SPINNING WHEEL PAINTED RUNNING SHEEP FULL

If you were waiting for a new pair of socks or a new jumper, you’d help out with the other jobs so that the mother could spin the wool. At the age of seven or eight you were able to knit properly and most winter nights and wet days were spent knitting. They would swap stories of different dyes and give presents of nice colours to their neighbours. The spinning wheel demonstrating on the night is over one hundred years old and forty years ago the lady’s uncle put new spokes into the wheel.Ī spinning wheel never left the house, if the woman of the house was carding or spinning and neighbours called in, she could “card away” and chat at the same time. Spinning wheels were all home made and kept repaired there was usually somebody in the village that handmade them. It was more than likely that wood which came ashore was used for making the spinning wheels there was no money or transport to go to town for timber. Donegal and Kerry had a small wheel you sat down at and worked by foot. The big spinning wheel was most common to Mayo and Galway. Some areas layered the moss through the wool to get different shades. Blackberries, sloes and leaves from different evergreens were also used.ĭifferent counties had different methods of spinning and dyeing the wool. “Shroughlough” was the local Irish name for a fungus or moss that grew on rocks it gave shades of yellow, white and green. Also used for colours were heathers from the bog, roots of water lily and the roots of heathers, whin or gorse bush flowers and seaweed. To dye the wool onion peels were boiled in water and the wool was placed into it. You’d be delighted and even offer to do it because you’d get to wait up longer.

SPINNING WHEEL PAINTED RUNNING SHEEP FULL

As children we would wait for the spindle to be full up so that we could roll it up, especially if it was near bed time.

When the spindle was full it was taken off and a new spindle was put on. Both hands were needed to ensure the roll was even and taut as it went onto the spindle. A band connected the wheel to the spindle, which turned the spindle. The roll of carded wool was put on the spindle and the big wheel was turned around. It might be a few days later when you got back to the spinning, you’d spend the night spinning, make two good balls of thread, then you wouldn’t be long running up a jumper. Once the wool was carded it was made into rolls and left in a big box for spinning at a later date. Carding the wool was done to get all the fibres even in it experience would tell you when they were even. The teased wool was placed between the teeth of the two cards and pulled back and forth. Cards are two paddle type implements which have wire teeth. The wool then needed to be teased and carded. Once the wool was washed it was taken out of the bucket and laid out on the grass or up on a stone fence to dry. It was amazing to see how all the dirt and bits of grass would come out by just using plain water. Soap was not used as it would take the natural oils out of the wool. The wool was then taken and washed in a bucket of water, very gently. Raddle was a paint used to identify one’s own sheep, usually red or blue colours, and applied on the sheep’s back or neck after shearing. Most sheep had “raddle” on them and this was also cut off. Once the sheep were sheared, the wool was prepared for washing. Every house around the area had a spinning wheel it was given a prominent place in the kitchen, people had to walk around it and nobody was allowed to touch it apart from the woman of the house as the big wheel was important but dangerous for children. The spinning wheel was the main engine in the house, everyone depended on it.

Spinning wheel painted running sheep