I’m a traveller – the real reason we cover our furniture in plastic has nothing to do with the way we live now
A TRAVELLER has lifted the lid on the real reason they cover their furniture in plastic – and it’s nothing to do with modern day life.
Suzy, who goes by @cuzinsuzy92 on Tik Tok, addressed questions about people in her culture putting plastic on their homeware.
The mum-of-one pointed out that living on the road means you’re more likely to get dirt and debris coming in when the door is open.
People were curious about how “comfortable” putting plastic on your sofa is, with one person suggesting it would make the seats “cold in the winter and sticky in the summer”.
Suzy explained: “Back in the day, we used to live on the side of the road in what you guys call caravans. We call them trailers.
“And we moved around a lot when we was children – and I mean a lot.
“We never stayed in one place too long.
“I remember a time where my grandad was actually pulling a wagon with us.
“And when you’re pulled about as a child and moving around, you’re normally staying in places like fields, on the side of the road, down an old back road.”
She revealed that her family also lived in a forest for a short space of time.
She continued: “And you can imagine when you’re pulling on the side of the road, you have dust and dirt surrounding you – or you’re in the middle of a forest.
“And when you’re in a field, there’s gonna be dirt, do you know what I mean?
“Because you’re in the middle of nowhere, there’s nothing around you but grass and fields and dirt and trees.
“So it’s just easier to keep everything clean if you just put plastic on it.
“To replace a bunk in a trailer is expensive.
“I don’t know what it’s like now, but back in the day we were just up and down on the sides of the road.”
Suzy noted that everyone she knew growing up covered their furniture – including sofas, rugs and even tables – in plastic.
Some travellers even cover the front of their fridges in plastic.
She added: “Times have changed now – you can’t really travel around like you used to when I was younger.
“You get moved on a lot more often now.
“You can’t really stay in those kind of places.
“I remember staying in places for weeks at a time back in the day.”
Suzy also noted that “children don’t know how to keep anything clean” so it’s important to protect your furniture from sticky hands and muddy shoes.
For travellers, putting plastic on things saves money as they don’t have to rebuy new furniture when it gets grubby – they just need to replace the plastic.
Suzy is “settled” in a house now but still puts plastic on her furniture both out of tradition and cleanliness.