FashBlog.com

It’s becoming more frequent that I find myself wondering how women managed years ago. Thinking about how many gadgets we now have reinforces how spoiled we are and how easy we have it. With so many doo-hickeys to choose from, and so many products on store shelves, we really have it easy.

We use our Cuisinarts to chop stuff for stuffing. We vacuum with the vacuum and wash clothes and dishes in their respective washers. It’s nice to have a big stove and oven, and fridge storage. And that microwave! I’d have a good deal of difficulty without it.

Which household appliance would be the most difficult to remove from your life? Even a more difficult question to answer, what fashion appliance would be the most difficult to remove from your life?

My daughter answered, with no hesitation, “My flatiron” and some of you men may say either your electric shaver or electric toothbrush. But there are many more items available to help us in our quest for beauty. Actually, with all that’s out there, we should all be walking around looking like a million bucks.

Take, for example, the lowly hair dryer. Now, it’s commonplace for hotels to offer the use of one in every room. But, I still occasionally take mine along if my current style demands the use of a round brush. Like many of you, I get used to my own hair dryer and know exactly what to expect at different heat levels, unlike the somewhat unreliable results I’ve gotten from a “stranger” that the hotel provides. Some folks use the light device that whitens their teeth, so that could be another appliance they may become addicted to, while others clean their contact lenses in a special gizmo that does a better job enzyming the little buggers than an overnight soak ever could. There are still ladies out there who occasionally use hot rollers, but I myself never got into having to wait until they warm up...it doesn't seem like the set has enough curlers, anyway. In my opinion, a curling iron isn’t much better, either-although I have worked with women who would plug theirs into the company bathroom to heat up for a special date after work. Have you ever used one of those nail dryers? I haven’t, but I guess they serve their purpose, since they’re still around. You can’t forget sun beds or sunlamps, either.

Appliances don’t necessarily refer just to those operating on a household current; we have loads of other thingamajigs that help us put our best foot forward, in terms of overall appearance. Think tweezers, clippers, emery boards, bobby pins, even combs and brushes and special hair picks, not to mention rollers, hair pieces, false fingernails and waxing kits. What did women do before this stuff was readily available?

It’s rather interesting to ask yourself what you could most easily eliminate to see where you current addiction falls; as you probably have guessed, it changes with time. Right now, in terms of fashion appliances, I’d choose a hair dryer. But when you come right down to it, we really don’t need those things with plugs. Manual shavers and toothbrushes do a perfectly adequate job, and the results from flatirons and curling irons last less than a day, at the most. It would probably be much more difficult to remove a domestic appliance than a beauty/fashion appliance.

For example, as far as domestic appliances, I could do without the radio, and would use a library computer if mine crashed. But a microwave is an island unto itself, providing me with homey leftovers or cup of tea in 60 seconds. I can warm a sandwich, soup or any other snack in less than a minute, and it never fails to soften icing, fudge sauce, and even frozen Cool Whip. It lets me whiz through the drudgery and get right to the heart of eating, saving me time for more important things. Nothing else offers such immediate gratification. I could never go back to a pioneer existence without a microwave, just like my daughter could never face the world with curls. We all have our own ideas about what’s important.