Did you know that Rosie the Riveters real name is Mary Doyle Keefe? The original Rosies the Riveter was made famous after a painting of her by Norman Rockwell first appeared in 1943 on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post and, later, on war bond posters. Keefe, who was paid $10 to pose, came to embody the can-do attitude of American women whose work helped win the war. It is arguably among the most recognizable images of World War II and transformed Keefe from a small-town switchboard operator into an American icon.

In a USA Today article, Keefe tells the story of how she was living with her family in Arlington, Vt., at the time, not far from where Rockwell lived with his family and had a studio.”The telephone office was in my mom’s house, and he would come in to pay his bill,” Keefe recalled, in the article. “He knew who I was and asked if I would sit for a picture. Gene Pelham, his photographer who moved from New York, would take a picture and Norman Rockwell would cut out what he wanted. You didn’t sit there while he was painting the whole thing, which was good.”

Keefe described how she had received endless ribbing about the now famous image of a brawny working woman breaking for lunch with a ham sandwich in hand, pneumatic riveter on her lap and copy of Hitler’s Mein Kampf underfoot. Her body looked nothing like that in real life, said Keefe, especially the muscular arms.

Rockwell sent her a written apology.”The kidding you took was all my fault, because I really thought you were the most beautiful woman I had ever seen,” Rockwell wrote in the 1967 letter.

Now 87 and living in an apartment at the McLean Home, Keefe tells her full story in this article from USA Today.

Hi Rosies Crew,

My little action video of me capturing a honeybee swarm last week, features me wearing my Rosies coveralls‚ make no mistake that I’m trusting my Rosies. Whether it’s a mere 10,000 honeybees or when I’m in the apiary working with about 480,000 of them! The video is too large to attach to an email, but it’s posted on my website here http://www.vtbeekeeper.com/photosyear3.html, at the bottom of the page, You need Flash to view it. I have plans to modify the wrist opening. I’m going to take out a few stitches in the side of the cuff, so that I can put some elastic through it, and then sew it back up. I need to make sure that the little darling honeybees can’t crawl up my sleeves!

Best wishes,
Valarie Wilson

1. You prefer a dirt manicure to a french one
2. Your alarm clock has feathers
3. You consider shiny power tools bling
4. Your idea of a desk job is building one.
5. You literally bring home the bacon (all 1200 pounds)

… how do you know? Leave a comment!

Are you a Rosie?

‘Rosie’ and coverall fan Leah Petersen was featured in “Street Monster,” a French stunting magazine, wearing her Rosies coveralls. She is one bad-ass, street biker chick! Click the image below to see the full spread in “Street Monster.”

Leah Petersen in her Rosies

Check out Rosies on Style, Substance, Soul – an awesome website for women. It was started by four mothers who say “watching our girls grow up in a world which focuses solidly on style has made us keenly aware of the need to throw some substance and soul into the mix.”

Unlike other style or fashion websites, stylesubstancesoul.com showcases products, work and style tips by women with substance. There are some great women on the site who are doing some pretty amazing things, just like Rosies in Action.

Send us a video of you in action, wearing your Rosies coveralls or overalls, and you will be entered to win an entire Rosies ensemble!

Rosies ensemble includes a coverall or overall of your choice, complete with one of Rosies new matching t-shirts or tank tops! And of course, a coordinating Rosies bandana.

Simply email movie file or YouTube link to info@rosiesworkwear.com. Video submissions are due by July 31st.

We will post select “Rosies in Action” video submissions on the Rosies Blog, so check back often to see entertaining video posts!
Sincerely,

Sharon Moore
Rosies Coveralls

It’s summer time! For flower gardeners, it’s time to plant, divide, feed, deadhead, fertilize, and trim! Check out these summer gardening tips from Sherry’s Flower Garden

• Plant fall blooming bulbs in June.
• Divide daffodils and hyacinths in early June.
• Plant gladiolas in early June for bloom this summer.
• Sow biennial seeds during summer months
• Feed roses with a complete fertilizer in June.
• Deadhead flowers for continuous bloom through the season.
• Plant perennial seeds for next year at the end of June.
• Stake and tie perennials.
• Trim hedges and topiaries in June.
• Plant fall pansy seeds in July.
• Clean up spring bulbs after foliage has ripened.
• Fertilize all flowering annuals every two weeks during summer.
• Cut back baby’s breath in July for a second late summer bloom.
• Sow poppy seeds outdoors in August.
• Divide bearded iris and lily of the valley bulbs in August.
• Water container plants daily during hot dry weather

Hey Rosies – Did you know that Father’s Day was the idea of Sonora Smart Dodd of Washington? She thought independently of the holiday one Sunday in 1909 while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon at the Central Methodist Episcopal Church at Spokane, and she arranged a tribute for her father on June 19, 1910. It was made a federal holiday when President Lyndon Johnson issued a proclamation in 1966. In addition to Father’s Day, International Men’s Day is celebrated in many countries, most often on November 19. Check out this article for more information.

So we want to know – how has your father inspired you? Please feel free to post your Father’s Day comments!

Happy Fathers Day

By the end of her work day, Kerriann is covered in grease. And so are the 13 men on her team. It’s definitely really dirty work, but I love it, says Kerriann Dick. Kerriann is an intermediate welder at Aker, a shipyard in Philadelphia. She welds together the grand blocks which are the biggest pieces of oil tankers.

Kerriann decided to become a welder after she had her daughter. She wanted a new job that would be a change of pace and would pay well. She took an introductory class to welding at Pennsylvania College of Technology and knew that welding was what she wanted to do.

2 years later, Kerriann had earned her Associates Degree in Applied Sciences and Welding. She has now been welding for years and has been working in the shipyard since February. Of the over 800 shipyard workers, only 7 are women.

I once had a Polish guy say, This is no work for women‚ it’s dangerous and it is scary. Even for guys it’s scary, said Kerriann.

At her job, Kerriann has to wear coveralls to protect her from flames and grime. Although the welders can wear overalls in the summer, they must wear leather slips over their arms for protection.

They give us Carhartt coveralls, but they are not as comfortable as my Rosies. Plus us women are half the size of the men, so it’s really hard to find something that fits, said Kerriann who is excited for other female welders to find out about Rosies. We have to wear kneepads and I’ve gotten bruises from the kneepad straps before , so the insertable knee pads in Rosies are awesome.

Check out this video to see how welders like Kerriann build large oil tankers.

This as a quick way to use a lot of rock, depending on the width and height of your border.

• Start by planning the size and shape of the area. Use a garden hose to outline the shape.

• Remember before you get dirty, to put Rosies Overalls on over your clothes.

• Use a spade shovel to dig up the grass around the garden hose. Dig up an six inch width trench only a couple inches deep.

• Bring in your rocks and piece them together like a puzzle. Start with larger rocks at the bottom and build up. Make sure the rocks fit snug together.

• Back fill topsoil behind the rock to stabilize it. Pack it down.

• Once you create a full border on all sides, fill with top soil.

… For full article click here