Hobble skirt postcard 1911

Nowadays pencil skirts are a basic part of any female (work) wardrobe. This classy fashion item came to life in a very interesting way. Let me take you back to 1908…

In that year two brothers named Wilbur and Orville Wright, allowed the first female passenger, Mrs Berg to their aeroplane. Apparently this was quite a challenge. Mrs Berg was wearing a long skirt. Propellers of the aeroplane rotated very closely to her and the wind was blowing her skirt. To prevent accidents, the two men tied a rope around the ankles of Mrs Berg. And that was the very early beginning of a new fashion trend.

The flight and especially the skirt of Mrs Berg, became a hot topic in  newspapers and magazines around the globe. It didn’t take long before designers spotted the pictures and turned it into a new trend with a new name: The hobble skirt. Which was also known as the speed limit skirt. Since the skirt was “roped” around the knee your speed of walking had indeed a limit. It also created a wiggle in the walk of the person who was wearing the skirt. (Which is why tight pencil skirts are also referred to as wiggle skirt nowadays). Besides that, it required walking gracefully. Also stumbling over your own feet was important to avoid. The original hobble skirt craze didn’t last long, but was a forerunner of today’s mermaid gowns that are often seen on Hollywood’s red carpet and in bridal fashion.

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motivational inspirational quote

The oneliner “Good things come to those who wait”, never appealed to me. How does that work anyway? You just sit around and wait and then suddenly you’ll get smacked with all the things you want? Only in Hollywood (movies) or your dreams. Besides that: if something is worth it, you always have to work for it. That applies to everything. From a great job and good friendships to a nice house and a stable relationship. It’s all part of the continuous work-hard-for-it game.

While you are working very hard for example to get a great job, a little thing called impatience comes looking around the corner. Because you actually want it like…right now. Right now isn’t always on the menu, so you have to work harder. The thing is: if you believe that you’ll end up where you want to be, you will. Because where there is a will, there is a way. In this case your impatience will be your motivation.

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