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Post by andi on Jul 30, 2015 15:03:21 GMT -5
Thinking along the line of the skills our grandparents had ...
Mending comes to mind, back in the day a patch would be the fix but now a days I see few folks mending clothing. The other day I helped a young lady sew on a button ... All I could think was we are so lacking in basic skills.
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Post by andi on Jul 30, 2015 15:31:34 GMT -5
Being able to kill, catch, or find your own food was considered an essential life skill no matter where one lived, especially during the Great Depression.
While it is true (most)country folks will survive ...
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Post by tirediron on Sept 1, 2015 8:22:45 GMT -5
So many simple skills have been lost due to the ease of manufacture and low cost goods, but the way that the current economy is the low cost goods seem to be getting more expensive, and soon it will be worth fixing instead of replacing. the main reason for the loss of skills is diminishing returns, it is often less expensive to replace than to repair.
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Post by Magus Habilus on Sept 10, 2015 7:58:20 GMT -5
Everything is junk these days, what happened to pride in craftsmanship and "built to last a lifetime?" I guess you have to be human to take pride in one's work, not a machine stamping out crap.I still have jeans from my teenage years sewn by hand. they've outlived EVERYTHING!
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Post by wellrounded on Sept 10, 2015 17:54:37 GMT -5
I still have clothes I made 25 years ago Magus. My daughter is wearing the same maternity clothes I did and my granddaughter is wearing clothes I made for her mum. Clothes I buy now are rubbish unfortunately it's getting pretty hard to find quality fabric as well. I try to look after what I have, having to replace something usually means getting poor quality. It's getting harder and harder to track down quality at any price.
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Post by Magus Habilus on Sept 13, 2015 18:23:39 GMT -5
I like Army surplus IF I can find fresh stuff.
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Post by andi on Dec 4, 2015 20:22:33 GMT -5
Basket making ~ Something that I have not tried to do ... (yet ) We was at a craft show the other day and I got to watch several different ladies making baskets. They used a number of different fibers, along with gifts from nature. The one lady making pine needle baskets. The baskets were each one of a kind and awesome. Longleaf pine needles were used for their length but I was told any long needle pine can be used. I think I need to look into this a little more ... well, a little more than the last time I did research on the subject.
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Post by Magus Habilus on Dec 6, 2015 15:33:50 GMT -5
Its not hard to make the basket, it's hard splitting the willow or hickory saplings to do so,
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Post by andi on Dec 6, 2015 16:27:23 GMT -5
I think I will try a pine needle basket first.
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Post by wellrounded on Dec 6, 2015 22:16:15 GMT -5
My daughter makes baskets and hats from cumbungi (Typha orientalis). Do you guys call it bullrush? It's everywhere here and can be used for everything from food to textiles. She harvests, dries, soaks in hot water for a few minutes then weaves. She hasn't done it for a few years but used to sell a lot of small baskets in my shop.
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Post by andi on Dec 7, 2015 8:28:59 GMT -5
It looks like what we call cattails (Typha) but yes, some folks call them bulrush.
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Post by Magus Habilus on Dec 7, 2015 16:04:26 GMT -5
green hay/straw makes an easy one, but have to be careful how you cure it.
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Post by andi on Dec 7, 2015 20:01:14 GMT -5
green hay/straw makes an easy one, bust have to be careful how you cure it. Do tell ...
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Post by Magus Habilus on Dec 9, 2015 16:55:57 GMT -5
Slowly. you begin to weave it while it's half green and pliable, use only the heavier stalks like 3/16ths or so, after you're done, you turn it upside down over the back of a chair in an unheated room for two weeks.
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Post by andi on Dec 9, 2015 21:18:06 GMT -5
Thanks!
I'll keep that in mind.
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