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September 25, 2007
Cool Waulkings
I got to do some really cool things while I was in Salt Lake City. I had sushi. I had Chateaubriand. And fry sauce. I had huevos rancheros. And I even had a martini or two. But surprisingly, the coolest thing I did had nothing to do with food. Those of you who know me may need a moment or two to absorb that statement. It's true, though. The coolest thing I did was to participate in a waulking.
You can read all about waulking wool at House of Scotland. And yes, that's the same site Margene linked to last week. Honestly, it's the most information I found about waulking on the internets. And I love all those photos.
My photos are perhaps a bit less serious but I think they are remarkably similar in feel to the ones at House of Scotland. Wanna see?
We laughed and laughed - it was just so much fun and also so cool to participate in such an ancient ritual for finishing woven fabric. Should you ever be invited to a help at a waulking, I strongly suggest that you participate. You might get a little wet and soapy but you'll have a blast, I promise.
Posted by Carole at September 25, 2007 7:00 AM
Comments
It was my third waulking (all with Anne) and I wouldn't miss it for anything. I was so happy to see her setting up and knew you would all enjoy it, too.
Posted by: margene at September 25, 2007 7:36 AM
I am SO glad I was dragged into it. It was one of the highlights of my stay too :-)
Posted by: Kim at September 25, 2007 7:50 AM
That looks like SO much fun!
Hey....I LOVE huevos rancheros:)
Posted by: Robin in VA at September 25, 2007 8:07 AM
Chateaubriand!! Delicious!
Waulking looks like great fun.
Posted by: Karen at September 25, 2007 8:28 AM
Looks like fun!
Posted by: Manise at September 25, 2007 8:45 AM
How fun!
Posted by: Kathy at September 25, 2007 9:23 AM
How absolutely cool is that? Thanks for the link, I never knew of such things. It's nice to see that there is some preservation to old ways.
Posted by: Dave Daniels at September 25, 2007 9:33 AM
You really do look like you're having a great time!
Posted by: Julie at September 25, 2007 9:35 AM
Did you sing songs too? Are they in English or Gaelic?
Posted by: Cheryl at September 25, 2007 9:57 AM
So will you be having Waulk With Me Wednesdays?
Posted by: Lucia at September 25, 2007 10:01 AM
I can imagine how much fun it was to share that with friends and soon to be friends!
Posted by: Kristi aka Fiber Fool at September 25, 2007 10:06 AM
That is so cool! I'd never even heard of waulking before!
Posted by: Erin at September 25, 2007 10:28 AM
Chateaubriand..I don't know what it is, but it sounds delicious! Looks like you had such a wonderful time! I like that spinning wheel in the background.
Posted by: Teresa at September 25, 2007 10:35 AM
I notice that you have the fabric rolled up in a long tube in many of the pictures... do the inner layers get fulled just by chafing against each other? Anyway, it's fascinating to see how a little (ha! I bet it was very tiring) rough handling can accomplish the same task as a modern washer/dryer.
Posted by: Beth S. at September 25, 2007 10:38 AM
Such pretty fabric!
Posted by: Chris at September 25, 2007 11:25 AM
Golly, that's a new one for me!
It does look like fun - thanks for the link!
Posted by: christine at September 25, 2007 11:30 AM
Looks like fun!
There are Scots in Utah? Who knew?
Posted by: Cookie at September 25, 2007 11:58 AM
That was a delightful surprise, to help out with the waulking. So cool.
Posted by: Teresa C at September 25, 2007 1:56 PM
Looks like you all were having a great time! :o)
Posted by: JessaLu at September 25, 2007 2:07 PM
Just imagine trying to do something like that by yourself. Together the chore becomes fun.
Posted by: Wool Winder at September 25, 2007 2:43 PM
so did you guys use stale urine and the melted livers of dogfish? because having smelled dogfish and stale urine i can't imagine i'd be smiling while working.
Posted by: maryse at September 25, 2007 3:21 PM
Wow! Pretty cool! I'd never heard of it, but it sounds like quite a time!
Posted by: Tina at September 25, 2007 5:09 PM
Glad you were using soap instead of the urine... ick! Did you all sing? Looks absolutely interesting. I'll definitely have to check into that on my next summer trip back to Utah (which may be next year for dad's retirement).
Posted by: ~Kristie at September 25, 2007 5:53 PM
Interesting! Yes, I'm wondering if you all sang, too.
Posted by: Beth at September 25, 2007 9:37 PM
Did you guys all sing? The singing sounds like the best part.
Posted by: Stephanie at September 26, 2007 12:34 AM
In Cape Breton it's called a milling frolic; http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Ceilidh/index_play.html My cousin is in one of the videos for the museum as he spoke fluent Gaelic. This village is wonderful if anyone is interested in visiting...they even have a carding mill on site. I try to visit every time I go to Canada. Looks like everyone had fun!
Posted by: maggie at September 27, 2007 12:30 AM
Those pictures turned out great! How fun! Judy and I were singing the Drunk Sailor song all the way home. Ha!
Posted by: Kim at September 27, 2007 9:04 AM
