“INTERVIEWS”
<ELLA.> In which ways do you connect with your mum when she was your age? I connect with my mum through our similarities in style. Blonde hair, funky clothes. It shows how trends come back around and repeat themselves. In your opinion do you think politically within feminism society has moved forward from when your mum was your age? And in Which ways do you or donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t you think so? I feel fifty/fifty really. I think thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot more to do. Things within work, Sex and clothing has really moved forward and is getting to where we need it. But I feel people are still very sensitive to new things. I think younger generations (millennials) will bring more open-minded ideas moving forward.
Please give examples of any items passed down from your mum and why/how they mean something to you. My mum and I are very similar, we get bored very quickly and get rid of things very quickly so I do not have anything that comes to mind.
<SAM.> What did Feminism mean to you when you were your daughters age? I don’t remember Feminism being so much a term as it is nowadays. I think there was more an unspoken rebellion that I was defiantly part of. Dressing androgynous was not so much a political statement but a fashion. We may have been subconsciously being part of a feminist movement, when we simply trying to recreate fashion from our favourite music inspiration (for me this was hip hop) Baggy trousers and shell suits were making our statement in a subtle way. Which key Political and Feminist movements do you remember from your young adulthood? I remember the rise of the “riot girl” in the 90’s. I think the rebellious don’t give a F*** attitude filtered down and was diluted by the time it hit the streets. However, I defiantly noticed it and felt it! Young girls were enjoying themselves more than ever and there was a feeling of em-
powerment in the air.
What do you think are the similarities and differences between you and your daughters’ experiences? Both within fashion and feminist political issues? The similarities I see are the feeling within Women to strive for more. The hunger for equality and power has not disappeared. A difference I would say (and it’s a positive) is the fact that females of my daughters age are taking this empowerment to the next level and using platforms such as the internet which we didn’t have, to talk about experiences and take matters into their own hands. That is something I am Jealous and proud of. Did you keep anything from your late teens/early 20’s with your future daughter in mind? I can’t say I did. I think when you’re in the moment you don’t see how something may be of value in the future. However, if I could go back there are a few items such as sovereign rings that I would have kept hold of to pass onto my daughter.
<ANNABELLE.> In which ways do you connect with your mum when she was your age? I feel like me and my mum connect in many ways, even though my life is a lot different to what hers was like at my age. Me and my mum are similar in our morals and attitudes and we also look very similar. However, my mum didn’t have the same opportunities as me and went into full time work and moved out at eighteen. So, I feel like she learnt to be more independent than me which I can’t connect with fully. In your opinion do you think things politically and within feminism have moved forward since your mum was your age? And in which ways do you or don’t you think so? In my opinion, I feel we are moving forward as we are more aware as a generation of feminism and political movements due to social media, whereas my mum would only be aware by seeing stuff on the news and newspaper which can be biased.
However, there is still so much that hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t changed. We are still fighting for rights for women and fighting for a less patriarchal society. Please give examples of any items passed down from your mum/grandma and why/how they mean something to you. Two things my mum has given me which were once hers are a ring and necklace she received as gifts when she was younger, they mean a lot to me as they remind me of my mum and they mean a lot to her.
<MICHELLE.> What did Feminism mean to you when you were your daughters age? When I was my daughters age I knew of feminism in a very literal way. Equality in jobs. I think Annabelle is much more aware of cultural/feminist issues than I was at her age. Which key Political and Feminist movements do you remember from your young adulthood? I remember very clearly the rise of our first female prime minister Margaret Thatcher and what she did for female empowerment. I also remember the influence of Janet Streetporter within her journalistic power. What do you think are the similarities and differences between you and your daughtersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experiences? Both within fashion and feminist political issues? I think that that the main cause of differences within our experiences is the influence of social media.
Annabelle is able to have access to a huge range of information at her finger tips which is not something I was able to do when I was her age. Did you keep anything from your late teens/ early 20â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s with your future daughter in mind? I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t keep anything in the mindset of giving it to my future daughter however some items of jewellery Annabelle took a liking to and now wears everyday which I really nice to see. They hold sentimental value so its lovely to see them have a new lease of life.
<HAZEL.>
What did Feminism mean to you when you were your daughters age? I can’t remember really thinking about feminism when I was 19. Growing up with three sisters and one brother the girls in the family had expectations that they could achieve whatever they set for themselves. As the third oldest I was the first in the family to go to university and didn’t ever feel that this wasn’t an option for me- although it wasn’t an expectation. I didn’t notice or join any feminist movements when I went to university although I did meet different groups of people that were far more politically and culturally aware than I was at this time. Which key Political and Feminist movements do you remember from your young adulthood? I can only say that I felt empowered enough to make my own choices without feeling that I had to ask permission or was
expected to conform to others expectations. Having Tom, my eldest child,
after my second year of Uni and going back to Uni after a year out was against the expectation of my role in that situation
-but completing my degree was also a priority for me at that time- luckily so I have been teaching ever since. What do you think are the similarities and differences between you and your daughters’ experiences? Both within fashion and feminist political issues? It seems to me that Ellie is, and has been since she could voice a choice,more aware of fashion trends than I was. She is also clear in her mind about what she likes and why she would or wouldn’t follow a trend – I would say making far less “fashion mistakes”.As a result, Ellie is more aware of designers, seasonal trends and the next thing, probably due to her interest in fashion which I didn’t really have to the same degree. Did you keep anything from your late teens/ early 20’s with your future daughter in mind? Ellie regularly curses me for
not keeping any items I had from my late teens/early twenties. I did keep my wedding dress, which was a gold bias cut evening dress from the early 90’s. Ellie loves it and she is waiting for an occasion when she can wear it.
<ELLIE.> In which ways do you connect with your mum when she was your age? I connect with my Mum in two ways. Firstly, through style. I find myself thinking everything I see my mum wore at 19 is something I would one hundred percent wear now. I think this is because the cycle of trends has happened to fall perfectly on mine and my mumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s generation.
History has a way of repeating itself. Secondly, I connect with my mum on
personality traits way. We are both very straight talking, no faffing committed people. We both work solely towards our goals be it life or career (some may say we
are control freaks).
In your opinion do you think politically within feminism society has moved forward from when your mum was your age? And in Which ways do you or donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t you think so? I do think that things within feminism have moved forwards from when my mum was my age, in the way that the barriers we face are no longer obvious rules/restraints.
However, there are many subliminal issues within my generation such as within sexuality and issues with female safety. Please give examples of any items passed down from your mum/grandma and why/how they mean something to you. I have a few items passed down to me from my mum. One being a gold ring that my Dad bought for my mums 21st birthday. Its special to me because it signifies my parent’s relationship and allows me to feel even closer to my mum as a young woman herself. Another item is a silk nightie my mum wore when she was in her early 20’s apart from it being on trend with the 90’s revival it also gives me pleasure to see my mum happy when I wear it.
<HILLY.> In which ways do you connect with your mum when she was your age? Looking back at pictures of her, in some she dresses preppy in pearls and in others she will be in big flares and big hair. Focusing on each image you would think she was a completely different person. I connect with her in terms of never conform-
ing to one particular way of dressing. In your opinion do you think things politically and within feminism have moved forward since your mum was your age? I think feminism has come a long way since when my mum was my age. I think people arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t afraid to speak their mind, especially with the influence of social
media.
Please give any examples of passed down items from your mum/grandma and why/how they mean something to you. I have a pair of leopard print jeans from when my mum was in the 80â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. I think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cool having something no one else has, especially with fast fashion being so huge and people all dressing the same.
<JO.> What did Feminism mean to you when you were your daughters age? When I was Hilaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s age my depth and knowledge of Feminism was very limited, a lot more so than Hilaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is. I was aware of feminism in the very literal state of women wanting to be like men. In terms of roles in society. I think Hilary has a much deeper boarder idea of what feminism means and can mean and I think this is due to both her growing up with social media and also studying on FCP and therefore being expected to be culturally aware. Which key Political and Feminist movements do you remember from your young adulthood? I remember the campaigners for peace, particularly Greenham Common. They appeared to be predominantly women. I also remember fashion changing in the 60â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s allowing girls to wear clothes that were liberating, there was a revolution amongst young people. We were the first generation freed from Victorian age, austerity and strictness. tions.
We were the first generation to begin to see boys and girls as equal with no boundaries. Except the ones imposed by older genera What do you think are the similarities and differences between you and your daughters’ experiences? Both within fashion and feminist political issues? I think there has been a revival of unisex clothing in my daughter’s generation just as there was in mine. However, there are differences. One being the idea that my generation were fighting for equality within rights and my daughter’s generation in my opinion is fighting for acceptance of all kinds. Did you keep anything from your late teens/ early 20’s with your future daughter in mind?There are a few fashion items I have kept from my youth however only a few items have been adopted by my daughters. I think this is because even though trends repeat themselves they often become slightly diluted. and modernised so some of the items I have kept are a bit too outdated or take the current trends a slight bit too far.