agree to the terms."}},"email":{"placeholder_text":"Your email address","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email address"},"not_an_email_address":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Make sure you have entered a valid email address"}},"note_with_tip":{"placeholder_text":"Your note here...","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"empty":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"not_empty_initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Attach a note to your tip (optional)"},"saving":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Saving note..."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Note successfully saved!"},"error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Unable to save note note at this time. Please try again."}},"email_for_login_code":{"placeholder_text":"Your email address","initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your email to log in."}},"login_code":{"initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"success":{"instruction_type":"success","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"blank":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Check your email and enter the login code."}},"stripe_all_in_one":{"initial":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"empty":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"success":{"instruction_type":"normal","instruction_message":"Enter your credit card details here."},"invalid_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is not a valid credit card number."},"invalid_expiry_month":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration month is invalid."},"invalid_expiry_year":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration year is invalid."},"invalid_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is invalid."},"incorrect_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is incorrect."},"incomplete_number":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card number is incomplete."},"incomplete_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is incomplete."},"incomplete_expiry":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration date is incomplete."},"incomplete_zip":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's zip code is incomplete."},"expired_card":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card has expired."},"incorrect_cvc":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's security code is incorrect."},"incorrect_zip":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's zip code failed validation."},"invalid_expiry_year_past":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card's expiration year is in the past"},"card_declined":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The card was declined."},"missing":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"There is no card on a customer that is being charged."},"processing_error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"An error occurred while processing the card."},"invalid_request_error":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"Unable to process this payment, please try again or use alternative method."},"invalid_sofort_country":{"instruction_type":"error","instruction_message":"The billing country is not accepted by SOFORT. Please try another country."}}}},"fetched_oembed_html":false}
Have you read “Servants, a downstairs view of twentieth century Britain” by Lucy Lethbridge? I have just finished it and really enjoyed it. It is a rather academic tome and being a history fan I thought I would be more interested in the earlier years described in the book, of ironing newspapers and millions of minions scurrying too and fro. Although I did enjoy that, as well as the descriptions of all the societies and associations for servants, it was really the latter years – the 50’s and 60’s that I found fascinating. My Mum worked selling electrical appliances and I just grew up with them of course. But rather like my son now, who thinks the internet always existed, I didn’t really realise how “new” all these electrical appliances were to help the housewife.
Prior to the Servants book, I read “The Scent of Water” which I saw recommended on here and thoroughly enjoyed – a new author for me so thank you.
I adore this…I need to remember it!!
“Love. To marry for less is to invite disaster.”
Xx
In the ABC, zzzzz made me laugh out loud. I used to get so annoyed with The Man for snoring, as if he had control over it, as if he was doing it to foil my beauty rest. I used to poke him angrily. Terrible.Now if it gets really bad, I will try to roll him over once. If that doesn’t work I will make a few trumpeting elephant noises, which gets me giggling rather than angry. Usually my laughter will wake him up just enough to get him to change positions to end the nasal rumbling. 🙂
Much better response on my end, I think, and results in much better repose for me also!
-Barb