Coloured ribbon on a straw hat
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (381822)
Rockingham, Australia
April 14, 2026 4:09am CST
The world was very different when my mother was growing up. She was born in 1910 and at one stage was working in a department store. She saved enough to buy a new straw hat which had a multi-coloured ribbon around the brim.
When she took it home, her mother made her replace the coloured ribbon with a black one. She must have been in her late teens/early twenties when this happened. She had a really tough mother, who in turn had had a really tough life so you can understand it to some degree. But I always feel sad for my Mum over some of the things that happened in her life.
The photo of a lovely rose was taken by Vince.
20 people like this
21 responses
@JordanLader (7386)
• Sparta, Tennessee
14 Apr
Times have most certainly changed and yet stayed the same. There are still some that would probably replace the muti-color ribbon. There are some that just enjoy color while others will see a meaning.
What's that old phrase or maybe it's just something that's been floating around for a while but it's something like With as much as times change the more they stay the same.
I feel like it's true you just see it differently.
3 people like this
@SIDIKIMPOLE (3480)
• Eldoret, Kenya
14 Apr
That is very nostalgic. Well I am yet to figure out why your grandma made your mum replace the multicoloured ribbon with a black one.
3 people like this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Apr
My grandmother thought a coloured ribbon wasn't ladylike but that wasn't really true.
@rebelann (117199)
• El Paso, Texas
14 Apr
Being a woman in the early 1900s or before was hard as they were considered to be either property of their fathers or husbands and rarely had a say of their own. I know my mom had a tough life, she was born in 1916.
That photo is stunning.
2 people like this
@FourWalls (86580)
• United States
15 Apr
That's sad. I wonder what the ribbon meant to your grandmother. I know my dad would never wear the color yellow, because when he was growing up that color was associated with gay men.
1 person likes this
@Juliaacv (56208)
• Canada
14 Apr
That is such a lovely photo.
The life lessons that we are raised by seem harsh to the next generation, that is true.
I remember my Gramma telling me things about her growing up, and since there was a generation between us, it seemed so unconceivable in my imagination. Yet the basics, how she taught me this or that in the kitchen do resonate with my son, and there is a generation gap there also.
It is almost impossible to understand exactly what drove people of the next generation to say and do what they did. Experiences that they encountered as well as those of their own parents come into play.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Apr
@Juliaacv So much of what is now history was the norm at the time but now seems really terrible. I'm thinking more of how indigenous people were treated; how countries just took over areas that they 'discovered' or whatever. Child labour, slave labour - it's just how it was at the time. It's awful to look back on but there is nothing you can really do to atone for some of the actions of the past.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (97908)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
14 Apr
That is a beautiful rose. Hey, I remember summers hearing straw hats with colorful ribbons.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (97908)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
15 Apr
@JudyEv I had this really wide one with a red ribbon
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
16 Apr
@RasmaSandra That would have been very pretty.
1 person likes this
@toniganzon (77084)
• Philippines
15 Apr
That's nice to know our parents' stories.
Didn't hear much about my dad's childhood but heard a lot about my mom's from her siblings and my grandparents. Was never close with my dad's family.
1 person likes this
@Traceyjayne (11263)
• United Kingdom
15 Apr
That’s very sad . X it must have upset your Mother terribly.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
16 Apr
She would still talk about it when she was in her 90s so it must have really upset her.
@LindaOHio (222285)
• United States
16 Apr
That's sad; but things were tough back in those days. Lovely rose.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (169439)
• United States
14 Apr
The rose is lovely. My mom was more free spirited and would have embraced colored ribbons, etc. My dad's mom would likely have been more strict. My mom's mom would have liked it, but it would have had to meet grand dad's approval. I have heard he would not let grandmother have a dress that was red or had too much red on it.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Apr
Times were different then. Too much colour wasn't decorous I guess.
@Marilynda1225 (91013)
• United States
14 Apr
That is a very pretty rose 
It always makes me feel a bit sad when I hear stories like you mentioned about your mom. My mom was a bit younger than yours but she had some stories too that made me feel bad for her.
It always makes me feel a bit sad when I hear stories like you mentioned about your mom. My mom was a bit younger than yours but she had some stories too that made me feel bad for her.1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Apr
You just wish things could have been a bit different.
@JudyEv (381822)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Apr
My grandmother thought it wasn't lady-like to have a coloured ribbon.
