My mother was extremely good at designing and making fancy dress costumes for me and my younger brother, so we could enter the fancy dress competitions held at the various fetes and shows held during the summer months around Malmesbury. Of course my father had to drive us to those places that were to far to walk too.
I can remember winning quite a few of the fancy dress competitions and I think one of the best ones, of which again I have a photograph, is me dressed up as a Spanish Lady, supposedly the Queen of Spain's daughter, to represent the nursery rhyme, "I had a little nut tree", nothing would it bear, but a silver nutmeg and a golden pear, the Queen of Spain's daughter came to visit me, all for the sake of the little nut tree. This was in 1949 when I was six, see end of chapter for photographs.
Another time I was dressed as a Powder Puff, again photographic evidence as proof, and this costume was in very pale pink satin with the dress edged in fluffy pink wispy fur, I also had fur cuffs around my wrists and a small hat fitted at an angle on my head again in fluffy material and all together this denoted a powder puff. I believe I got first prize for that.
Another time I was dressed up as Bubbles, from the song ' I'm forever blowing bubbles'. This was in 1952, I had a frilly blue silk costume and an old pram filled with balloons to represent the bubbles. Photograph at end of chapter in costume with my brother.
My younger brother hated being dressed up and one year rebelled to such an extent that he was standing next to a friend when they were judging the entrants. The judge spoke to my brother asking him what he was supposed to be and he said himself, he won first prize.
Another time my mother dressed him as an American Indian in a white costume with feathered head-dress and tomahawk etc. He was supposed to be the "Little White Cloud that Cried", that again was a popular song at the time. See photograph below.
