Old Style

[diamond lil]

I'd like to start a new thread here... one that covers general Old Style living. Things your granny did or taught you. Things you once read or discovered. Things you saw on tv like "The Victorian Farm" or "The 1940 House" etc.. Anything & everything that would or could come under the heading of Old Style living - that we can use, post them here-This could also cover thrift and make-do-and-mend type topics.

[the-gnole]

My Granny was head cook of a posh hotel that her sister was manageress of, she lived in the country during the 2nd war and had two refugees to look after, a country outlook meant local produce and local meat, they didn't have much hardship to pass on any tips. And as a bloke my Granny didn't tell me much about housewifey things, and my Grandpa was a copper and painter and decorator and storeman at a lighting factory, sadly the kind of stuff that didn't really inspire much "Old style" living I'm affraid to say

[dch]

its a good idea this, i remember years ago being told by a wood work teacher that we should look at how things are put together to become better wood workers, well i;m not the worlds best wood worker but i tend to look at all sorts of "things" and can always come up with a make do/fix,

my best one to date was on holiday aged 11, and the cars exhaust snapped on to, we poped into a garage to get one of those bandage things in a vain attempt to get rid of the tractor sound track, me being curious picket up two or three of these exhaust u-bolt clamp things, fast forward to me under the car with cheap plyiers a food can with both ends of and cut down its length and the clamps toped of with the bandage, it not only got use home but through an MOT and to the scrap yard (due to rust) think and look and have a can do attitude, it sounds american i know but become "mr can do" it will take you a long way. that and duct tape

[mikeandrod]

On the "being thrifty" subject my favourite at the moment is stop buying fabric softener and buy distilled white vinegar - in bulk if you can. I got my last lot from a local Chinese supermarket of all places, about £2.75 for 5 litres - cheaper than fabric softener I think. And no, your clothes don't smell of vinegar, just clean and fresh. Just pour some in the softener compartment of your washing machine, I tried experimenting with different amounts and now I use exactly one glug...
I have to say though that for the last few weeks I've been doing all the washing by hand. There are only 2 of us but it takes me about 15 to 20 minutes each day. At the moment I stick the central heating on for an hour a day anyway so I thought I might as well use the hot water and save using the washing machine. Might not save much each time but it all adds up.

[diamond lil]

I cook only from scratch, and I try hard to menu plan. To use up yesterdays leftovers in tomorrows meals. The way they had to live in the hungry pre-war years and how we might soon have to again if prices keep going up! And lets face it, we all need to add to that stash - every penny we save can go towards something we might one day really need . I'd get the family used to good filling old-fashioned dinners as a way of life.
Re gadgets - Just so much more clutter in life- and things to go wrong and need fixed -and then you find you cant live without them...blahdeblah. Electric tin openers. Carving knives. Bread slicers. Yoghurt makers. Sausage makers. Toothbrushes. Just clutter. All the fancy electric gadgets on the planet wont be the slightest bit of use if the power goes off. I'd buy hand tools & manual tin openers while they still exist !

[diamond lil]

My dad was a real old-style countryman, and he had such a simplicity of seeing things.. I was sat in a freezing house one winter with 3 kids and no coal. He took us a walk up the hill and we collected all the fallen wood we found & put it in bags. My youngest was crying with the cold and my dad stuck him in a bin bag and tied it at the neck instant windchill reduction . Went home, and he soaked old newspapers in cooking oil, rolled them up and stuffed them in the fire beside the wood, lit it and we were cosy. I would never have thought of collecting wood. How stupid is that ?
He was a great poacher, but only ever took "one for the pot". Had a knack of being totally invisible if he wanted to, which I inherited but which never came in handy for me LOL. He could tell you all about the birds & game, and he respected them which people now never do. We might one day have to learn that all over again.

[preppingsu]

I agree with the gadgets - we rely on far too much 'stuff' that runs on electricity.
I was in my history lecture the other day, we were looking at he 1950's. The lecturer has lots of artefacts and she had (still boxed) a prestige Hand Whisk! My first thought was ' oh, I could do with that!!!!!!!' We need to be looking for the 'old' hand tools whether for cooking, DIY, gardening etc. Getting back to basics, hand power. Use them now and then we are used to them if tshtf with regards to power.
I will be visiting car boots etc from the spring to search for such items (and OH agrees - especially as I said it would be for woodworking tools as well)

Looking at things like white vinegar for a softener, it is also good for cleaning, add a little bicarb to clean ovens and hobs, sinks etc. Soda Cystals are great for putting down the drain, bicarb for smells (especially on top of vomit!), lemon juice etc. All good natural stuff.

[Carrot Cruncher]

One old skill I fancy learning is basket weaving. If you can weave a basket you can weave a lobster pot, a fence, a wall, various traps, all sorts of things.

There are plenty of courses around as it's apparently all the rage these days. Looking on the web the day courses seem to start around £40, but there are plenty of you tube clips and websites around if you want / need to do it all yourself.

Another I have been interested in for quite a while is construction techniques used in the Iron Age Round Houses, how much use it would be now is debatable as they used large quantities of material even to build a modest roundhouse but it is still interesting and the techniques may still come in handy even if you use different materials.

[janso]

Has anyone starting looking at courses for low-impact living? Usually found through eco websites, place like Lammas project... Look through the links to find various courses on offer that are maybe nearby to your location. I've looked up various sites like Lammas and Ben Law and after a bit of searching some great places - definitely an area i'd like to get involved in - money permitting!!

Has anyone been watching 'Rome wasnt built in a day'??

[diamond lil]

CC any of the old skills might one day come in handy eh - you just never know! I like to watch the drystane dykers round here, it looks so satisfying and peaceful out in the wilds working alone. Some of them have a dog for company and share their "piece" .I love how the Time Team can always find "an expert" on whatever obscure skill is needed. Many people in this country must be into stuff like that and really enjoy their work. I watched one episode of that prog Janso and that was enough.