School: Liath-Mhuine

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1. Old Crafts (continued)

   

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   First of all it had to be sown, when it was ripe and fit for pulling a mehel was gathered and it was pulled and left to steep in a flax pond. The people always ended their day in merriment by having a dance that night. When the flax was steeped enough it was taken out and left to dry. The next day it was scutched by a mehel of girls, who went about from house to house with a scutching block and a scutching handle. When this job was done it had to be spun with a spinning wheel. After this it was wound round spools, and it was woven into sheets by a weaver on a loom. We have still a home made linen sheet, it was made on hundred year ago.

   The old people also knit their own stockings. They always washed their fleeces of wool a couple of times until the wool was snow-white. When it was dry a number of girls gathered to the house where the wool was carded. Each person had a pair of cards and while they were carding the wool, jokes and laughter passed round. When this was done it was spun into thread with a spinning wheel. If they were going to knit a pair of stockings they prefered them coloured. The dye was made out of oak-bark. The bark was boiled in a pot with water, when it was boiled the thread was put into the pot and left there until the water boiled, it was then taken out and left to dry and when dry it was a brown colour.

   They used to have their clothes snow-white

   (continues on next page)

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. activities
      1. economic activities
         1. trades and crafts (~4,680)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Sadie Henry

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Cartron, Co. Sligo