Carol Barnes – Grandma Brocklesby was born Rosetta Clark on the 18th December 1891. Died 8th November 1970.
She was my Dad Harold Brocklesby’s Mother. Granddad owned three cottages in North Street next to what was once the Hillside Bowling Club. Grandma and Granddad had one cottage their window looked out onto the bowling green and they had to pay an annual rent for the privilege! One was rented to the Callow family and we had the other. Granddad died when I was 5 in 1953.
Most evenings I would go round to Grandma’s house after tea. Some evenings we would get the family bible out and I was allowed under supervision to turn the pages to where the pictures were. I loved the winter evenings best when the room was lit by gas.
Grandma kept “bit bags”. There was one for lace, one for wool, and one for cotton. Nothing was ever thrown away. When clothes were past wearing they would have the buttons cut off. Coats and tweed things would be cut into strips for making snip rugs. Lace collars were detached and material recycled and made up into something else. Sheets when worn in the middle would be cut in half and the edges would be sewn in the middle. She would make rag dolls for selling at the bring and buy stalls proceeds usually destined to the Methodist Church. She sent for the dolls faces from a catalogue I remember.
I was taught how do satin stitch, herring bone stitch and to hem. I made handkerchiefs out of old pillowcases, scalloped the edges and embroidered them giving them to my family for Christmas presents.
The sewing machine had a long shuttle not round like today and I was taught how to thread it. I was then allowed to sew a straight line and we gradually progressed until I was allowed to use the machine unsupervised.
We would listen to the Archers at a quarter to seven as we worked together. Such lovely memories of an era long gone.