Pre-industrial revelations

What is it?

Pre Industrial Revelations is about the revelations that come when something that has been created by the maker from scratch.

You know that feeling you get when you have been involved in every process of making something like a beautiful dinner, or a loaf of bread. Tiling a bathroom or finally putting up a hook for your coat.

Nowadays, we don’t do an awful lot for ourselves. We buy in labour in the form of food, clothing, washing machines, cars, shelter, friends………… the list goes on and it would depress me too much to continue. Yet what happens when you come across someone who has just made something?

“Look at what I’ve made/done!” bursting with the pride of a three year old.

When we become involved in the world about us, in creating our worlds then our lives become richer. There is also always something left of the maker of a hand knitted jumper, a length of cloth or a wonky mug tree that was your first attempt at carpentry. Yes there are imperfections and the odd lump and bump in obvious places, or the jam might be teeth rottenly sweet but you insist on a second taste. Next time it will be better… you are hooked.

The amount of people who say “all this is well and good Clare-but I haven’t got the time!” this is true. They haven’t got the time. One of the reasons could be that they are out at work earning money to buy in labour. Another reason could be that hand skills can be deceptively simple and therefore frustrating to learn and life is too short. Skills only become enjoyable when we are relatively fluent in them. It takes time and patience to learn new skills and this is the achievement.

So go on, try making something from scratch today. Make a cake in celebration of the start of your pre-industrial revelations.

Life did exist before plastic you know!